#my mom had some friends over earlier and one of them has a kid my age and she was talking about how hard it was trying to get a job this-

[three-o-clock-things]

nah but it’s the way my sibling got a job way easier than any of the people i know who are older than fucking 14 and who have experience

[luveline]

How about Steve with a reader who already has a kid? Like they're in their twenties and she has maybe 2 or 3 year old. Her ex isn't in the picture so it's just her. Maybe the fic is Steve finally getting to meet readers son/ daughter. Maybe she has to leave their date earlier due to a babysitter problem and Steve just comes along with her and they spend the night together.

ty for requesting <3 mom!reader, 2k

“Try not to show fear,” you’re saying, your hand pulled tight against his. He savours the softness of it even as the concrete steps to your house force you apart. 

“I’m not scared.” 

“I’m just saying, Steve. Toddlers know when you’re scared.” 

“But I’m not scared.” Steve has handled worse than toddlers. If your kid is anything like you, this will be a walk in the park. 

You grin at him and give him one of your cute shrugs, though shyness he recognises from your first date stiffens your shoulders again as you open your front door. 

Your home is small. The first thing he notices is the cramped space walking in, the tight stairs, but the second thing he notices is the amount of life, photographs that deck the walls and colour everywhere, clothes folded and waiting to be taken upstairs, little shoes in a stand by an open bathroom door. 

“Melanie?” you call. “You okay?” 

Melanie appears in the door with a huge watery frown, who Steve assumes to be your young son smiling on her hip, unperturbed. “I’m so sorry.” 

She’d been incoherent on the phone, though eventually squeezed out that it was nothing wrong with Noah. Melanie’s boyfriend appears to have broken up with her over the phone. 

You scoop Noah off of his babysitter's hip, holding him with far more ease. He drops his face with affection to the curve of your bare shoulder. It’s a shame you and Steve had to come home —you’re wearing the nicest dress he’s ever seen. But not a shame, because Steve’s excited to meet the baby. 

You could’ve sent him home. He assumes this means some level of trust and, better, permanency. If all goes well, he might be able to ask you to go steady soon. He’d love to do it tonight. 

“Don’t worry, Melanie, you can’t help it if something bad happens, can you? I’m really sorry about your boyfriend. Do you need me to drive you home?” 

Melanie sniffles miserably. “No, that’s okay, I can drive. I’m sorry.” 

You rub her arm. “It’s okay, really. We were just gonna have dinner and head home.” 

Steve internalises his reaction to that tidbit well. Melanie gives him a sad smile and passes by, her shoes heavy and smacking as she leaves with a mumbled farewell. 

“She’s a little emotional,” you say sympathetically, before turning your attention to the sleepy kid on your shoulder. “Sorry, Noah, guess you’re stuck with mommy and her new friend. Do you want to say hi?” 

Noah lifts his head, following your hand where you point at Steve, a smile like yours on his lips. 

Steve genuinely isn’t scared of kids, he loves them, and he loves talking to them. “Hi, buddy. It’s nice to meet you.” 

You hum appreciatively. “Go on, say hi to Steve.” 

“Hi,” Noah says quietly. 

Your voice is different around the baby, not any less pretty but softer, and quieter. It has Steve lowering his own voice in an attempt to mimic you. “Hi, bud.” 

“He’s my new best friend,” you explain, ushering Steve closer, your hand touching gently to his shoulder. 

Noah’s even more your image now he’s closer, all your eyes and smile and brightness, but he’s got someone else’s nose, and he’s got a bad case of yawns. You laugh at his scrunched nose, wiping your thumb lightly over his bottom lip. “You want to go to bed, sweet boy?” you ask. 

“No… buppy.” 

“You want your buppy. Okay, I’ll get it for you.” You pull your arm through Steve’s. “Let’s go.” 

He laughs and goes happily. Your kitchen is empty compared to the hallway, it’s surprising, but then you open a cabinet for the aforementioned bubby and a couple of things come tumbling out. “Whoops,” you say, popping Noah down on the floor. “Can you put those away for me, please? Thank you.” 

Noah tries his best, but everything he puts in comes tumbling back out, earning a few high-pitched giggles. You crack the fridge open for a pint of cows milk. 

“He doesn’t have formula?” 

“No, you can give them whole milk after a year, but he doesn’t really need it anymore, it’s just to help him self-soothe at nighttime.” 

“Mom, I can’t do it,” Noah laughs. Steve thinks that great, that laughing. He could’ve had a tantrum (Steve wouldn’t blame him). 

Steve crouches down. “Can I help?” 

Noah gives Steve a smile, eyes squinting nearly entirely shut. “Yes.” 

“Okay, awesome. Looks like your mom needs more cabinets for all your stuff.” He starts to pick up the pieces. 

“I need a whole new house,” you say, filling the bottle about three quarters before sticking it in your microwave uncapped. You set the timer for fifteen seconds and prop your chin in your hand, elbow on the counter. Steve thinks it’s your best angle yet, your dress, your arms, the friendly smile you’re wearing that hasn’t once ebbed since the first date. It all gets his chest in a twist. 

He knows getting your baby to like him is make or break. And he really wants to give this a shot, you and him, you and Noah. He thinks you’d be good together. (Maybe he’s crazy and too forward, but you really are beautiful in your dress.) 

“How’s that?” he asks, closing the cabinet behind a tower of bottles and baby bowls.

“Perfect! Good job, baby,” Noah says, tapping Steve on the knee. 

Steve snorts. “Thank you.” 

“He’s going through a phase of saying everything I say,” you explain, yanking open the microwave to test the milk on the back of your hand. 

You deem the milk sufficiently warmed and offer Noah your hand, swiping a takeout menu from the fridge as you pass, and once again grabbing Steve by the arm to drag him along. He’s content to be dragged. You lead everyone into the living room, and he’s again surprised by how small it is. 

You catch his look. “Are you judging me, Harrington?” 

“What? No? Of course not.”

“Messing with you. There’s an extension out back, on the kitchen? That’s where I keep the rest of the toys.” You drop down onto the couch with a sigh. “Come here, babe, come cuddle with mommy.” 

If Noah weren’t in earshot, Steve would make a joke about how he hopes you aren’t talking to him. It’s probably a good thing he doesn’t.

You lay back and Noah climbs up onto one side of you, his hands out ready for his bottle, while your arm stretches out for Steve. “Come ‘n’ sit.” 

Steve sits knee to knee with you. He’s not scared of kids, and he isn’t scared of you, either. He knows exactly what he wants, and he isn’t afraid to let you know it, taking your hand where it lies open on your thigh. 

“What were you gonna get?” you ask, nodding to the takeout menu. 

“I don’t know, I’ll have what you’re having,” Steve says. 

“What if you don’t like what I’m having?” 

“I’ll learn.” 

You tip your chin up at him, beaming. “Yeah? What if I like something completely unamerican?” 

“I gotta learn sometime, right?” He squeezes your fingers nicely. 

“Well, my Noah likes everything.” You kiss Noah’s forehead, stealing his attention from his bottle, bright eyes tracing your face and then your hand where Steve is rubbing the back of it. 

“Then he can have some of everything.”

You and Steve share a loving smile. Smiles smiles smiles, everybody’s getting on, this is the best sixth date anyone’s ever had, best date full stop, though your fifth date was a close second. You and Steve had spent hours together in a park in the city eating picnic foods and soaking in the sun together, your nose brushing off of his ribs, his jacket balled up under your head. He’d kissed you twice that night when you finally, sorrily had to go home, and you’d said, Aw, I really like you, as you held hands on the stoop. He should’ve asked you then to give it a proper go, but now he’s met Noah he figures it’s as good a time as any. 

“Hey,” Steve begins, clearing his throat, ��would you–”

“Woh!” Noah shouts around the teet of his bottle. It falls from his lips. “We wiw hands,” he garbles, a bunch of baby flavoured gibberish as he leans over your stomach to cover your hand where it’s held in Steve’s. “Mom!” 

“What, babe?” 

“My hand!” 

“You’re not jealous, are you?” you ask with a laugh. 

“Mom!” he says, slapping your hands insistently with his own. 

Steve loosens your fingers, leaving a gap between your palms. “Quick, bud, put your hand in.” 

Noah climbs onto your leg and presses his hand into the fold, though he grows annoyed at the weird fit, and immediately starts to sniffle. Steve winces, but you’re used to it. “Aw, don’t start the waterworks. Come on, what happened to sharing? We’re good sharers.” 

Steve lets go of your hand. He’s reluctant, sure, but he doesn’t wanna be on anyone’s bad side. Noah cries for a few seconds like he’s forgotten why he’s upset, but he sees your open palm and the cog finishes turning. 

“Hold mommy’s hand,” you say, wiggling your fingers. 

Noah thinks about it. He ends up on his side across your leg staring at you, then at Steve, who smiles at him cheerfully. “He’s so handsome,” Steve says. “He has your face. Guess that’s why you’re so handsome, huh?” He shakes his head at Noah gently. “‘Cos you got all your good looks from your mommy.”

“He knows what that means,” you preen, leaning down to speak closer to Noah’s ear. “Don’t you? You’re my handsome boy.” 

Noah puts his hand in Steve’s with another tinkling laugh. 

“Oh! I see how it is, you wanna be Steve’s friend too. Can’t let me have anything for myself, can you?” 

“No,” Noah says cheekily. 

Steve collects Noah’s little hand in his. “Good!” he says. “You should get everything you want, just like mom.”

“Think so?” you ask. 

Steve nods. 

You cover Noah’s eyes with your hand and move up to press a quick kiss to Steve’s lips. “Like you?” you ask. 

Steve’s just stoked to have someone he likes actually like him back at the same level. Noah squirms away from your hand to squeeze Steve’s tighter. Two someones. 

“Like me,” he says, grinning. 

“Mommy, kiss!” Noah says urgently. “Kiss!” 

You pull your gaze from Steve’s. “Sorry, I’m sorry! Come here, baby, I’ll give you a kiss too. I guess I’m gonna be giving double the kisses I used to, my poor chapped lips.” You kiss kiss kiss Noah across the forehead. 

Steve flusters thinking about it, making a mental note to get you some chapstick. He’d go pretty crazy for a crown of kisses like that. 

[attackfish]

So everybody here knows that I'm notorious for being a massive defender of Ursa, and that I have no patience for the "Ursa was a bad mother, she favored Zuko, and was abusive to Azula and abandoned her kids, and made Ozai abuse Zuko," narrative. That narrative is vile, victim blaming, and deeply stupid on a number of levels.

With that out of the way, I want to talk about some really really bad parenting we see Ursa do during the series. And it is to be clear really really bad.

In the Book Two episode, "Bitter Work", Zuko and Iroh have a conversation:

ZUKO: So Uncle, I've been thinking. It's only a matter of time before I run into Azula again. I'm going to need to know more advanced firebending if I want to stand a chance against her. I know what you're going to say, she's my sister and I should be trying to get along with her-

IROH: No, she's crazy, and she needs to go down.

This scene is a favorite of a certain type of Azula fan who wants to paint Iroh as a big meanie who didn't wave his magic redemption wand over Azula the way he clearly did over Zuko. See? See? He's writing her off here and calling her crazy.

This of course misses the context of that scene, which is that Zuko is taking care of a severely injured Iroh, who was injured by Azula, in what looked a heck of a lot like a murder attempt. Earlier in Book Two, in the episode, "The Avatar State", Azula unambiguously attempts to murder her brother after failing to capture him, and he is only saved by Iroh's quick reflexes.

But let's leave that argument aside for today because what interests me about this scene in the context of Ursa's parenting, is the line Zuko says right before Iroh's infamous declaration: "I know what you're going to say, she's my sister and I should be trying to get along with her."

Because in the context of Zuko and Iroh's situation, where Azula has recently attempted to kill Zuko, and just put Iroh into a coma that Zuko had to take care of him during, in which he has only just woken up from, this line from Zuko actually demonstrates some really warped thinking. It is not a healthy response to the situation at all. And his assumption is that a good caring parent figure like Iroh is going to respond to this situation by telling him that Zuko needs to get along with his sister, who is actively trying to hunt him down and capture or kill him.

So why does Zuko think that? What adult reacted that way to Azula's violence toward her brother in the past? It wasn't Ozai. Ozai is not going to use the language of getting along with one's siblings, when he is so bent on setting them against each other. So who was it?

The show answers this a few episodes before this scene, in the Book Two episode, "Zuko Alone." The answer is clear and heartbreaking: It was Ursa.

The scene in which this becomes plain, starts with Zuko and Ursa walking together. Mai spots them and smiles and blushes. Azula notices, and then turns to Ty Lee, and whispers, "Watch this!"

AZULA: Mom, can you make Zuko play with us? We need equal teams to play a game!

ZUKO: I am not cart-wheeling.

AZULA: You won't have to. Cart-wheeling's not a game, dum-dum.

ZUKO: I don't care. I don't want to play with you!

AZULA: We are brother and sister. It's important for us to spend time together. Don't you think so, Mom?

URSA: Yes, darling, I think it's a good idea to play with your sister. Go on now, just for a little while.

And then Ursa leaves Zuko alone with Azula and her friends.

There is a lot here that I want to talk about. I have in fact talked about this scene before, and what it tells us about Ursa's eagerness to reinforce Azula's seemingly kind and loving behavior: [Link], and even touched on why this is in fact an example of bad parenting from Ursa: [Link], but I think this deserves its own post, where we examine exactly what went on here, what this tells us about Ursa's parenting, and how this affected Zuko, and to a lesser extent, Azula.

In those previously linked posts, I talk about how this is clearly a pattern, that Azula has learned to predict and manipulate, and because we know it's a pattern, we know that this behavior on Ursa's part is repeated, and something her children have come to expect from her. Zuko and Azula know their mother wants her children to get along with each other, and love each other and have a good sibling relationship with each other so much that if Azula she plays into that, Ursa will force Zuko to spend time with his sister, and worse, that time will be unsupervised.

So, to be clear here, what Ursa is doing is giving Azula unsupervised access to her brother, against his will, as a reward for Azula momentarily acting nice. Or in other words, Ursa forces Zuko to spend time with his abuser against his will because she wants them to get along.

I think we can all see how that is some grade A terrible parenting.

And it does have negative effects on Azula. I think that we can see her learning how to manipulate people, learning how to lie and get what she wants from people, and that Ursa by giving her what she wants here, is showing her that this is a thing she can do to get what she wants. That is not a great lesson to teach your kid. I think it also feeds into Azula's possessiveness of her brother, and sense of entitlement towards him. She has learned that even the people who love and care about her brother, won't protect him from her. And she has learned that no matter what she does to him, he is supposed to try to get along with her.

These are some really terrible lessons, and we see some of the effects of them throughout the course of the show, so why is it that the "Ursa is a terrible mother" crowd never bring this up? I mean of course we know why, it doesn't fit their narrative. Their premise is not simply that Ursa is a bad mother, or even that her bad parenting explains Azula's behavior.

In fact frequently it isn't even about finding someone to blame for Azula's behavior, so that the responsibility isn't Azula's. (Which, to be clear is not how it would work anyway, because even if Ursa were exactly the type of horrible mother they said she was, Azula was still making the choices to do Very Bad Things, in the same way that just because Ozai is an abusive father, this doesn't mean Azula stopped being responsible for her own actions). It's more about proving that she has suffered enough that she deserves all the sympathy, and is allowed to be awful to other people, including Zuko, you know, as a treat.

The narrative that the "Ursa is a terrible mother" crowd are pushing is that Ursa didn't love her daughter, and thought she was a monster, Azula suffered so much, and it's so sad, and this is why she deserves to do very nasty things to everybody else, and no one should ever hold her accountable. Frequently there is some flavor of, "Zuko had a mother who loved him, you guys, unlike Azula, so he doesn't deserve sympathy, not like poor baby Azula!" Which is a deeply warped thought process on many many levels, but we're not going to go into that here.

The point is, that this type of bad parenting that I am pointing out here, doesn't fit this narrative, because this is not the kind of parenting mistake that a mother who doesn't love one of her children, and thinks that child is a monster, is going to make. This is the kind of mistake that a mother who loves her children very much, and wants them to have a good relationship, and doesn't recognize the threat that one of her children poses to the other, is going to make. In fact, the fact that she does it, proves that Ursa does in fact love her daughter and does not think she's a monster. So it does not fit the narrative these people are spinning, so they will never bring it up as an example of how Ursa was a bad mom.

Of course the other reason the "Ursa is a terrible mother" crowd aren't going to bring this part up is because it would mean acknowledging that Zuko deserved to be protected from Azula, and needed to be protected from Azula, when they were both children, which would go against the whole "she's a poor innocent child" thing they like to spin, and also because Azula is getting what she wants here, and Zuko is the one suffering, which is not going to get Azula any sympathy points.

And for the most part, Ursa was an excellent mother, who did the best job she could in horrible circumstances that she had very little control over, but she wasn't perfect, and she did make mistakes, which makes all of this a wonderful example of how even very good parents can make very bad choices that hurt their children and cause serious long-term damage.

I've talked some about the long term damage that Azula faces from this, learning about manipulation, and developing some really nasty entitlement issues with regards to her brother, but Zuko's long-term damage is if anything worse.

When we put this together with Zuko's line from "Bitter Work" quoted earlier, we can see that Zuko learns what Azula learns from the other angle, which is to say that he will not be protected from Azula by anyone, and not only will he not be protected, but he does not deserve to protect himself. Not only can he not defend himself, but he can't even protect himself by avoiding her. That's not allowed either. And in the face of her cruelty and violence towards him, it is still on him to make their relationship work, and to be clear, he should absolutely be making their relationship work. And the adults who love him are going to tell him this, no matter what Azula does to him.

I for one am really glad that Iroh is there to say no, that's a terrible idea, and you do not need to keep trying to get along with your sister who is trying to kill you. And it's significant that throughout Book Two, Iroh consistently protects Zuko from Azula, and teaches him what he needs to fight back.

[abbyromanoff]

MILF!Reader slowly realizing that her son's BFF/GF, MJ, has been flirting with her for a while now.

A DIRTY FLIRT

PAIRINGS: MJ x reader

WORD COUNT: 1815

WARNINGS: flirting, age gaps, small angst, sexual themes but no sex, MJ being a huge flirt and tease and hot as SHITTT, milf!R, R is married but it’s not cheating…yall will get it, MJ is 19!!, think that’s it :)

NO ONE IS PERMITTED TO STEAL, COPY, OR REBLOG MY WORK AS THEIR OWN!!

You turned as you heard the door creak open and your son yelling out to you, and only seconds later he was in the kitchen with two friends you assumed were from school.

“Hey, mom! I hope it’s okay I brought some friends over, this is Ned as you already know and this is MJ, she’s new to the school.” Peter spoke, and you waved to the other boy when his name was addressed as you had already met him years earlier. He was a regular at your house as Peter was at his, but the girl was fresh. She had long curls that were slightly messy, and her outfit was more laid back like the other two.

“Hello, Ned, it’s great to see you again. And hello, MJ, it’s lovely to meet you, dear.” You felt her eyes follow up and down your body twice before a small grin fell on her face and she nodded to your greeting.

“We have a science project so we were going to go and, well, do that. I’ll be in my room if you need me.” The three began walking towards the room until you called for your son. He stopped in his tracks and told Ned to bring MJ to his room to get started before turning to your direction again.

“Just…have fun and,” You looked to where the two were, hoping they were out of ear shot before finishing your sentence. “Keep the door cracked.”

“Mom!”

“What! I’m just saying, you’re in college now and I know kids your age like to, you know, experiment-”

“Please stop talking about sex, I promise MJ is just a friend, I don’t see her in any weird way.”

“Just keep it open a little, it’s not like I’m going to be standing there stalking you three.” He agreed before rushing off. That was the first time you had met the girl, but it would definitely not be the last. She was there for the next three days until they finished the assignment, and each day you felt her watching you like a hawk. Whenever you called them for dinner or she had to go to the bathroom, her eyes would be stuck to you as if she was glue.

You hoped it was only curious glances seeing as she refused to speak to you, but that came to be proven wrong two weeks later when she arrived again. The two boys were out and you received a knock at the door. Confused, you checked the windows before opening it and spotting the college student standing there with a bag over her shoulder. Her eyes fell to your body and that’s when you remembered the messy apron covering you that you forgot to take off.

“Oh, hey, MJ! Uh, Peter isn’t home right now, if you want I could leave a message or…” You led off, not sure what to offer as she continued to stare at you.

“I’m not here for him, I think I left my jacket here the other day and I wanted to grab it.”

“Oh, of course, yeah. Uh, come in.” You awkwardly suggested, opening the door further as she stepped in, and this marked the first time you’d ever be alone with her.

“You can look for it, I’ll just be in the kitchen.” She nodded and began slowly walking around, and it seemed as though she was examining each space the building had to offer. You continued to mix the dough in the bowl without turning, your mind so set on perfecting the consistency that you jumped when you heard her voice.

“You’re married?” She asked while holding a portrait of you smiling with a man in a wedding dress, him in a suit. You were pregnant at the time, and your bump was visibly noticeable to her and anyone who saw it.

“Uhm, yes. Yes, I am.”

“But you don’t wear a ring?” You glanced at your empty hand with tight lips, refusing to look her way and pouring the unprepped bread into a greased pan.

“No, I do not. Me and Peter’s father aren’t entirely, uh, together if you could say so.” You didn’t understand why you shared the piece of information with the young girl who you barely knew, who your son barely even knew, but you found yourself being able to share the words easily.

“But he lives here, does he not? And Peter tells me you two are together?”

“Why are you asking my son if I’m married?” You avoided the question with one, hoping to remove the pressure from your end.

“That doesn’t matter right now, I asked you first.”

“It does matter.”

“It’ll matter once you answer me.” You sighed, giving up as you set the timer on the stove and began walking towards the sink to clean your doughy hands.

“I got pregnant by a one night stand, he was that one night stand. We tried to make it work knowing we had a son on the way and even when Peter was born we were still trying, but we could never find ourselves being in love with one another. We still love each other, we’re just not in love. So instead of having a divorce, we thought it would be easier to stay together and see other people. He has a girlfriend who is okay with the situation, he often stays there or she’ll stay here, we’re actually pretty close. That way I can stay at home to care for the house and for Peter, Peter won’t need to be too affected by a divorce, and his dad can focus on his career.” MJ nodded in understanding with a hum, and unbeknownst to you, instinctively moved closer while you were still in front of the sink. You had not realized how long you had been washing your hands, being too focused on telling the story she asked for. It was only when you remembered the question you had asked her that you dried your hands and turned, only to have the girl standing only inches from you now.

“Uhm, and why- why were you asking Peter if I was married?” She smirked lowly at the thought, her free hand coming to the counter behind you while the other brushed against your hand. Her bag was gone now, and her jacket was still nowhere to be seen.

“Well, I’m interested in you. I’ve always liked, how do I put it,” She stared at your lips as your breath became uneven. You gulped, following her actions and licking your lips as you glanced upon hers.

“Older women?”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that. Or you could say I’ve always liked more beautiful, mature women who know what the fuck they’re doing.” A small hint of red came to your cheeks and you cracked a small smile, causing the younger woman to chuckle softly.

“What about you? Have you ever thought about being with a girl?” Her thumb came to tease your lower lip, dragging it down slowly before she grasped your chin in her hold, not allowing you to look down in fear.

“I- I don’t…I don’t know.”

“That’s okay, I’d love to be your first. Do you want that? Do you want me, baby?” You nodded without a thought, fluttering your eyes shut as she leaned in to brush herself against you. You waited for the kiss you were anticipating, but it didn’t come. She was teasing you.

“MJ, please kiss me already.”

“Mm, I like the sound of that.” Before she could complete your request, you both heard the door open and close and jumped from one another. Your husband entered the kitchen with Peter and Ned trailing behind him, the two too engrossed in their conversation to notice the obvious elephant in the room. Your husband wasn’t however, and he hid a chuckle as he placed his suitcase on the counter.

“Hello, MJ, it’s good to see you again.”

“Hey, Mr. Parker.” He rolled his sleeves up and entered the fridge, grabbing the closest beer and taking a swig while Peter looked up at the noise.

“MJ, what are you doing here?” She shot you a glance before clearing her throat quickly, crossing her arms over her chest as she met his gaze as if nothing had ever happened.

“I left my jacket, I was just looking for it.”

“Oh, did you need any help?”

“No, I found it. We’re all good, thanks though.” He didn’t question her lack of holding the said clothing, and you sighed in relief before leading the attention away from her.

“Dinner will be done soon if you boys want to head upstairs and I’ll call you down soon.” MJ was ready to leave before Peter interrupted, a hopeful grin on his face as he held the new Lego set he just purchased.

“Do you want to stay for dinner? Me and Ned were going to work on this together, but with your help it could go by a lot quicker.” You secretly wished she’d say yes seeing as the interaction you two just held was not one to be left in the dirt.

“You two are such nerds, but fine.” The three went upstairs, MJ sharing one last glance with you before turning the corner and leaving you with your husband who had a large, teasing smirk on his face.

“Really? Peter’s friend?”

“How did you know her already?”

“He introduced me to her a few weeks ago when he stopped by Claire’s to grab his binder and I was there, I just never thought she’d try to fuck my wife.” He shrugged, laughing when you groaned in annoyance and rubbed your forehead.

“I don’t know how it happened, it just did.”

“Hey, I’m not judging, I just think you need to be careful.” You bit your lip in thought at his words.

“You don’t think Peter will be mad if he finds out? And the age gap-”

“Hey, stop that. This was your exact problem when we were dating, you worry and think too much, just let it go with the flow and be mindful of him too. If he finds out and doesn’t like it, that’s when things need to end. But if you’re happy and so is she, who cares what people think.” You knew he was right, but you also knew you had always been much too scared to date while having a son. MJ was his age, how would she handle that? And what if he was mad, upset, or worse, hated you for it? You didn’t know, but you also knew you spent that whole night wishing to relive the moment when her lips brushed against yours and imagining the feeling of them touching. You knew it would be so relieving, so why couldn’t you let yourself give in?

[inmyheaddd]

only fair now that nash has his own childhood friends to lovers to complete the series!!! so i’m requesting a nash childhood friends to lovers hcs hehe. they’re so so cute to read, i love every single one of them 🥹💘

nash hawthorne childhood friends to lovers

thankyou sm for the requestttt, the lack of nash in the books is such a crime, he’s so underrated

wc:4k

you and nash met at a horse riding club, when you were 11 and he was 13 years old. 

since you two were practically the only children in the private establishment, you two were often in each other's presence.

you made eye contact a few times but never spoke to each other. you thought he was pretty cute. 

“hey mom, do you know who that guy was?” you asked your mom once when you were leaving the place. 

“oh yeah, that’s skye’s son, nash. i’m friends with his mom, why?” 

“nothing” you say with a small smile as you continue to walk. 

“are you sure it’s nothing?“ she asks as she looks at you with a laugh.

“yes, mom,” you reply as you start giggling slightly. you start to approach the car door, and your mom opens the door for you. 

“i was your age once too, you know,” she laughs, and jokingly roll your eyes before joining in.

the next lesson you had, with some encouragement from your mom, you decided to speak to him after the lesson ended. he was standing in the reception, seemingly waiting for someone to pick him up, as were you. 

“hi.” you smile at him when he turns to look at you, and he returns it back.

“hey, i know you; i've seen you ‘round here”

“yeah, we’re like the only two kids in the building,” you reply with a small laugh.

“you’re right on that,"  he says with a small chuckle, and then you ask another question.

“are you waiting on your parents?”

“my moms pretty busy, so someone comes and picks me up.” he says, sounding slightly less confident as he did before.

“oh, lucky!” you respond, oblivious as to why a driver picks him up instead of his own mother . “my mom just talks and talks the whole way through the car ride—also, did you know my mom and your mom are friends? ” 

he raises an eyebrow at your last statement. “really, how’s that?” 

“i don’t know, my mom just told me.”

“you were talkin’ ‘bout me?” he says, a grin starting to appear on his face.

you nervously chuckle and continue “um, i just asked my mom who you were, ‘cause like, she kinda knows everyone.” 

“did you get your answer?” he says, and you realize he has a texan accent. 

“i think so; you’re nash, right?”

��yep. and you’re y/n, right?” he uses the same intonation as you, and raises his eyebrows with a smile as he tilts his head slightly.

“yeah! how’d you know?” you say with a large smile on your face.

“i know things,” he replies, and you thought you were hallucinating when he winked at you. 

he tore his attention away from you to the door, noticing someone who looks like you walking through the door.

“‘s that your mom?” he says with a chin nod, and you turn to follow his gaze.

“oh,” you say, slightly disappointed that your conversation would have to come to an end.  “yeah, it is.”

you turn back to him, and he speaks again.

“you ready for the talking?” he questions, quoting you from earlier. 

you let out a chuckle through your nose, “yeah, i’ve gotten used to it.” you two make eye contact for a few seconds with no words and decide to speak again “i guess i have to go, my moms waiting.” 

“i guess you do” 

“do you have a habit of repeating everything i say?” you say with an inquisitive look on your face and a smile. 

he runs his hand over his mouth in an attempt to hide his own smile, and shrugs 

“maybe,” he says with that damn smile that makes you feel like there’s a whole zoo in your stomach.

he looks behind you once again and sees your mom waiting for you, looking slightly bored.

“it looks like your mom is still waiting.” you turn to look at your mom, then back to him. “i’ll see ya later then?” he continues.

“bye, i’ll see you later” you repeat his words and deepen your voice in an attempt to mock him, to which he laughs at, before you turn around and walk to your mom, who immediately pulled you into a hug and walked with you with her arm around your shoulder. 

before the automatic door opened, you turned to wave at nash, he reciprocated it with another chin nod and a raise of his hand. however, when looking at you and your mom, he had a new, unrecognizable look on his face. ‘he’s probably bored because now he’ll have to wait alone’ 11 year old you thought. 

you two got so much closer over the span of a few weeks, and soon enough, you were going over to each others houses all the time.

you noticed that he spent a lot of time with his brothers, and he was a great role model. you didn’t really learn the reason why until years later, but you still found it so admirable.

you two would do everything together, sometimes you’d simply go over to each other's houses to do nothing together.

nash quit horse riding lessons when he was around 15, and instead decided to use some of the money that he practically never touches towards buying two horses and building a shed. he named one of them after you by anagramming your full name, but never told you. 

the next time you came over, he was extremely smiley, which was definitely different from his usual persona. 

“okay, what’s up with you? you’ve been smiling all day,” you say, bringing up the question that has been clouding your mind since the second you stepped in his room. 

“nothin’, just grateful to be alive. what, a man can’t smile?”

“you’re barely 16, what “man” are you talking about?” you say with a laugh, and he can’t help but chuckle. 

“alright, let me show you something,” he says as he stands up from the couch you were both sitting on and offers you his hand. 

“okay,” you make that sound more like a question as you his hand and follow him out of the room. 

“where are we going?” you ask as you two step out the back doors and are now outside in the backyard. 

“what’s with all the questions today?” he stops in his tracks and turns to face you, looking down at you with a grin on his face, slightly squinting as the sun was directly above you two. “it’s like we have the riddler over here,” he says with a deep chuckle. 

“you can’t blame a girl for being curious,” you retort, squinting as you lift your hand and use it as a makeshift visor from the sun.

“but you can blame a man for smilin’?”. 

“yep, you’re actually spot on.” 

he fake-sighs and looks away from you, then looks back at you, a smile involuntarily finding his face. “whatever the lady says,” he says as he grins down at you.

“you’re learning!” 

“yes, i am. let’s continue now, yeah? i’m sweatin’ out here” he says as he reaches his hand out to you. then you put your hand down from your face and connect it with his.

when he showed you the horses, you literally stopped in your tracks and gasped, instinctively walking over to them and petting them. when you realise what you’re doing, you remove your hand and turn back to nash. “oh my god, i can’t believe it- i-when did you do this?”

he chuckles with his hands in his pockets, leaning back slightly on his heels, “i’ve been planning it for a while,” 

“oh my god, and they’re yours? like completely? oh my- can i?” you ask to pet the horses, practically stumbling over your words because of how shocked you are.

“you don’t have to ask, i got ‘em for us,” he says, quieter than his usual tone, as a sense of familiarity and warmth spread through him. he forgot how much he loved seeing you with animals.

“no you didn’t,” you gasp as you whip your head around and turn to face him completely, “oh my god, nash,” you turn and look at the horses again, “what are their names?” you ask whilst petting them.

he tells you the names, and one of them piques your interest. “wait, can you repeat that last one again?” you ask as you turn around with your eyebrows furrowed in question. he smiles, confirming your suspicions as he repeats it. 

“there’s no way you anagramed my name to name a horse,” you chuckle and he walks towards you. 

he’s standing right infront of you, and you realise he’s basically towering over you. “when did he get so tall?” “has he always been this tall, or am i just realising this? - and when did he start looking like that” 

you’re quickly brought out of your thoughts when he responds. “hey, i couldn’t not name my favorite animal after my favorite girl,” he says, grinning down at you. 

you slightly giggle and briefly look to the side before pulling him into a hug. you were on your tiptoes, but he crouched down to meet your height so you wouldn’t have to. 

“seriously though, i love you so much nash, you’re the best friend in the world.” you mumble into his shoulder as he rubs your back up and down. 

friend. he felt a pit in his stomach. why did that word suddenly have a sting to it? “i love you, more than you know.”

as time went on, you were practically a member of the family and would participate in the saturday morning games. you noticed nash would often figure it out before his brothers did, but let them take the win. 

“why do you do that? let them win? you’re insanely smart, but you never show it.”

he takes a deep bath before answering your question. “they’re just kids, they desperately want to please the old man because, well.” he trails off, not really wanting to bring up his mom, more so, her absence. he continues “i just want them to be happy, they deserve it.” you look at him with love written all over your eyes, it’s like everyday he unknowingly pushes the agenda that he’s the best person ever. “yeah, i get that.” he meets your eyes and for a few seconds it genuinely feels like time stopped. 

your moment was suddenly interrupted by xander running through the room, “nash! guess what!” and he starts telling nash about his win. nash looks back at you, his face saying “you see what i mean?” you give him a knowing smile and he turns back to xander.

“no way kid, how’d you figure it out?” 

xander rambles on about the riddles, the clues, and the game in general, and you watch their conversation, wondering how you got so lucky to know these one-of-a kind people. how you got so lucky to know nash. 

that wasn’t the only time one of nash’s brothers would barge into his room. it was actually quite a common occurrence. 

one time you were hanging out in his room, just sitting on his bed and talking, when all three of his brothers barged in the room, jameson in front, grayson not far behind him, and xander behind grayson laughing his head off whilst running.

“woah woah woah,” nash repeated as he stood up from the bed, “what’s going on here?” he stood infront of you, making sure jameson wouldn’t barge into you as he steadied him by grabbing onto his shoulders.

“tell jameson to give my usb stick back.” grayson says as he tries to tackle jameson, however, his attempts were quickly stopped by nash. “listen here, if you two want to fight, go fight. but not here, not when y/n’s over? alright?”

“sorry” they both grumble under their breath.

“is y/n your special friend?” little xander asks, seemingly having recovered from his fit of laughter. he was honestly just here for the fun of it.

“yes actually, she’s a very special lady, which is why i’m telling your brothers off for acting like that infront of her.” 

“oh i’m very special?” you ask sarcastically 

“yes ma’am” he turns to look at you and for a brief second, he forgets his brothers were in the room for a second.

he turns back when he hears grayson trying to pry the usb out of jamesons hands and jamesons' yells.

you were honestly glad, because you were 110% sure your face was about as red as a tomato at this point. he had a way with words, that’s for sure.

“jamie, give your brother his usb stick back, grayson, go away and keep the fighting to a minimum, xander, you continue whatever you were doin’, and all of you, out of my room.” 

he leads them all out, while xander was laughing again, jameson and grayson both had their heads down but you could see jameson still smiling, and you heard a snicker coming from him when nash closed the door behind them. 

he closed his eyes and sighed for a second after he shut the door, and when he opened them you both started laughing.

“they can be such little critters sometimes, huh?” he says followed by a chuckle.

“i love them; it’s like constant entertainment. plus i can just talk to them when i get bored of you,” you say jokingly with a laugh.

“oh yeah? you bored of me now?” he jokes back

“hmmm,” you pretend to think, tapping your chin, “a little bit, but i’ll deal with it.”

“you’ll deal with it?” he asked, his eyebrows raised in amusement, along with a playful smile on his face. “how so?” he says as he walks towards you, and you’re still sitting on the bed.

“i guess i’ll just bring the energy out of you. i’m just special like that,” you say with a smile, recalling him calling you “special”

“i guess you are.” 

the moment was becoming too “more than friends"-ish for you to handle, especially with him looking at you like that, so you decided to go back to familiar ground and bring back the light jokes.

“how do you still manage to repeat me when i’m repeating you?” you laugh and shake your head.

he shakes his head back and joins in on the laughter, finally sitting next to you after standing right infront of you.

the rest of the night went as it usually would with you two. but when you were in your own room, staring at the wall unable to sleep, you were cursing yourself for going another day not talking about your feelings, more specifically how you felt for nash. little did you know he was doing the same exact thing.

around your senior year, he decided that being just friends with you was genuinely going to be the cause of his death.

mentally, and also physically.

his brothers non stop teasing about you which always sometimes ended up in fights was starting to get on his nerves. 

prom was coming up, and he knew from the books you read, the movies you watched, and just you in general that you felt like it was a big deal.

you ‘dragged’ him along to dress shopping, even though inside he was jumping up and down because he loved anything to do with you.

“okay listen, you know my size, and the colours i like are…?” 

“light pink, baby blue, pastel yellow, orange, and light green as a last resort—those words are practically engraved in my brain darlin’”

“okay, great.” you say, beaming at him. you’re not sure if it’s because of the fact that he remembers everything you tell him, or the name he called you. “i’m going to go try on these, and you send me photos of any you find you think i might like, okay?”

“yes ma’am, on it.” 

he was looking around the store, 3 dresses in hand, knowing the employees were talking about him.

“do you see those eyes?”

“wait- hawthorne? as in tobias hawthorne?”

“that’s the oldest one, nash” 

“i don’t know who i want to be more; y/n or him” 

“she’s so pretty, they fit each other.”

he heard in hushed whispers, and hearing the last two made him smile, just as he saw a dress that was so you. 

everything about it screamed you in every way, and he loved it.

he spoke to one of the assistants and got one in your size, he couldn’t wait to show you this one; he was afraid a photo wouldn’t do it justice. 

“hey darl, i saw this dress that i think you’d love. when you’re done you can come out and see it,” he said after knocking on the door of your changing room.

“oh i’m basically done, just putting on my shirt!” you say slightly muffled, and a few seconds later you open the door, “hi” you breathe out. 

“hey there,” he grins at you.

you smile back at him, and then ask “do you have the dress?” 

“right here,”

he turns and walks a few steps, taking the dress of the hanger and showing it to you, he begins to speak but you tune it all out because the dress is literally everything you wanted and more, “oh my god,” you say with your mouth agape. 

this earns a low chuckle out of him. “you alright there?” 

“i just, i love the dress so much, i can’t believe i didn’t find it myself, how the hell did you even notice it?” you finally tear your eyes away from the dress and meet his, adding a laugh to the end of your sentence. 

“i just know my girl like that,” he says, genuinely smiling at you, and you were 99.9% sure your knees were going to buckle right there and you would fall at his feet. luckily, some of your strength remained, and you met his eyes for 2 seconds, only deepening the red colour in your face.

“i’m uh, i’m gonna go try on the dress.” you say, pointing back to the changing room with your thumb.

“alright, take your time.” when did his accent get so hot?

you close the door, lock it, and lean on it for a few seconds, recalling what the hell just happened, “my girl”???? 

“what the fuck” you mutter under your breath, but you can’t help the smile that finds your face when you think of the moment, in fact, you’re basically always smiling whenever you think or talk about nash. your mom never fails to mention it.

you try on the dress, and you think it’s practically made for you. you felt perfect. how was nash so right with his choices? to say you were obsessed with the dress was an understatement. 

after snapping a few pictures for your friends and mom, you call out to nash. “i’m coming out now.” before opening the door and stepping out.

“what do you think?” you say as you do a 360.

‘speechless’ wasn’t a word used to describe nash hawthorne, ever. but right now, he fit the dictionary definition. 

he was thinking ‘i can’t wait until one day, it’s our wedding she’s shopping for’

he quickly cleared his throat and replied once he realized he left you hanging. “you look gorgeous, you are gorgeous. buy that dress, i’m begging you.” 

his words make you nervously laugh, “yeah, i love it so much. i think i will. thankyou for finding it.”

“no need to thank me darlin’, it’s all you.” which earned another nervous laugh out of you. he has to know what he’s doing. “i’m gonna go change now, and then we can leave.”

after you finish changing, you go to pay for the dress. when you reach the desk, the lady informs you that the dress has already been paid for. 

you go back to nash who was waiting for you in the sitting area, his eyes lighting up when he meets yours.

“nash? did you pay for my dress?” 

he just smiles in return, telling you everything you need to know.

“how did you even pay for it? you didn’t even have the dress with you.”

he stands up and walks next to you, taking the packaged dress from your hands and saying “don’t worry 'bout it’. lets go now?” before leading you two out the door.

a few days later, you realized you didn’t officially have a prom date. what you didn’t know was that nash was planning a whole thing to ask you out, with flowers, a picnic, jewelry, and little things he knows you love. it was the day he was going to ask you, and the second you walked into the house you said this:

“hey nash, um, this is kind of random but would you be my date to prom? i don’t have one yet and i-“ you immediately stop when you notice his face slightly fall.

“it would be friendly, o-ofcourse and it doesn’t mean anything.” you attempt to salvage yourself by rambling on and on.

“nash?” 

he starts to smile and then decides to speak. “it’s real funny you ask me that, ya know?” 

“why’s that?” you say with a smile matching his.

“c’mere” he says before taking your hand and leading you somewhere again.

what is it with this man and taking your hand?? 

when you reach the picnic he set out for you, which looks straight out of a romance movie or a valentine’s day advert, he starts to speak again. “i was going to ask you here, but now i don’t have to do that and we can just eat, right?” he jokes, to which you laugh and respond, “so that means you’ll go with me?” 

“ofcourse i’ll go with you. hell, i’d do anything you want. i’d go anywhere, if it was you askin’. i love you, not in the way that you already know i do. not in a friendly way. i love you in a way that takes over my mind and makes you all i can think about 24/7.” his tone is suddenly much more serious, not a hint of the joking that was once present. he scans your face, noticing your blush and the smile starting to appear on your face. he continues. “what im tryin’ to say is, since the second i saw you in those horse riding lessons, i knew you were going to be someone special in my life. the second i saw how good you were with my brothers, with animals, with people in general, i knew i loved you. and the second i realized your cheeks would turn a shade of red, like they are now, after id call you a name, i knew i was in love with you.” 

now it was your turn to be speechless, the only thing you could muster up was whispering his name before pulling him into a kiss. 

he craned his neck down to meet your height, then you jumped and wrapped your legs around his torso. when you pulled back, you all but squealed and started peppering his face with kisses, repeating “i love you” with each one. 

he started laughing, and “moving his face away from you” but not really, he loved it. 

“alright alright, hold your horses.” he laughed before placing you on your feet again.

you tried to hold back your laugh when you realized there were kiss marks from your remaining lipgloss all over his face.

“what are you laughing at huh?” he says through a smile as he looks at you and starts laughing, simply because you are. 

“nothing! just happy.” you reply.

“and why’s that?” he asks again, still smiling at you. 

“well, this really cute guy with a funny accent just told me he’s loved me for like ages, and i’ve basically had a crush on him since we first met. isn’t that great!” you beam up at him, and he starts laughing again.

“i don’t know about that, the guy sounds like bad news. you should stay away.” he jokes back. 

“but he’s so cute, you should see him.” you continue, not being able to hold back your laughs.

“yeah?” 

“yeah, he’s the best.”

his grin widens before pulling you into another kiss. this time when it ends, you sat down to eat the food he prepared. you two watched the sunset together, and when it was night, you ended up falling asleep on each other while watching the stars.

you were woken up by his brothers standing over you two, laughing at the kiss marks still on nash's face, and the position you two were in. nash excused himself and had a ‘talk’ with them inside, and came back to you out of breath and sweaty, looking slightly pissed off. (it was hot though)

all of the hawthorne friends to lovers officially doneee, lmk if you enjoyeddd and leave reqs!! tags: @kikiyapps @lanterns-and-daydreams

[mrsmandalorian]

meeting your parents

--cowboy!joel x techie!f!reader

-one-shot in the city lights, country nights series

summary: a year into your relationship, your mother learns about your relationship with joel. she insists you bring him to dinner after you agree. joel gets rewarded for his good behavior, though.

series masterlist/main masterlist/word count: 3.4k

warning: 18+ mdni, reader is able-bodied, no outbreak AU,  pet names (baby, angel, darling), fluff!!!!, flirting, make-out, drinking, parental issues, talk of trauma, drinking, handsy make-out, oral sex (m receiving), sexual teasing, joel's southern charm 🥵

a/n: howdy, everyone! i hope all is well with everyone! i am super sorry for the delay in this. i hope you all enjoy it! comment, reblog, and like to show your love! i appreciate you all! much love 🫶🏼 maddie

It was common for you to have noon meetings during the week. These meetings ruined your lunch break and made the day go by longer. Your break was usually when you got to catch up with Joel and socials throughout the day, so this meeting ruined your vibe. 

You sighed in relief as your boss let you all out about ten minutes earlier than usual. Gathering all your items, you hurry to your little office and get out a little lunch from your bag. You grab your phone, planning to text Joel when you see your mother has tried to call you. After closing your office door, you call her back with a slight eye roll. 

Your relationship with your parents was okay, but you were very independent and broke many generational curses that disappointed your mother. Your mom was the type to try to set you up with all her friends, coworkers, and kids, and she wanted you to go to the University of Virginia like her and your father. You have never told her about Joel. The two of you have been together for almost a year now. You were not ashamed of your sweet and sexy cowboy at all. You just enjoyed the peace of them not knowing. Your parents were just tricky and old in their ways of thinking. That’s why you did not get along. 

“Hi, honey! I thought you would be on a lunch break, but I guess not,” she uttered as soon as she answered, causing you to shake your head. 

“Hi, Mom. I had a meeting during the first half of my lunch break. I'm just calling you back. How are you today?” you asked as you sat back in your chair. Your mom only calls every other week, usually to get gossip for her book club or country club women's group. Your apartment was about thirty minutes from their house, but you only went over once a month, if that. 

“I’m doing okay. Leanne just told me some interesting news,” you could hear the fake grin on her face as she spoke. “It was about you.” Why the hell would she know anything about you?

“Oh really? What did she have to say?” You hesitantly asked her as you sat up, wondering what her friend had news about you. 

“She was telling me about how she was on your side of town going grocery shopping because there were better prices on fruit and vegetables there. She ran into her old construction worker, and once she got to the check-out line, you were there with him checking out two lanes down all lovey-dovey.” She began her speech on ‘how could you’ as you started to fidget your fingers across the top of your desk. “Hello, are you there?” 

You slowly take a deep breath before you respond to her. “I’m here. Yes, he’s my boyfriend,” giving her a short response was the best you could do right now as your stomach turned. 

“Boyfriend? How old is he? Leanne says that he has kids! Honey, you are only twenty-five years old! You don’t need to be with some older man and some woman’s kids.” She nagged back at you, and your fingers were immediately at the end of the call button. 

“Mother, whenever you find the time to be respectful and happy for me, you can call me back, and we can discuss Joel.” You say as you finally hit the end call button and let out a shaky breath. You sit back in your chair, wishing you could simply disappear to your country heaven. 

It took her three days to call you back. You almost did not answer, but your drive to the ranch was on a Friday evening. I was hoping you would lose the phone service anyway. 

“Hello, sweetie. I am sorry for how I reacted the other day,” she started the talk in a sweet apologetic tone. It caused you to wish you had not answered. 

“I’m not saying I forgive you because you said very unfair things about Joel the other day.” You replied quickly as you continued to drive farther away from the city. 

“I know. I judged a book by the description and cover. I am sorry, sweetie.” She lets out another apologetic plea. “I was calling to apologize for my behavior, but also invite you and Joel for dinner at the house on Sunday if you are both free. Your father and I would like a chance to meet him.” 

You bite your lips as she speaks and tap your fingers along the steering wheel. “ I will have to talk to Joel about it. I’ll let you know by tomorrow morning.” 

The rest of your conversation was short as she tried to catch up with you a little. Because of her old manipulative ways, you knew not to play too much into her games, but she was still your mother. You eventually lose service before you get to the ranch, so you end the call. You try to relax a little before you pull into the driveway as you roll down the windows, enjoying the cool breeze. 

The drive past the ranch gates was quiet; usually, you could see someone out in the pastures. You pull into your regular parking spot and still cannot see anyone around. 

Sassy comes running the house from the direction of the barn, barking at you. She let you give her some quick love but started herding you towards the barn. “Alright, I’m coming,” you say to the dog as you follow her directions. As you come around the side of the house, you see Joel waiting for the two of you to join him with a smirk. 

You noticed he was covered in dirt and sweat when you approached him. His black T-shirt helped hide some dirt, and his large biceps peeked out. His large, dirty hand was wrapped around a cold yellow can of Coors. “Howdy, sweetheart,” he greets you with a gentle hand around your waist, pulling you into a small peck. He didn’t show much affection because Ellie and Tommy sat with him. It all looked like they had a rough day.

“You guys just slacking off and drinking today?” You joked with them as you pulled away from Joel to hug Ellie. You reached up to wipe some dirt off her chin like a mother. Ellie and your relationship was something you worked hard for. She gave you hell, but you won her over reasonably quickly. Her protectiveness over Joel was the biggest obstacle, but she accepted you in her small circle after seeing how you cared for and loved him. 

She jokingly pulls away in disgust, which makes you roll your eyes dramatically. You hear the sound of a cooler opening as you turn towards Tommy, yellow jacket in hand. He nods and gives you a beer, “Evening, city girl. I would hug you, but your old man decided to work my ass off,’’ he jokes with his giant smile and southern drawl. If you had not found Joel and Mariah wasn't in the picture, you could picture yourself with Tommy. You lift your beer to the two men (Ellie is still a senior in high school, but Joel told her she had to wait till she graduated to drink with them) as you all take a sip of the beer. 

“As much as I would love to sit here and drink beer all night. I need to go get ready for my hot date,” Tommy says as he finishes his beer in two big gulps. He lets out a loud belch as he grabs his cooler and puts it in the back of his truck. “I will see you guys in the morning. Call Ellie if you need anything. I will not answer if you call me.” 

You all chuckle as he waves and drives off down the driveway. The three of you all chat while you finish cleaning up the stables; then Ellie says she’s going to her room to shower so she can go into town later. 

Joel gently pulls you into his chest as the two of you watch her walk up to the big house. “You look mighty pretty today, little lady, but you seem tense. Let me help you with that.” He whispers into your ear as he moves your hair. Joel cups one side of your cheek as he pulls into a passionate kiss, pulling away slightly with a smirk and then going back in. He starts kissing down your neck, to the collar of your shirt, and to your ear. His wandering hands move from your waist to your bottom, kneading your ass. He held you still and gently guided you against the wall as he continued to kiss and let his hand wander. 

“I need to,” you stopped, letting out a small moan as he started to move his hands under your shirt. “I need to talk to you about something, Miller.” You couldn’t help but bring it up as it weighed heavy on you. You wanted to go ahead and get it over with, then ride your cowboy from sunset into the night.

Joel quickly stops his movements as his body eases off you gently, his concerned brown eyes meet yours. “What is it, darling?” He asked as he rubbed his hands gently on your hips, his eyes scanning your face for an answer to what could be wrong. 

“My mother called,” you say as you lay your hands on his chest. “She has invited us to dinner on Sunday. Her friend saw us together the other day and spilled the beans. We don’t have to go through.” 

“Why won’t we go? I mean, it’s been a year now,” he rubs your shoulders to reassure you that everything will be okay. “It would be nice to meet the parents who made me my favorite person.”

“She said some ugly things on the phone about our relationship. I made her call me and apologize for it,” you quickly tell him as you bite your lip, waiting for his response. 

He runs his thumb across your cheek as his brown eyes intensely meet yours. “I’m happy that you stood up for us. We can go, baby. I will just blow their socks off with my Southern charm,” he whispers as he kisses your forehead. Joel was insecure about never being good enough for you but never worried about other people’s opinions on your relationship, especially the age gap. 

“I’m sure you will,” you mumble back as you lean into him to give him a heartfelt kiss. “Now, we can resume our activities, cowboy.” 

Sunday evening came too quickly for your liking. You and Joel drove into the city together, and Joel drove your little sedan, which was always cute. You pull into your parent’s driveway with a slight groan escaping your lips. Joel’s hand gently rubbed your thigh, comforting you, “We got this, darling.”

Joel dressed more than usual in a solid button-up shirt rolled up to his forearm with nice dark jeans. You wore a simple dress that made you guys almost late whenever Joel saw you in it. 

Joel takes the lead as he gets out, opens your door, and helps you out of the car. He holds your hand as you both walk up to the door.  You ring the doorbell and look at him quickly with a small smile. He squeezes your hand and slightly winks as the door swings open, revealing your father. 

There is silence as your father awkwardly stares down at Joel, which causes you to stop breathing for a second. Joel breaks the silence as he lets go of your hand and puts it out for your father to shake: “Good evening, sir. I’m Joel Miller.”

Your father glances at his hand and shakes it hard. “Nice to meet you, Joel. Please don’t call me sir; we are too close in age for that. I’m Dave.” He says it almost as a joke and moves out of the way to let you in. You give Joel an eye roll about the comment as he walks in with his hand on the small of your back. 

“Dad, don’t be a dick,” you say as your mother walks into the room. She looks horrid at what you just said but gives Joel a small smile.

“Hello Joel, it’s so nice to meet you finally. I’m Tracy. Our daughter has been keeping you hidden,” she jokes beside your father, then gives you a death glare to behave. The tension in the room was giving you significant anxiety as you fidgeted your fingers as you all walked into the living room. “Would either of you like to drink? Dave could get you a beer or whiskey, whatever you like.” 

Joel looked calm and collected as he sat beside you on the couch. Your mother sat across from the two of you on a decorative chair. “Thank you. I’ll take a whiskey,” Joel responded as he smiled back at your mother. Your father started rambling about his whiskey collection, and Joel entertained it. He was putting that Southern charm to work tonight. 

The tension faded as you all sat at the table in the dining room, which your mother had beautifully decorated for the night. You helped her serve all the food. Joel tried to help, but you told him to return to entertaining your dad. 

As you help your mom in the kitchen, “I like him. I’m sorry that I judged him too early,” she says as she finishes plating the last dish. “I’m happy he makes you happy. I think I was just hurt that you kept it a secret.” 

You smile at your mom as she does a genuine behavior. She was lovely, but she could be very fake with her friends. “I’m happy you like him, Mom. He’s pretty okay,” you joked as you hugged her quickly. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I have no excuse for it.” 

“I can’t blame you either, honey. I didn’t tell my parents about your father until we moved in together. They were pissed when we got married three months later,” she giggles as you carry out plates to the table. 

Everyone starts eating as you all make small talk amongst each other. 

“The dinner is excellent, Tracy. Thank you guys for inviting us over for dinner,” Joel says after he wipes his face off with his napkin and then places it on his lap again. The two of you had been playing footsie under the table all night as you sat across from one another. You also took your shoe off and teased his crotch every once in a while, which caused you to get a stern look from Joel. 

“You are more than welcome, Joel. I’m so happy you guys are here,” your mom says back to him, smiling happily. The southern charm was still heavy as Joel won everyone over more and more, especially your dad—even the discussion of going to a University of Texas football game next season and a visit to the ranch soon. 

“Joel, if you don’t mind me asking, I heard from my friend that you have children. How old are they?” your mom asks as she finishes her meal. She seems genuine with her question, and there are no games. 

“I don’t at all. They are one of my favorite topics to discuss besides your daughter. I have two daughters, Sarah and Ellie. They are both seniors at the high school in the closest town to the ranch. Sarah comes from my previous relationship; her mom left us when she was two. Ellie is my not legally adopted daughter, and she is a spitfire. Ellie’s parents should burn in hell for how they were treating her. Luckily, she and Sarah were close enough for her to say something, and we could help her,” Joel spoke, and it made you want to get emotional as he talked with such love for his girls. They are his world and mean everything to him; he will do everything for them if they let him. 

“Aw, I’m sorry for the hardship of being a single parent. It is hard, I bet,” your mom says as she gives him a small smile. 

“My brother, Tommy, and his wife, Mariah, have been there for me as I am with them. This little lady has been heaven-sent as the girls get older and more challenging. Changing the diapers is easy, but feelings and relationship trouble are more challenging,” Joel jokes as his brown eyes meet yours with a grin. He reached across the table to your hand and held it briefly.  

Dessert was served, and the men drank one more drink as they helped wash the dishes in the kitchen. It was finally time to start heading back home. Your parents walked you out and gave you both hugs and farewells. 

Joel gently held your hand as he walked with you to the side of the car. He helps you in with a squeeze of your ass out of sight of your parents. As Joel pulls the car out of the driveway, you wave back to your smiling parents. 

“They loved you and your charm, handsome,” you look over at him with a smirk. “I think you deserve a reward for your good work.” You slide your hand over his clothed crotch, which earned a low groan from Joel.

“Are you trying to wreck us, darling?” He asks you with a chuckle and bats your hand away from him. “Either wait till we get away from the street lights or get home.”

“What if I didn’t do either,” you teased him as you slowly slid your hand back over his crotch. You bite your lower lip and palm him gently as you bat your eyelashes at him. 

“You better, or your ass is grass when we get home,” he grumbles as he bats your hand away. “You only have to wait ten minutes. I don’t want to get pulled over with my dick out.”

The next ten minutes were full of you teasing Joel as he got more and more sexually frustrated with you. As soon as the city lights went out of sight and pastures started, Joel gave you a stern look. “You have been teasing me all fucking night with that damn dress and your under-the-table activities. You will be punished for that,” he sternly tells you as you get an idea to get yourself out of trouble. 

“Or,” you dramatically drag the R as your hands slide back over to Joel’s clothed erected crotch. “I could reward and ask for your forgiveness now.” You trusted Joel that he could handle driving if you continued to pleasure him, and you would stop if not.

He lets out a shaky breath as you start to unbutton and unzip his jeans. You spit into your hand as you begin to pump his cock in a rhythm that makes him groan loudly. Eventually, after your hand starts to sting, you lean over and take him in your mouth. 

“Fuck, darling,” he lets out as his non-driving hand entangles your hair, gently pushing your head in rhythm as you are going in. “You’re going to make me come, angel.”

You continue to bobble your head down as your tongue glides against him, with some extra pressure applied that causes him to grip your hair a little harder. His quick breaths come a little sooner than you thought. You work him a little harder as you meet his brown eyes with big eyes. 

“I’m about to come, darling. Do you want to swallow?” he asks as he tries to calm down to give you time to answer. You nod and make an agreeing noise as you continue. Shortly, white ropes are shot into your mouth as Joel’s moans meet your ears. “Fuck, good girl.” He reaches down and cups your cheek as you pull up. “Just wait till we get home, little lady.”

“Oh, I can’t wait, sir,” you giggle back as his hand wanders under the skirt of your dress. He runs his thumb over your clothed pussy, which causes you to spread your legs. Joel teases you until you pull into the driveway. 

“You better get inside and on all four in about two minutes,” he warns you as he parks the car with a smirk. 

Luckily, the girls were away at a friend’s house because the two of you had a very energetic night from the couch to the bathroom shower. Joel’s Southern charm worked for him and worked with everyone, especially you. 

thank you for reading!let me know what you think!🤍

[peachjaem00]

The moon to my stars

PAIRING; childhood best friend!jisung x fem reader

SYNOPSIS;  jisung has been in love with you forever but kept it a secret because he was too afraid to ruin your friendship. he had to endure watching you make a life without him until one day he could not hold it any longer, he couldn’t let the moon leave his stars. or jisung being a complete and absolute simp for the reader since he was a little boy. 

HONORABLE MENTIONS; twin brother! Haechan, jeno, yeji (itzy), jaemin, chenle, renjun

WC; 14.5k

THEMES; fluff, angst, pinning, friends to lovers, non idol! Jisung

WARNINGS; swearing, female reader, mentions of alcohol, mentions of blood, physical fight, mentions of bruises, jealousy

AN; based on my jisung’s timelapses [01:10 pm], [12:30 am], [02:00 pm]. you don't have to read the timestamps to understand the fic.

also big shoutout to @cappujeno and @ichorai for beta reading this and for their support, this fic would have not happen if it wasn't for your help!

taglist; @sadgirlroo @shwizhies @patitotodd

He was five when he saw you for the first time. 

Jisung was feeling anxious, his heart was beating fast and his hands were sweating, the movement of the car making him more nervous and the big truck behind them made him feel as if he was being chased, which only fueled his panic. His family was moving to the house in front of yours where you and Haechan were playing. You pushed your brother a little too hard, making him fall, and you laughed as a result. He couldn't stop looking at you—for some reason, you intrigued him. Maybe it was the way you helped your brother immediately right after he fell, maybe it was the way you started to console him by patting his head and fixing his hair, maybe it was the way you never stopped smiling. He still remembers what you were wearing; a light blue dress with a moon right on your chest, with white sneakers and your hair up in two pigtails. You looked adorable and he knew at that moment you had the prettiest pair of eyes. 

He got out of his parent's car and the sound of the door closing was loud enough to make you look his way. You were amazed by the big moving truck and when your eyes landed on him, you waved hello. Jisung was too nervous and didn't know what to do other than hide behind his mom. After the little interaction, she took Jisung's hand and walked inside their new home—he couldn't stop looking at you even while he was being brought inside. 

A few hours later a knock on the door made Jisung look up from his coloring book. It was his mom who opened the door and later on she asked Jisung to come to the entrance. He was surprised by your presence, along with your mother and your brother. Haechan looked exactly like his mom, and he was guessing you looked more like your dad. 

“Jisung, these are our neighbors. They live in the house right in front of us, say hi.” 

“Hey, little guy.” Your mom was the first one to talk and by seeing how nervous Jisung was she smiled. 

“Hi, I'm y/n, very nice to meet you.” You extended your hand and he noticed a silver bracelet on your wrist. It looked big on you, but you didn't seem to care. 

“I'm Jisung,” he said with very pink cheeks while grabbing your hand and letting it go almost immediately. 

“This is my brother Donghyuck, but we call him Haechan.” 

“Hey, only my friends call me that.” 

“Well Jisung is our friend now, dummy.” Jisung laughed, so did his mother and yours. 

“Mom! Don't laugh, say something.” Haechan furrowed his eyebrows and crossed his arms over his chest, Jisung noticed that he had the same bracelet as you. 

“Y/n, we've talked about this.” Your mom’s stern tone made you look down.

“Yeah alright…” There was a defeated tone in your voice. “I’m sorry.”

“That was so fake.” Haechan pokes his tongue out and you copy his actions. 

“Kids, behave.” It only took one look from your mother to stop the bickering between you two. “Now y/n, why don't you ask Jisung's mom the thing you wanted when you saw him earlier?”

“Oh right!” The excitement in your eyes made them look even prettier, making Jisung's heart race. “Can Jisung come play with us? I promise we will take care of him and we'll have him home before it gets dark.” You gave Jisung's mom your puppy eyes and she couldn't help but laugh at your cuteness; meanwhile, Jisung was trying to calm himself. 

“I have no problem, but let's see what Jisung has to say, okay?” All eyes were on him, making him hide behind his mom once again, a habit that he does till this day. 

You noticed how shy and nervous he was, so you came closer, grabbing his hand and rubbing your little thumb on his knuckles in an attempt to calm him down. 

“Do you want to come and play? I promise we're nice people,” you said in the softest voice. It only took a look into your eyes to make Jisung forget about his shyness, the warmth in them was enough to make him feel safe. 

“Yes.” His voice was a whisper but he knew you heard him since your smile grew wider. 

“Great! Let’s go!” You pulled his hand along with your brother’s and bolted out of there with the boys following you. “Thanks Jisung's mom, I'll take good care of him, I promise!”

And that's what you did. You took care of Jisung that whole afternoon, the day after and the one after that. You kept your promise to Mrs. Park and you took care of her son up until this day. 

He was 10 years old when he discovered he had a crush on you. 

You and Donghyuck were going into your first year of junior high while Jisung was still in elementary school. He was distressed, to say the least. It was his first time going to school without the two of you, he felt lost and lonely. You three would walk together to school; it had been a tradition for years, at least for him but now that you were going to another school, the tradition was broken. It was a very mundane thing but seeing you first thing in the morning always lifted his mood up. 

Despite moving to the neighbourhood 5 years ago, he had only managed to make 2 friends, you and your brother. He feared not making any new friends during those 2 years he had left of middle school before he could join you. 

He tried fixing his tie but no matter how much he tried, it always turned out a little crooked. He let out a tired sigh and gave up. He said goodbye to his parents and then he finally grabbed his backpack to leave the house. He was surprised by your presence in his front yard. You looked so pretty in your new uniform and you no longer wore your hair up. It was longer, soft and shiny as it lapped at your shoulders, gently stirred in the breeze, the sun giving it a lighter hue. Jisung let out a sigh while admiring you. 

“Y/n? What are you doing here?” he asked, confused.

“I'm walking you to school, duh,” you said with an obvious tone. 

“Why?” 

“What do you mean why? We've been walking to school together for years, Sung.” 

“I know, but you go to a new school now.” 

“You do know it's just around the corner, right?” you giggled while seeing his red cheeks when he realized. “And even if it was far away, I don't want you to walk to school alone. It's tradition that we do it together.” 

He felt his heart racing and a certain warmth hugging him, he thought he was the only one taking it as tradition. He was so happy to find out he wasn't alone and that it wasn’t a thing that you had to do but that you also looked forward to it.

“And Haechan hyung?” 

“He left earlier since he didn't want anyone to take the last seat of the central row.” You pause. “You know how he is,” you say pointedly, making the younger one laugh. “Here, let me help you.” You untied his tie and put it around your neck. Your fingers moved smoothly and before tying it completely you took it off. “Stay still.” You put the tie around the collar of his button up, you fixed it and finally you tied it up; your fingers brushed against his neck, making him feel chills, they were cold even though it was summer. “There you go.” You moved your hands and Jisung noticed your silver bracelet once again. 

He found out that you and Hacehan had the same bracelet, both of your names engraved plus a little sun for Donghyuck and a little moon for you. It was a gift from your parents when you turned two. You once confessed to him that it was your biggest treasure. 

 “C'mon we're gonna be late.” Whilst saying that, you started walking. 

You never talked much during your walks to school, but none of you cared. It was your little moment of peace before the chaos started.

“Are you nervous?” He looked at you when he heard your voice.

“Yes, very,” you chuckled, making him smile, he couldn't help himself. 

“You'll be okay.” 

“Yeah, I don't think so.” He lets out a nervous giggle. “It's gonna be hard without you there.” 

“C’mon Jisung, you're really nice and such a good person. You just need to make the first move or keep the conversation going if someone starts one.”

“I'm terrible at it.” His tone was dejected.

“You have become much better though, Hyuck and I have taught you well. Don't tell me you have forgotten everything?” You giggled. 

“No.” His voice held a panicked tone. “It’s just that, why would people want to be friends with me? I never talk.” 

“Anyone would be lucky to have you as a friend.” Your voice was serious. “You’re loyal, funny and caring. They would be very stupid if they didn't want to be friends with you.” He noticed your anger when he looked at you.

You arrived at his school after finishing the conversation. You grabbed his hand before he could go in, making him face you. 

“You're gonna be okay. Don't worry about it too much, and have fun.” You fixed his tie one last time. “I'll come for you when school is done.” And when you fix your own hair, he noticed that your bracelet fell off. “I have to go or I'll be late, see you later!” You ran off before he could say anything else. 

Jisung was quick to grab the bracelet and put it in his pocket making sure it was safe before going in. 

“She believes in you. You can do it, Park Jisung,” he told himself and then he went on to his first class. 

School went by and it wasn't as horrible as he thought. There was a new student, who introduced himself as Chenle—he was a transfer student from China. Jisung took this as an opportunity, he went and introduced himself and helped him throughout the whole day, making sure the new kid knew where his classes were, who his teachers were etcetera… He made sure to make a good impression hoping that Chenle would want to see and talk to him again. 

The last bell rang and Jisung grabbed his things. He went to his locker, put away some books and grabbed the ones that he needed. He said goodbye to Chenle and went to his school's exit. 

“Jisung!” You waved your hand so he would be able to see you. 

He smiled to himself and he jogged to be by your side. 

“So, how was school?” 

Jisung told you everything about his hopefully new friend and the way you looked at him, made his little heart race. He was so happy not only because he was able to talk to someone but because you were so proud of him. After his little ramble he asked about your day, you told him about how boring it was and how teachers were already nagging you about your twin. You also told him about your new friends and about the classes you were excited for. 

“Well here we are,” you said while stopping by Jisung's house first. “See you tomorrow.” You gave him a smile and fixed your hair once again, making Jisung notice about your missing bracelet. 

 “Wait!” He noticed he yelled so he cleared his throat to play it off. “Here.” He reached for his pocket and got the bracelet out. “It fell this morning so I kept it with me to give it back, I know how much it means to you.” 

“Oh my god, my bracelet!” You grabbed it and quickly put it on so it won't fall again. “Thank you so much! You literally saved my life.” You hugged him tightly, not being able to know how else you can express your gratitude.

When your arms surrounded Jisung, he couldn't help but feel warm and fuzzy, he knew his cheeks were red and he really hoped you didn't notice how fast his heart was racing. He hugged you back and it felt nice. Your hair smelled like vanilla, your perfume like roses, you engulfed him but he didn't care, he was happy to drown in your embrace. 

After breaking the hug you said goodbye once again, you thanked him and finally, you gave him a little kiss on his cheek. He watched you until you were inside your home and you closed the door; he just stood there, being dumbfounded, grabbing the cheek you pecked. 

“Jisung? Aren't you coming in?” His mom snapped him out of his trance. “C’mon, food's getting cold.” 

Jisung went on with his day but he couldn't stop thinking about you. He couldn't stop thinking about how cute you looked with your new uniform, or how good you looked with your long hair, or how your hug made him feel so soft and he definitely couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. That little kiss, that meaningless kiss that only showed your gratitude, that insignificant kiss that meant everything for him. His cheeks flush all over again no matter how many times he thought about it. 

He was on his bed, trying to sleep, but he was wide awake, his chest heavy and his mind was empty, only you in it. He didn't understand why. Why was he thinking so much about his friend? Why did that hug feel so nice? Why did that kiss make him so flustered? Why couldn't he get you out of his mind? Or maybe he knew, maybe he had known for a while but he didn't want to admit it…

“Oh no…” 

He was 15 years old when he realized he was in love with you. 

It was the beginning of the second semester of Jisung’s first highschool year, he was still a freshman while you were in your junior year. You were quite popular alongside your brother, having friends in all the years, especially seniors, therefore you were always invited to the parties. This year you invited Jisung to one alongside his friend Chenle, it was his first time attending a party from upperclassmen. He was making sure his hair looked nice, and that his outfit seemed neat, he was nervous as always.

“Stop, you're gonna mess your hair even more,” Chenle said with a mocking tone. 

“Oh no, my hair looks messy?” Chenle let out a big laugh by seeing his scared eyes. 

“I was joking, geez.” 

“You're such an asshole, you know how nervous I get when I'm with her.” 

“I know, because you love her.” Chenle’s singsong tone made Jisung even angrier. 

“I don't love her.” 

“Oh please, yes you do! You're so in love with her, it's painful to watch, dude.” 

Jisung was about to say something but he was stopped by the sound of his doorbell. 

“Jisung! Y/n is here, hurry!” his mom shouted from downstairs. 

They quickly grabbed their stuff and they went downstairs. He stopped midway by seeing you, being totally enamoured by the sight of you. You put makeup on, enhancing your beauty, the gloss made your lips look plumper—he could only think of how much he wanted to kiss them. You cut your hair after years of having it long, he thought you looked adorable but somehow you also looked a little more mature, as if having long hair gave you a kind of child-like aura. Your outfit was heavily planned but it seemed effortless and he smiled seeing you were wearing the jacket he gifted you for your last birthday. 

“Wow,” he whispered to himself. You landed your eyes on him and his heart skipped a beat. 

“C'mon Sung, Hyuck is waiting and you know how whiny he can get.” He snapped out of his trance and followed you out after saying goodbye to his mom. 

“Don't worry Mrs. Park, you know I'll take good care of him.” Jisung's mom smiled. She loves the fact that you have stayed loyal to the promise you made to her 10 years ago. 

As soon as you entered the car, you grabbed the aux cord and started playing one of your playlist, making your twin nag and try to steal the cord from you. You turned the volume knob so you wouldn't be able to hear him, making the younger ones laugh and your twin to stick his tongue out to you; you answered the same way, a thing you have done ever since you were little. 

You sang all the way to the house, laughing at your horrible voice but you didn't care, you still sang with all of your energy. Haechan parked the car and you entered the party together, your twin was quick to disappear making Jisung nervous but when he felt your hand in his, rubbing his knuckles like you always do, he could feel his heart easing down, it also helped seeing Jaemin and Renjun. They were Haechan's friends first but since Jisung hung out with you two almost everyday, they eventually became his friends as well. 

You never left Jisung's side, you know he can get really nervous whenever he's in a new social situation, and a senior party is a very wild place to be, one that you know Jisung is not really used to. You took Chenle and Jisung to the dance floor, you gave them stuff to drink -not alcohol because you know Mrs. Park would kill you-, you introduced them to your friends and you made sure they were feeling comfortable. 

While you were doing all of that, Jisung couldn't stop looking at you, being so grateful to you for not leaving them; everyone noticed his heart eyes towards you but no one said anything about it, instead they planned a little something. 

“Let's play spin the bottle!” Jaemin said with excitement while he shook the empty bottle in his hand. 

“For real? What are we, five?” you said, mocking him. 

“C'mon y/n, don't be like that, it'll be fun.” Yeji, your other best friend besides Jisung, nudged your arm and made you sit down next to her. Renjun made Jisung and Chenle sit down in front of you. 

“Let 's go,” Jaemin said with a grin as he spinned the bottle. 

At the end of the day you were having fun, if people weren't able to kiss they had to take a shot, seeing their faces after it made you laugh so hard; Jisung couldn't take his eyes off you. 

“Okay, miss y/n, your turn.” Renjun placed the bottle in the middle and gave you a mischievous smile. 

You gave the bottle a spin. Everyone was paying attention, hoping it landed on Jisung. The younger one watched the bottle spin until it stopped, everyone went quiet by seeing in who it landed. 

“Guess, we have to kiss now?” you said while looking at Jeno. 

“I guess we do.” He smiled and got near you. 

You met him halfway and connected your lips. The kiss lasted seconds but to Jisung it seemed hours. He despised every moment of it and a sigh of relief left his lips when you two broke the kiss. He gave Jeno a death glare. He hated him and he wanted him to disappear forever. When he looked at you his heart sank. His hope was gone. He started shaking slightly out of fear. You were happy, hell, more than happy. You were thrilled. Your eyes were glowing with eagerness, they only glowed like that when you were really excited or when you were overwhelmed in the best way possible. You liked Jeno, even if you weren't aware of it yet Jisung knew because he knew you better than himself. He knew all of your mannerisms, your habits and after 10 years of friendship he was an expert at reading your eyes. It broke him knowing you were glowing because of Jeno, and not because of him. 

“I have to go and get some fresh air, my head is starting to ache,” he announced. Not that many were paying attention to him anyway. 

He quickly stood up and went to the backyard of  the house. The party was there too, but the music wasn't as loud, and it wasn't as crowded. He found a lonely corner and he went there for a little while, thinking about why it hurt so much if it was only a little crush, a little crush that had been going strong for 5 years now. 

“Oh no,” he said when it hit him. “Oh no, please no.” He massaged his temples, maybe that would help with the now real headache that was happening. “Fucking hell, why me?” He said looking up, asking the stars for an answer. “Why would you do this to me?” He looked directly at the moon who looked beautiful as always, trying to find comfort but it didn't work; she had always been helpful but that night, that night it felt as if she was mocking him and it didn't help the fact that it was in a waxing crescent. She was smiling down at him, it seemed as if she was laughing. 

“Who are you talking to?” 

“Ah! Fuck!” He jumped on his spot and put a hand on his chest trying to control his racing heart. “Don't do that, you scared the shit out of me!” He smacked Chenle's arm while the other tried to control his laughter. 

“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you,” he said in between giggles. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, why wouldn't I be?” 

“Well you stormed out of the room, and then I caught you talking to yourself outloud. I don't know how to tell you this but that's not normal dude.” The mocking tone in his voice made the younger one roll his eyes. 

“I knew that.” 

“As much as I love making fun of your antics, can you tell me what's wrong? Is it because y/n kissed Jeno?” Jisung stayed quiet but he didn't have to say anything, his face, especially his eyes gave away the answer. “Of course it's that.” Chenle looked up and a sigh left his lips. “It's just a stupid game Jisung, don't take it seriously.” 

“No, you don't know her like I do, you didn't notice but it meant more to her, it was more than just a stupid kiss to her.” He looked down and his hand found its way to his eyes, in an attempt to stop the tears from coming down. “You couldn't see it but her eyes screamed with excitement. Ugh! This is bad! This is terrible!” His hands proceeded to pass through his hair, messing it up but at this point, the boy didn't care if it was messy or not. 

“Oh, c'mon dude, calm down.” 

“I can't because you were right.” 

“About what?” 

“I do love her.” 

“What?” The confusion was evident in his face, but then it hit him. “Holy shit! Are you for real? Bro I was joking, like I knew you had a big crush on her but I never thought it was this serious.” 

“Yeah, I thought so too but seeing her kiss Jeno.” He rubbed his eyes and then he let out a tired sigh. “It made me so angry? No, is not that. Sad?”

“Disappointed,” Chenle finished his sentence. He always knew what Jisung meant even when Jisung himself couldn’t find the right word. 

“Yeah. I felt my heart sink, it broke me a little.” 

“Shit, dude.” 

“I know.” He leaned on the wall and slowly slid down until he was sitting on the floor. 

Chenle sat down by his side, he sneaked his arm around Jisung's shoulders and patted him softly, trying to comfort his friend. 

“Tell her.” 

“What?”

“About how you feel.” 

“Are you stupid? No way, she will never feel the same. She only sees me as her neighbour.”

“Oh, c'mon, you know that's not true. She hates it when you say that, you're her friend.” 

“Exactly, we're friends, I don't want to ruin that.” 

“What makes you so sure it will ruin your friendship?”

“Because she won't reciprocate my feelings and then it will be awkward and little by little, we will drift apart and I don't want that, I can't have that.” He was exhausted.

“It will be okay dude.” Chenle hugged him.

“No it won't.” He looked up once again. 

The moon was no longer mocking him, she was inconsolable. She knew how heartbroken the boy was and it made her angry not knowing how to comfort him. She had been helpful towards the boy for years now, always making him feel safe whenever he sought calmness, but tonight she cried alongside him. 

He was 16 years old when he got in a fight.

You and Jeno were going strong, almost a year has passed since that party and 10 months since you started dating. 

He hated every single second of it. It broke him having to hear you talk about how dreamy he was, and how he's the best boyfriend and the worst thing is that he wanted to hate him, but he couldn't. He made you so happy, and that was what mattered. He suffered but seeing your smile was worth all the pain. 

Your graduation was coming, meaning prom was just around the corner. Of course you got Jisung and Chenle tickets, you wanted to spend the night with the people closest to you. It was going to be the perfect night, you made sure of it. In fact the only reason why you wanted to be president of the student council was to have full control of prom night; no one was going to ruin your special night. 

You ran down the stairs the second you heard the ringbell. You opened the door and Jisung was there, waiting for you. 

“Jesus, Jisung, hurry up!” You dragged him inside by his arm, making him lose his balance and almost falling. “We don't have much time!” He straightened his position and acted as if nothing happened.

“Isn't it at like 9?” he asked, confused.

“Yeah, so what?” 

“Y/n, it's 2pm, I think we have plenty of time.” There was a mocking tone in his voice, making you death glare at him, his smile disappeared in seconds. 

“We have to go pick up your suit and Hyuck's, then my dress, then I have to come back here to drop both of you off, then I have to go to my hair and makeup appointment and then come back once again to finish getting ready, plus I have to be like an hour early since I'm the president.” 

“Why do you have to drop us off? We'll go with you.” 

“Really? You don't mind?” 

“Not at all, it'll save us lots of time.” 

“Thank you.” Your eyes were soft and the gratitude was evident in your tone. “Okay then let's go. Lee Donghyuck get your ass down now!” Jisung covered his ears, he didn't expect that scream. “Shit, sorry.” You laughed, making him smile. 

“Dude, don't scream!” Haechan made an act of presence. “I'm here, don't get all crazy, geez.” 

“Stop whining and get your ass moving.” And it only took one glare to make him silent and obedient. 

You may look like your dad but you had the same glare as your mom, making your brother very scared of you. This always made Jisung laugh, he never gets to see Haechan like this, so it's a treasure when he witnesses it. 

“What are you laughing about? Move!” you said with a stern tone. 

“Yes, ma'am.” He saluted and finally got out of the house. 

Both of you were halfway to the car when you noticed Haechan was still at the entrance, picking up the mail. 

“Hyuck, it's not the time! Move!” 

“It has the logo of The University of Sydney.” He showed a medium size envelope. “This is it y/n.” The colour left your face, your heart dropped to your stomach, you started shaking and your legs went limp. 

You went on a family vacation to Australia a few years ago and you loved every second of it. You automatically fell in love with Sydney and when you visited the university's campus with your brother you knew you had to attend that school. It had the best program for you, the classes were amazing with very famous professors. It was your perfect school.

Inside that envelope was the answer to your future. It stated if you were accepted into your dream college or if you were rejected; only the thought of not being able to go made you dizzy. You lost your balance but thank god for Jisung who was fast enough to catch you. 

“I can't, you do it.” You looked at your brother with pleading eyes. Your lips and throat went dry, making your voice sound out a little broken. 

“No fucking way!” Haechan refused immediately and got closer to Jisung. “You do it.” He handed him the envelope and Jisung was hesitant to take it.

“I don't know if I should.” 

“Please, for me? I can't bring myself to do it, Sung.” He looked at you and he melted; your eyes were literally begging him, how could he say no?

“Fine.” He let go of you with delicacy and grabbed the envelope.

He opened it and took out the letter slowly, afraid that it might rip if he hurried. All eyes were on him while he read the inside, no one could decipher what it said, his face was expressionless. Jisung read it slowly, making sure to comprehend what it said, to save himself the confusion and a possible breakdown from you if he said anything wrong. It's been only a few minutes but to everyone it felt like hours, you wanted to know but at the same time you didn't. You can't be rejected if you never knew the contents of the letter, right? Your brother, on the other hand, was impatient. 

“Say something already!” He startled everyone with his loud scream. 

Jisung looked at you with a little smile on his lips. He didn't have to say anything, you knew by looking into his eyes that everything was okay. You laughed and your eyes started to water and you were quick to engulf the younger one in your embrace. He held you close, savouring the moment since it may be one of the lasts for a long time. 

“Why are you hugging? Holy shit y/n, are you crying? What's going on?!”

“She got in.” The look on his eyes was filled with pride and happiness. 

He knew how hard you worked for this. He was there pulling all nighters by your side, being your number one hype man, having your back in the highs and lows. Jisung was there for you throughout the whole journey and to be honest, you couldn't imagine anyone else by your side, you were glad it was him. 

“Holy shit!” Your brother took you in his arms and hugged you, while making you jump and spin around together. “I'm so proud of you! You're going abroad! You're gonna live by yourself! You're getting everything you’ve always dreamed of!” 

“I know!” You match your brother's excited tone. “I gotta tell Jeno.” And just like that, Jisung's smile disappeared. Good for him that you didn't notice. 

After telling Jeno, your parents and Jisung's parents you finally went on with your day, and the busy schedule that you had ahead. 

After picking up the suits you went to pick up your dress. It was beautiful, a midnight blue dress with a subtle glitter to it, making it look like the night sky, it was backless and it had spaghetti straps. You didn't know this but Jisung convinced your mom to tell him the colour of your dress so he could buy the same colour tie. He wasn't going to be your date, but the least he wanted was to match. Then it was the hair and makeup appointment, Jisung and Haechan went to a nearby cafe to kill time while they waited for you, it was going to take a while. 

“How are you feeling?” he asked your brother when they're sitting down with some coffee and pastries. 

“A little bored but you know once we arrive at the party I'll be the star of the night.” A smirk on his lips, making the younger one laugh. 

“I meant, how do you feel knowing she's going away?” Haechan's smile disappeared and his eyes lost their playful glint.

“I'm happy for her.” He meant it but his voice had a bitter tone.

“Come on dude, it's me.” Haechan looked at him and found comfort in his eyes. In that moment he finally realised why you always did it, Jisung had the ability to let everyone feel at ease just by looking into his eyes. 

He lets out a sigh before speaking. 

“I'm happy for her, I really am but…” He played with the spoon of his drink, to calm his nerves. “I'm really gonna miss her…” 

“Yeah, me too.” 

“No, Jisung you don't get it.” His tone was quickly changed for a serious one, his eyes went from sorrow to anger in a matter of seconds and his jaw tensed. “She has been by my side literally my whole life, she's my other half… We're the sun and the moon… How am I going to live without her here with me?” 

“Hey, it'll be okay, it's not like she's gone forever.” The younger one talked with his softest voice. “She's gonna visit and you know she'll come back. She will never leave you behind, at the end of the day, you are her other half as well.”  

“Yeah I guess…” He finally looked up from his drink. “Thanks, Jisung.” 

“No problem.” He gave him a smile which was reciprocated quickly and Haechan's eyes came back to being soft and happy again. 

A little while went by when you appeared at the coffee shop all dolled up. You looked beautiful; your hair was styled making your face look even prettier and the make up was perfect, it accentuated your features. Jisung couldn't take his eyes off of you. He was hypnotised, and being honest, he didn't want to be freed from your spell. 

“Holy shit dude,” your brother let out. “You look really pretty.”  

“Wow, you really mean that?” The nervousness was evident in your voice.

You weren't really sure about your makeup, you felt as if it was too much, and it made you feel a little insecure. The shades of colour that the woman picked weren't exactly in your comfort zone but you trusted her because at the end of the day, she was the expert. 

“Hundred percent! You look stunning! Right, Jisung?” He elbowed the younger one, trying to find support from him. 

Jisung was caught off guard since he was paying his undying attention to you. He snapped out of it and he went silent for a second. His cheeks were red, his mouth went dry and his hands were slightly shaking. 

“Yes, you look stunning.” His voice was almost nonexistent, he was afraid you weren't able to hear him but the smile on your face and the slight blush creeping up gave it away. 

“Thanks, Sungie.” The softness in your voice made him lightheaded. “Let's move, we still have to go home and finish.” 

The way back home was fun. You had the best taste in music and a talent of always picking the perfect songs for the right moment. The vibes were never off when you were the one in control of the music. 

When you arrived everyone went to their respective homes, you gave them until 7:45 to be ready or else you would leave without them, your glare made them both know you were dead serious. 

Jisung was in his room, he already had his suit on and once again he was struggling with his tie, he never got the hang of it. After failing for the fifth time he let out a tired sigh and went to his mom. He peeped his head into his parents room and found his mom in her bed reading a book. His dad was nowhere to be seen since he was out on a business trip. 

“What's up Jisung?” She didn't even have to look up, she felt her son's presence in a second. 

“Can you help me with my tie?” He was a little embarrassed when it hit him. He was a 16 year old boy who still needed help from his mom. It was quite adorable, really. 

“Of course, baby.” Her mocking tone made his cheeks get redder. 

“Ugh mom!” She laughed by hearing his whining and that made him smile. 

She got up and went closer to her son. She made the knot smoothly. Jisung was amazed with the fastness and how easy she made it look. His mom fixed his tie, then his collar and finally his blazer. He looked dashing, his hair was styled away from his forehead and she was proud knowing it was all his doing.

“You look so handsome.” 

“Thanks, mom.” The shyness was evident in his voice and he scratched the nape of his neck. 

“So…” 

“So… ?” he asked, confused. 

“Is this the night?” 

“The night of what?”

“The night you confess your feelings for y/n?”

“Oh my god, mom!” He was sick and tired of hearing this.

His mom found out about his crush on you even before he even realised, and she has insisted her son to confess for years now. She rooted for you knowing how enamoured he was, she also knew you had certain feelings for him, even though you weren't aware, moms always know best. 

“What?” She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, looking at her son in an accusatory way. 

“She has a boyfriend, and she’s going away soon. Why even bother?” 

“You have loved her for years Jisung, how much longer can you keep this a secret?” 

“As long as necessary.” His serious tone made her mom sighed. “It's her night, I don't want to ruin it.” 

“Fine.” He noticed the sadness in her eyes and he was quick to hug her. 

“It's okay mom, I'm okay,” he whispered and his mom tightened the hug. 

“Go, or you'll be late.” 

He broke the embrace, he gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek and he finally got out. He went back to his room and checked himself on the mirror one last time. He fixed a stray hair, he put on some rings, his watch (which you gifted him), a necklace and then he covered himself with some perfume (one that he knew was your favourite). He said goodbye to his mom and got out of the house. 

He was surprised by the presence of Jeno at your entrance, and he was even more surprised seeing him hesitating on whether he should knock or not. 

“Hey,” he said, startling the older one. Fuck, he looked good. 

“Jisung, hey.” Jisung did not miss the nervous tone and his eyes were shaking, something was off with Lee Jeno, and he was going to discover what. “You look good.” 

“Thanks, you too.” It hurt him saying that, knowing damn well you were gonna fall all over again for your boyfriend. “C'mon, let's get inside.” He just opened the door. It wasn't a surprise, Jisung has been coming here since he was five, it's his second home. 

“I'm here!” he announced his presence so no one worries. “Jeno hyung is here too.” 

“How did you get in?” Haechan was fixing his tie while coming down the stairs and he looked at Jeno confused.

“Jisung.” Jeno pointed at the younger one

“You gotta stop doing that dude,” he laughed while finally standing beside his friends. 

“I will when you stop doing the same at my house.” The younger one said in a challenging manner. 

“Okay fine, you win.” Haechan lifted his hands up in a sign of defeat. 

“You're ready to go?” Your voice made the three guys turn their heads. 

Every single one of them went silent by the sight of you. You looked absolutely stunning. The dress fitted your body in all the right places as if it was meant to be worn by you and it made your moles visible making your skin look like a starry night. The make up was perfect and your hair was also perfect, you looked perfect. Jisung's heart was racing and he was sure everyone could hear it, he couldn't take his eyes off of you, his mouth was dry and his hands were clammy. 

“Wow!” Jeno was the first one to break the silence. “Holy fuck, you look stunning! I can't believe this gorgeous woman is mine!” You could feel the heat come to your face, your smile was wide and the shyness was very evident. 

“Stop!” You hid your face. 

“Hey don't do that, people deserve to see your beauty.” Jeno took your hands off and he let out a sigh. “Fuck,” he whispered, he cupped your cheeks with his hands and then he kissed you.

Jisung looked away with teary eyes, oh how he wished that was him. 

“Sorry, I couldn't help myself,” Jeno said after breaking the kiss. 

“It's okay,” you whispered. Your cheeks were on fire and your eyes were shining like a galaxy. 

“Okay love birds, it's time to go.” Haechan was the first to speak after that scene. “C'mon, y/n! You were hurrying us before, move!” 

“I'll kill you Hyuck.” Your voice was serious and once again, your brother lifted his hands up. 

“Sorry.” And then he got out of the house. 

Jeno followed him out and you were left with Jisung. You looked at him and frowned by seeing his teary eyes. 

“Hey, Sung.” You came closer to him, you grabbed his hand and started caressing his knuckles with your thumb, like you always do. “What 's wrong?”

“Sorry it's just that, you look so pretty.” It may have been a half-assed lie but as long as you're happy. “And I'm happy I get to be with you during this night.” 

“Of course.” Your voice was soft and your touch was delicate. “You're my best friend, of course I wanted you here, with me, during this very important night.” He let out a sad giggle. “C'mon let's go.” You didn't let go of his hand throughout the whole ride to prom. 

When you arrived, Haechan and Jisung went to the gym to kill time while you made sure everything was perfect, Jeno went with you. Jisung couldn't stop looking at the both of you; you looked perfect and he loved seeing you in your president role, but Jeno, Jeno looked nervous. He followed you everywhere but he did it silently, he wasn't by your side, holding your waist like he usually does but instead he was behind you. He noticed how he was spacing out, in all this time knowing Jeno, he has never been caught off guard. 

Time passed by and the party finally started. You were at the door receiving and greeting everyone while your friends and brother danced together but after a while you decided it was time to drop formalities and have fun, so you went with your friends and started dancing. 

After a while you were called, it was time to announce the prom king and queen. You excused yourself and went backstage to prepare everything and made sure everything was perfect. You went up on stage, grabbed a microphone and asked for the band to turn it down a bit, making everyone whine a little but the moment they saw you up stage they knew what was happening. 

“Hello everyone, are you having a good time?” The crowd answered with whoops of excitement, which made your smile grow wider. “I'm glad to hear you're having fun. Well it's that time of the night.” You showed the envelope that was in your hands and the screams were louder this time. “Inside this envelope are the names of your next prom king and queen, are you ready?” 

“Yes!” everyone answered in unison, making you laugh. 

“Your prom king is…” You stopped to make a pause to build up the excitement. It also bought you a little time to open the envelope. You smile by reading the name in the piece of paper, feeling proud. “Lee Jeno!” Everyone shouted and started congratulating Jeno while he walked towards the stage. 

You gave him the ribbon that said “Prom King”, a little sceptre and you finally placed the crown on his head. You congratulated him and kissed him, not caring about all the viewers. 

“Okay now, the title that actually matters.” People laughed once again, making you feel a little proud, you have rehearsed that line for a month now. “And your prom queen is…” The drummer made a drum roll to build up tension and for you to read the words on the piece of paper. You smile once again. “Hwang Yeji!” 

Your best friend was shocked, she didn't expect it, making the moment more genuine. Jaemin, her date, walked her through the crowd and helped her up on stage since she was still in shock. You put on the ribbon and gave her the sceptre. After crowning her you hugged her tightly. 

“Congratulations babe, I'm so proud of you.” 

“Thank you.” She broke the hug and waved at the audience, making them shout even louder for her. 

“Okay now it's time for the king and queen's waltz so please clear the dance floor.”

People moved and the centre of the dance floor was empty. Jeno, Yeji and you got off of stage, you were quick to move aside, giving your boyfriend and friend the space so they could go and dance. You were puzzled by seeing them coming towards you and Jaemin. 

“Actually.” Jeno extended his hand towards you while Yeji and Jaemin went together to the dance floor. “Will you grant me this dance, beautiful lady?” 

“But you're supposed to dance with the queen, I'm not the queen.” Even though you're giving him reasons not to, you took his hand, and you let him guide you to join your friends. 

“You are my queen.” You couldn't help but feel your cheeks warm. “And besides, I really doubt people will say something about it, at the end of the day, I'm the king, and you're their president.” You both laughed and finally made it to the centre of the dance floor. 

You looked like the perfect couple to everyone that was watching. You and Jeno were described by your classmates as the perfect match, or a match made in heaven. To everyone, you were meant to be. 

Jisung watched you from afar, being overwhelmed by all his emotions. He was admiring you and at the same time he was being jealous of Jeno, he couldn't help but feel all his love for you overflowing his heart while all of his rage went towards Jeno. He felt so happy for you, seeing that you're enjoying the night but he despised the fact that you weren't with him. And he hated himself, he hated himself for being a coward and not telling you about his feelings, because now he is suffering the consequences. It was easy for him when you were single because in a way, he still had a chance, but when you got together with Jeno, all the hope he had (which wasn't much) was gone, crushed. 

He couldn't bear to look at you two anymore so he ran off out of there. He couldn't see how Jeno came close to your ear and asked you to go and talk outside. Jisung went into the first classroom, the tears were falling by themselves, he wanted them to stop but it was pointless, his heart was way too broken, the only thing it could do to fix itself was crying. His vision was blurry because of the tears so he didn't see you and Jeno coming in. He was on the other side of the room and the lights were off so he was almost invisible, neither Jeno or you noticed the younger one. Jisung hid himself when he heard the door being closed. 

“What did you want to talk about?” He froze even more on his spot by hearing your voice. He knew it was wrong to eavesdrop someone's conversation but it was you. 

“It's about you leaving.” Jeno's voice was really low, Jisung could barely hear it. “You know how we talked about it at the start of our relationship, you said if I felt comfortable with it we could try long distance.” 

“Yeah?” Your tone was worried, Jisung could picture you perfectly, fidgeting with your bracelet. 

“I don't think I can do it.” You could hear the pain in Jeno's voice and so did Jisung, even though he didn't like him, he empathized with him. 

“I mean I told you about it today, and I'm not leaving until like 2 months, we can talk about it and figure it out. Think about it, please.” The pleading in your voice made Jisung sneak a peek. 

You were holding Jeno's hands, your eyes were begging him and it made him furious. You should never be begging anyone to stay with you. To him, you deserve the best of the best. The rage was pooling inside of him, he almost came out and confronted Jeno. 

“The thing is that I have, ever since you told me you were planning on going away I've been thinking about it. I tried y/n, I really tried but I can't.” Jisung noticed your eyes watering, his hands were in fists to the point where his knuckles were white. “I love you so much but not enough to wait for you.” In that moment you could feel your heart break, the tears streamed down automatically. Jisung couldn't contain himself anymore and he came out. 

“You fucking asshole!” And after that he punched Jeno in the face, making his lip bleed. “How fucking dare you!?” And another, he could hear your screaming but he was blinded by rage. “You don't love her enough!? Then you never loved her in the first place!” And another, and another and another. 

“Jisung, stop! Are you insane!?” You tried to grab him but it was useless. 

Jeno was taken back at first but when the surprise passed he grabbed Jisung's hand and then he hit him back, so the fight started being reciprocated. 

Jisung had the advantage since Jeno was surprised by the attack but as soon as the older one gained consciousness, Jisung started to get in trouble. Of course he knew Jeno was stronger and better, but he didn't care, he was furious. Jeno didn't appreciate you enough to try, he didn't realise how lucky he was for having you by his side, he wasn't willing to sacrifice for you the way he was. Because Jisung would do anything if it meant being by your side. 

“Stop! Stop it!” You somehow got a grip on Jeno's arm and yanked him away from Jisung. “What the fuck is wrong with you!?! Are you animals!?” You were furious, Jisung has known you for years and he has never seen you this angry. 

Jisung was trying to regulate his breathing as well as Jeno, none of them dared to look at you. But, you looked at both of them, feeling disappointed and heartbroken. You looked at Jisung, his nose was bleeding, his right eye started to get black and his left eyebrow was also bleeding; you looked at Jeno, his lip was bleeding and his cheekbone was red. You let out a sigh before speaking. 

“Jeno, I think you should leave.” He looked at you in disbelief. 

“Are you kidding me?” 

“Do I look like I'm fucking kidding?” Your tone was stone cold, you have never spoken like that to him before, and it affected him. In that moment he realised how much he has hurt you. 

He got up and left, none of you noticed but his eyes started to water and when he closed the door, his tears were mixing with the blood. 

You broke down after seeing him leave. You couldn't hold it anymore and you just let go. You covered your mouth trying to keep it as silent as possible. You knew there was a big possibility that you and Jeno would break up if you were accepted, but you never thought Jeno would say that to you. “I love you but not enough…” It would have hurt less if he just said he hated you.

“Y/n,” Jisung said in the softest voice while he got closer to you. 

“Shut up.” Your voice was broken but the anger was very noticeable. “I am furious at you so shut the fuck up and get your ass to the infirmary.” You didn't move, therefore he didn't. “Now!” 

He obeyed immediately and started his way. You just needed a little time alone to get yourself together, a lot happened in a span of 10 minutes. Your boyfriend broke up with you and told you that he didn't love you enough, you're best friend heard all of it which was humiliating enough by itself, the last thing you wanted was for someone else to know; your best friend started a fight with your now ex-boyfriend and now he was on his way towards the infirmary so you could cure his wounds. Not exactly the plans you had for your prom night. You let out a last sigh, you wiped your tears away and you got out of there. 

Jisung perked up in his position when he saw the door being opened and his cheeks got redder by seeing you walk in. You didn't say anything, you just went to get the stuff you needed to cure him. He looked at every move you did, he was angry at himself for causing such a scene on your prom night but he didn't regret it; if he had to, he would do it again, as many times as necessary. 

He hissed when he felt the cotton swab on his injury. 

“Does it hurt?” you asked in a low tone, but it was expressionless. 

“It stings a little.”

“Good.” 

“That's mean,” he whispered but you heard. 

“I'm sorry, I'm just really mad.” He lowered his head but you made him look up again since you were treating his eyebrow's cut. “What the fuck were you thinking Park Jisung?”

“I wasn't, that's the thing.” 

“What were you doing there anyway?” He panicked for a second.

“I got a little overwhelmed, I needed some air I guess.” He hated lying to you but he needed to. 

“Why did you hit him?” 

“Because of what he said.” His voice turns deeper, surprising you. His voice was deep but you have never heard it reach that tone. “How could he say that? He didn't know he was the luckiest guy for having you by his side, it made me furious hearing how ungrateful he was, and how much of an asshole he was to you.” You stopped treating his injury but he didn't seem to mind. “What he said was awful but when I saw how hurt you were, I couldn't let him get away like that, rage took over me.” He finally looked at you.

You tried to fight back the smile that was trying to come out by seeing how soft his eyes were, they were holding the whole galaxy, and for him they did, since he was looking at you. 

“I know it was stupid since Jeno is way stronger than me but I didn't care, he hurt you and I needed to do something about it.” You hold his hands and you rub your thumb through his knuckles, he smiled while looking at the little action. “I am sorry for ruining your night but I don't regret it.” 

“You don't?”

“No.” 

“You're a dumbass, you know that right?” 

“That 's mean.” 

“Well I get to be mean.” You continued cleaning his wounds. “I'm stuck here with you instead of enjoying my prom night.” 

“I'm sorry.” He lowered his head once again, his voice was full of shame and his cheeks turned red. 

“Hey, I'm kidding.” You giggled softly while lifting his head up. “It was already ruined when Jeno decided to break up with me. Which was a very dick move of his, he could've at least waited for tomorrow to do it.” You giggled. 

“Asshole,” Jisung said automatically, making you laugh even harder. 

You finished cleaning his eyebrow wound and put on some ointment for the soreness and to help with the bruising. You then continued with the one on his lower lip. His usually plumped lip was even more swollen and it was starting to turn a subtle shade of blue and purple. He hissed once again by feeling the cotton swab with alcohol but you seemed to not care, you just focused on cleaning. 

“Thank you, by the way,” you said after a while. “I'm still mad as fuck but thank you for defending me like that.” He looked at you and he fell in love all over again. 

The lights of the room were off because you didn't need them, the windows did a perfect job at bringing the light from the moon and the lamp posts from outside. The moonlight hit your face in all the right places, making you look ethereal and even though you have been dancing all night and you cried, your makeup and hair were almost intact; a little out of place but you still looked as beautiful as the start of the night. Jisung could notice the anger in your eyes but he also noticed the worry, no matter how furious you were you couldn't help but worry about him.

He didn't realise what he was doing. For the second time that night, Jisung was moving out of instinct, his heart taking control instead of his brain. He got closer and closer towards you, his lips being pulled automatically towards yours as if they were magnets. And then he kissed you. It was quick and innocent, his lips barely touched yours since he snapped out of his trance but he kissed you. 

Both of you were surprised, none of you knew what happened exactly. You could feel the heat coming up to your cheeks and your eyes were wide open. Jisung's heart was racing at a very concerning speed and his head was spinning. He tried to talk, tried to explain but nothing was coming out of his lips. 

“Sorry, I lost my balance for a sec, maybe Jeno hit me in the head because I kind of feel a little dizzy.” He faced palmed himself in his imagination, what a shitty excuse but he couldn't come up with something better.

“Oh,” was the only thing that you could say. “No worries.” 

After that you finished treating his wounds in dead silence. Jisung was cursing himself in his head. You didn't know what to think exactly, but you knew one thing for sure, you were tired.

Once you were done you came back to the gym and picked your things. You explained the situation to Yeji and begged her no to tell your brother since you knew he would cause a scene, and you didn't want to deal with that, you didn't want to deal with anything anymore. She hugged you and told you she was gonna take care of everything for you, and then she kissed your forehead before saying goodbye. After that you went to your brother to ask him for the keys, you used the tired excuse and he gave in, not because he believed you but because he was having way too much fun to care. You envied him, you envied everyone who was having fun. 

When you got out of the gym you were surprised to see Jisung waiting for you by the car. He was leaning on it, his tie was loose, he took the jacket off and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, he looked pretty handsome. 

“What are you doing?” You unlocked the car and opened the door. 

“I'm going with you,” he says with an obvious tone. 

“C'mon Jisung, go back inside and have fun.” 

“I don't want to go inside, I want to spend the night with you, like you wanted.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“You said you wanted to spend the night with the people you're closest to, and not to toot my own horn but, I'm pretty sure that after Haechan hyung, I'm the one closest to you.” You laughed at his antics. 

“Okay fine, you win. Get inside.”

“Yes!” He put his fist up in a sign of victory and got inside. 

The drive back home was calm. The music was lower than you typically play it, the windows were down and the air was chilly but you didn't care. You stopped at a red light and turned your head towards the younger boy, he was looking out the window. Maybe your night was ruined but seeing him by your side, admiring the night sky while softly singing the songs made you realise you couldn't have asked for a better ending to the night.

He was 18 year old when he entered university

It was the first time Jisung was walking alone to school ever since he was 5. You’re studying abroad, Haechan had a different schedule than him and Chenle lived in a whole other neighbourhood, which was closer to the school.  

He felt alone and lost, he had ever since he said goodbye to you at the airport. You were gone and he didn't know what to do. He tried to distract himself, he started saying yes to everything Chenle had invited him to and he also hung out with Jaemin, Renjun and Haechan. He tried to avoid your house though, it hurt even seeing it from across the street knowing damn well you weren't there. 

After the prom, everything was really weird. Jeno had broken up with you, so you weren't the happiest and there was a weird air between you two after the kiss that had happened. It was merely a peck but it happened and it made Jisung act even more nervous around you and it made you confused. 

You didn't know how to feel, you didn't know what to think exactly. Was it really just a mistake? Did he mean to kiss you? Was it just the heat of the moment? Your head spinned for months. You were so confused, you found comfort knowing you were leaving soon. Away from all the drama and confusion. 

You kept to yourself the rest of the time you had left at home, focusing on packing and making sure you had everything for your visa and other stuff you needed for school, also hiding the stuff you didn't want your twin to take once you were gone. You barely saw anyone, you never left your room unless it was really necessary; even your own family barely saw you and they lived with you. You were breaking Jisung´s heart without knowing, the younger one just wanted to spend as much time as he could with you but he loved you, and he was gonna respect your wish for privacy. 

You and Jisung were barely speaking. You used university as an excuse but he knew it was something else and he didn't blame you. You were desolate because of Jeno, hell, you were heartbroken and he knew the last thing you needed was another boy to mess with your feelings (not that he would). You also had to focus on your school and he didn't want to admit it but he knew his actions on that prom night confused you and he hated himself for it. The last thing he wanted was for things to be awkward between you two, he just wanted to be with you and he missed you like crazy; your absence really took a toll on him.  

You weren't able to come home during your winter and summer break, you joined too many clubs and you also joined the student council at your university; saying you were busy was nothing, you were swamped with work. You did this on purpose though, you made yourself as busy as possible so you wouldn't have to deal with your thoughts, so you wouldn't have to face your feelings and to deal with the storm happening in your head. You may not be aware of it but Jisung knew, at the end of the day, he knew you better than anyone else. 

He was halfway through his walk to university when his phone rang and he was surprised by seeing your picture on the screen, you were calling him. It was weird since you weren't speaking that much and because you hate talking on the phone so much, you prefer texting people; you only called when it was urgent or an emergency. 

“Hey, Sungie.” Your voice made his heart race and he was smiling, he was so happy to hear your voice he almost cried. 

“Hey, is everything okay?” He was happy but he couldn't help but worry. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t it?” 

“Well, you hate talking on the phone, so I thought something was wrong.” He laughed softly. 

“Everything's fine, don't worry about it.” Your voice was soft but he could hear the tiredness in your tone. “Are you on your way to school right?” 

“Yeah… How did you know that?” He didn't tell you about his first day, the only uni talk he has had with you was when he told you he got in, and that was it. 

“Your mom called me.” He rolled his eyes by the mention of his mom. 

“Of course she did.” His tone was filled with annoyance and you laughed because of it. 

“Hey, give her a break, she was excited and so proud of you.” 

“Still, she didn't have to worry you about it.” 

“It's nothing Jisung really, I enjoyed talking to her a lot, especially since we haven't been talking that much.” 

“Sorry.” He looked down and his face was filled with disappointment. 

“If someone has to apologise it's me, I’m the one who has been M.I.A.” 

“But I haven't made so much effort either. I wanted to give you some space.”

“Yeah I know. Thanks...” Your tone fell flat near the end, you were disappointed as well. You didn't want space, not from him at least. 

“Why are you calling though? You never call.” 

“Oh, yeah, well…I wanted to keep the tradition going somehow.” You let out a nervous laugh and even though he couldn't see you, he knew you were fidgeting with your bracelet. “I didn't want you to walk to school alone.” 

“I'm really thankful, but don't you have classes? If you're skipping them I swear I’ll go to Australia myself and get your ass back to class.” 

“Woah woah! Easy there tiger.” Your laughter made his heart race. “I have a free period, I'm actually getting some coffee.” 

“Oh okay, good.” His cheeks turned a very bright shade of red and this was the first time he thanked the moon you weren't there to see his embarrassment. 

An awkward silence fell upon you. This has never happened, not even when you were kids and meeting for the first time. You always made sure to fill in the silence but now, you didn't know how to. You hated this, you hated feeling awkward with your own best friend, the guy that you had known for 13 years. 

You cursed yourself and him as well. How did you allow stuff to get so complicated? Why did he have to kiss you? You broke your head for several months trying to decipher what the hell was that. It was the only thing you could think of after that night. Not your break up, not your prom, not the fight but that stupid kiss, that stupid kiss that could barely even be considered one. Jisung only touched your lips for a mere second but it scarred you for life. You didn't know why, but that kiss meant a lot to you. 

And why on earth were you glad he did? You thought about how much you wished that kiss didn’t happen but being honest, you liked it, a lot, more than you should’ve. You may be in a weird place with your best friend but if you could erase that peck you wouldn’t. 

“I hate this, Sung,” you said, referring to the mess happening in your head. “I hate not being able to talk to you.” Your eyes were starting to fill with tears, thank god your voice was still stable. “I want you back, I want my best friend back, my partner, my favourite person.”

“I'm your favourite person?” He was taken back and in shock, he always thought Haechan was your favourite person, your twin, your other half, your sun. 

“You’ve always been.” A tear streamed down your cheek but you were quick to wipe it. “I need you Jisung, I miss you like crazy, I want to be with you and be able to talk the way we used to. You have no idea how much I need you to hug me.” And finally your voice failed you. Jisung’s heart sank by hearing your voice break. 

“Me too, you can't even begin to imagine.” He blinked rapidly trying to avoid the tears to escape his eyes. 

“How did we let this happen?” 

“I don't know.” 

“We promised nothing was gonna change after me leaving.” 

“I know.” 

“Then why is everything different?” 

“Because…” He wanted to tell you, he wanted to confess but the words got stuck once again. He didn't want to do it like that, during a phone call while you were kilometres away. “We're dumb?” Your laughter made the ambience lighter. 

“Yes, we’re very, very dumb.” You wiped a few tears away and cleared your throat. “Let's start being smart again.”

“How?” 

“We’re gonna try talking more, send a text once in a while, whenever we remember each other, like we used to.”

“Okay.” 

“We could also do homework together, we could schedule a weekly video call so we can catch up, talk about our life or not talk at all.” 

“I really miss you recommending songs to me,” he confessed. 

“I really miss you sending me pics of the moon.” You laughed once again, making the younger one sigh heavily, he was completely enamoured by you. 

“I missed your laugh.” It was a bold move from him but he felt he was gonna explode if he didn't say it. 

Your cheeks were warm and you hid them with your hands even though he wasn't there. He made you feel shy, which was very rare. 

“I missed your voice, is it getting deeper?” 

“I don't think so.” 

“It better not or else I'll lose my mind.” 

“Why?” he asked curiously. 

“Well you know how much of a sucker I am for a dude with a deep voice…” The verbal vomit came out by itself, you weren't aware of what you were saying until you heard nothing from the other line. “Damn, I fucked up,” you whispered but he heard you. 

“No, no, it's okay, I knew that.” He cleared his throat in an attempt to calm his nervousness. “I'm sorry but it's something I can't control, you’ll just have to deal with it.” His mocking tone filled you with relief. 

“I’ll try my best, but I don't make any promises.” You followed his joke up, thanking him for not making it weird again. 

“I'm here,” he announced when he arrived at his school’s entrance. 

“Good luck Sungie, remember that anyone would be lucky to have you as a friend.” 

“Thank you.” He smiled and looked down trying to hide his blush. 

“Let me know when you're done so we can talk on your way back home, okay?” 

“Yes, ma'am.” 

“I mean it, Jisung.” The seriousness in your tone gave you away. 

“I know.” He let out a few giggles. “Thank you for calling me.” 

“Well, you know how I am, I love our little traditions.” 

“I love that you do.” 

“Bye Sung, good luck.” 

“Bye y/n.” And after that you hung up. 

He felt a weight being lifted away from his shoulders, his heart felt lighter and he was beyond happy knowing that you two were going to be okay. It may not be exactly like it used to but it was better than nothing. 

He was 19 years old when he confessed his love towards you. 

After that call on his first day of university, your relationship started blooming again. You both kept your promises and started texting and calling each other more and more, just like the old times. You made several video calls where you would talk for hours, from dusk till dawn or you would stay quiet and just enjoyed each other's presence. Jisung always sent you pictures of the moon and you started sending him songs that you thought he would like, you even started making him several playlists; he always listened to them on repeat. 

Winter break came and you were finally able to go back home, you noticed how much you loaded yourself with work to avoid the whole Jisung situation but since you two were fine now, you gave yourself a break. Everyone was head over heels when you told them you were coming back home after a while of not being able to. You longed to spend christmas and new years with your family but especially with Jisung, since this was the year he would finally reach age, he would be able to drink and you wanted to be there. 

Your parents picked you up at the airport, both ran towards you and engulfed you in a big hug, a suffocating one actually. After a very emotional welcome from them, you finally went up to the car and made your way home. Haechan received you at the door and your father announced to you that Jisung was also there, your eyes lighted up and you were quickly to look for him, only to find him standing there waiting for you. You were surprised by looking at how much he grew, and when he spoke you felt your legs wobbling slightly by hearing his deep voice. You engulfed him in a hug and then you dragged him and your brother towards the living room to catch up. It was very late at night when Jisung had to return home, in all the time he was there you couldn’t stop looking at him, you were hypnotised. 

Christmas passed by and it was one of the best you had celebrated. Your family and Jisung’s always celebrated it together, the dinner was made by your mom and Jisung’s mom while your fathers were in charge of the drinks. As always everything was wholesome and you had the best time ever. 

Time passed by and new years came by, Yeji invited you to a party but you didn’t stay much since you wanted to be with Jisung on his first night as an adult, sadly when you arrived he was already drunk thanks to you brother and his friends. He took you out to the backyard and he confessed his feelings for you in his drunken state, taking you by surprise. Even though you weren’t sure about your own feelings you told him that you can figure them out together and then you kissed him properly this time. You weren’t sure why you did it but you didn’t regret it. It felt nice, it felt familiar and it made you feel warm. It was the best way to start the new year. 

After that night Jisung made his life mission to help you figure out what your heart wanted. He was finally able to act according to his feelings, he didn’t hold back and made sure to prove to you that he meant every single thing he said during that new years night. He spent months clearing all of your doubts, answering all of your questions and giving you the assurance you needed. After all his efforts, support and patience you realised that you wanted Jisung, you realised that your heart longed for him. 

During summer break he picked you up at the airport and asked you to be his girlfriend and you accepted gladly; you sealed the deal with a kiss full of affection, it was desperate in a way, you have yearned to feel his lips on yours once again. After that day you spend your summer by Jisung’s side, it was as if you were glued together. Wherever you went Jisung was following and vice versa. 

Two months have passed, your break is almost over, meaning that you would have to go back to school very soon. Jisung, knowing this, never left your side. He wanted to spend every single moment you had left home with you. 

“The summer went by so fast,” he said in a whisper while you were at the kitchen making a midnight snack; actually he was sitting while you were the one cooking, not letting him get near the kitchen since he would probably light it on fire. 

“I know,” you said while dicing some veggies for your ramen. “For the first time, I'm not as excited to go back.” 

“For the first time?” he asked confusedly while he stared at you. 

“Yeah, I don't love leaving home but I'm always really excited to go back, living on my own and having independence, you know?” He just nodded, not knowing exactly what to answer. “I know it may sound a little selfish but I always loved going back but now, it's so different.”

“Why?” 

“Because of you.” You both felt your cheeks warming up for the sudden confession. “I’m always excited to come back here and see my family, see Hyuck and my friends but ever since you confessed during new years I couldn't stop thinking about coming back home and seeing you.” Jisung stood up silently so he wouldn't interrupt you. “I wanted to hang out with you, spend time with you, see your cute face everyday, I was desperate to be with you.” You smiled while feeling his arms sneak around your waist, and you let out a soft giggle while feeling his face burning in your neck. “I yearned for you so fucking much.” He left a soft kiss on your neck, then your shoulder and your neck once again, he was drowning in your scent. 

“God, I fucking love you.” It was a whisper. It was innocent and said out of instinct, he didn't even realise what he just said until you left his side. 

“What!?” 

“Nothing.” He was ready to leave but your hand on his wrist stopped him. You made him face you.

“That was not nothing.” He didn't dare to look at you. “What did you just say Park Jisung?” Your tone was demanding and serious, not in an aggressive way but you wanted an answer. 

After a long pause he finally got the courage he needed to say those words again. 

“I said that I love you.” His voice was barely a whisper but because you were alone, you were able to hear him clearly. “You don't have to say anything, I know it's way too soon to say stuff like this since we've been in a relationship for just 2 months but I have loved you since before.” Because he's looking down he didn't realise you're coming closer to him. “I'm sorry if it freaked you out and I totally understand if you want to take some time apart, to be honest, I wouldn't blame you.” He let out a soft giggle which was full of embarrassment. “I'll just go…”

You stopped him once again and he finally looked up at you. You cupped his face with your hands and you kissed him.

You kissed him softly, slowly and it's intense because of the intimacy that you were sharing in that moment—you both felt like you were the only ones in the world and that time has stopped just for you. You feel like the moon and the stars are witnessing the scene with such endearment and they look down at you with the happiest of their smiles. You savoured him, you made sure to transmit all of your feelings with that kiss, you wanted him to feel safe, at ease, at home. You wanted him to feel like the only reason he was put on earth was for that moment alone, that he was meant to be by your side, just like you were meant to be by his. You engulfed him in your arms just like he did, you wanted him closer even though you couldn't be. You were desperate for him, and your heart felt like it was going to explode from all the love that you feel for this boy. 

You broke the kiss but you were still in his embrace and he was in yours; your foreheads were touching, both of you had your eyes closed, feeling each other's breaths in your faces, but neither of you seemed to mind. 

“I love you too,” your tone was sure and confident. You then opened your eyes to see his reaction. 

His eyes lit up and his smile was the biggest you have ever seen and if your vision isn't failing you, you think his eyes were watering. 

“Really?” His voice was soft, and it broke a little because of the knot in his throat. 

“Really.” You could see a little tear running down and you were quick to wipe it off with your thumb. 

“Shit, sorry.” He let out a nervous giggle while he wiped yet another tear. “I'm just really fucking happy.” You couldn't help but start tearing up as well. “No wait, don't cry.” He panicked and then cupped your cheeks in between his big hands. They were cold compared to your very warm face. 

“I can't help it, you know how I always cry whenever you do.” You sniffled and he laughed at you. You looked so adorable trying to hold in your tears. 

He wiped your tears with such delicacy, he then proceeded to put your hair behind your ears and then he left a soft kiss on your forehead so he could finally hug you; you buried your face in his chest and he rested his chin on the top of your head. 

“Just like when we were kids,” you let out and he laughed once again. 

“Just like when we were kids,” he repeated, voice full of adoration. 

Jisung has never been great with words but he somehow knew what to do to comfort you whenever you cried in front of him (which was very, very rare). He always started by wiping your tears away, he always did it in the softest way possible, as if you were made of glass; his fingers always felt cold against your skin but you never minded. He then helped you get your hair fixed, placing the stray strands where they belonged and then tugging some behind your ears to finally leave a little kiss on your forehead. He knew all of that was good but it wasn't enough so he would seal the deal with a hug. A hug that always felt so soft and warm, a hug that always felt familiar and comfortable, a hug that made you feel you belonged with him. You fitted in his embrace perfectly just like he fitted in yours. 

You were meant to be together. It was a bumpy ride, with its highs and lows but you were meant to be. Everyone knew it, even the moon who would always watch over you two, waiting patiently. Even the stars, who would always light up your path so you could find your way to each other.  

You stay like that for a while, enjoying the domestic moment, not wanting to let go until you hear the pot overflowing. 

“Shit, our food!” You broke the hug and turned to the stove.

You put the pot out of the fire and you turn the flame off. The food was ruined and the kitchen was a mess. 

“Man, and you said I was a terrible cook,” Jisung said with a mocking tone. 

“Oh, shut up,” you said annoyedly while you try to clean up your mess. “This is all your fault.” 

“My fault?” he asked in disbelief.

“Yes! If you weren't being all romantic and sentimental our ramen wouldn't have died like this.”  

“I'm sorry for saying that I love my girlfriend, it won't happen again.” 

“Wait no, I want to hear it again.” You panicked by hearing him. “I want to hear it a million times.” 

“Oh good, because I was joking,” he said while helping you clean. “Now that I've said it, now that is finally out of my system, it's the only thing that I want to say to you.” 

“Good because it's the only thing that I want to hear.” 

You finished cleaning up and you're quick to put your arms around his neck, pulling him closer. You left a kiss on his lips and started preparing the food again. 

After finishing cooking and eating together you cleaned everything once again to finally go back to your room and get some sleep. You wiggled your way back to your bed, got into position and waited for Jisung to lay down so you could finally get 100% comfortable. After waiting patiently for you, he then plopped down next to you, he pulled you closer and he buried his face in the space between your neck, he loved getting drunk in your scent. 

After getting into a position where the two of you were comfortable you were quick to fall asleep, you didn't even notice you forgot to close your window´s curtains, you were gonna regret that in the morning. 

The night sky was clear, the moonlight sneaked in your room giving you two the perfect glow. The moon smiled by seeing you together, she was proud to see you could finally find your way to each other. The stars were beaming even harder, they couldn't hide their happiness. They worked so hard for you and seeing you together made them shine even brighter, they were glowing. 

[normal-internet-user]

BARRIER

♡~~♡~~♡~~♡~~♡

Pt: 2

Summary: You have a talk with Raph on the roof of your apartment from the othetside of a brick wall.

Warnings: Swearing, smoking on Reader's part, and dark humor.

Requested: Nope!

GN Reader!

.........................................

You let out a sigh as you leaned against the cold brick wall on the roof of your apartment complex.

You had just gotten off the phone with your dad, and now you really needed a cigarette.

You pulled the pack out of your jacket pocket, taking one of the cancer sticks and lighting it.

You had tried to quit before, it never really worked, god addiction was a bitch. You sighed in ectasy as you breathed in the nicotine.

"Fuck my life." you muttered lowly as you looked out over the city. You closed your eyes as you listened to the busy streets below. Ah, New York, the city that never sleeps.

You rubbed your temple with a groan, sometimes yoh just wish it could be quiet. But you lived in a city for gods sake, it was never quiet.

You didn't hate it here though, on the contrary, you loved New York, city life was just a pain sometimes.

You took another drag of your cigarette, blowing the smoke skyward as you pondered your earlier conversation.

Why the hell did your dad feel the need to be such an ass? He was always belittling you and your accomplishments.

Well you should have done this. Why didn't you do this. You should try to do this.

It's exhausting!

"No wonder, Mom left." you muttered grumpily.

You looked skyward with your eyes closed, peeking one open when you heard a noise on the other side of the brick wall.

You strained your ears, trying to listen for more sounds. You sat up when you heard someone grumbling under their breath.

"Stupid brothers... Don't know what the hell they're talkin about."

You looked at the wall curiously, listening to them grumble. Should you say something? Maybe peek over the wall?

You leaned back against the wall, taking another puff from your cancer stick.

"Family trouble?" You said, trying to gain the attention of whoever was on the otherside of the wall.

"Who's there?"

You flicked the ash off your cigarette, chuckling lowly, "Relax hotshot, I ain't gonna hurt ya. I'm over the wall. Just figured it be nice to talk to someone who's also got some family issues."

You heard a thump, letting you know that mystery man had sat down.

"My question still stands. Who's there?"

"(Name). I'm (Name). And who exactly am I playing therapist for?"

You heard him chuckle, you could hear his smile in the sound, 'Cute', "The name's Raph."

"Well, Raph, what exactly has you panties in a twist, huh?"

Raph huffed, and began to rant about his older brother. Leonardo, you learned his name was as you sat and listened.

You snuffed out your cigarette, then pulled another from the pack. Chain smoking was a bad habit of yours.

Raph stopped his rant, and you heard him sniff, "Are you smoking?"

"Hey, people cope in different ways my friend. Besides quiting this shit is about as easy as catching a fly with chopsticks." you chuckled, blowing the smoke skyward.

Raph snorted, "Fair enough I guess. but you'd be surprised how easy it is to catch a fly with chopsticks."

"Oh, really? you ever done that?"

"Sure have, with reflexes like mine it's easy as pie."

You laughed, "Ohoho, you sure are tootin' your own horn, huh, Hotshot? What are you some kinda ninja?"

"You could, uh- you could say that."

You hummed as you puffed your cigarette, "Well then Karate Kid, you got any other family issues? You got a little while left, my cigarette is still fresh."

"Nah, I'm all out for now. What about you smartass? What's got you up here smokin' your worries away?"

You sighed, balancing your elbow on your knee, with your face in your palm, "My dad called me a little while ago. He can be a bit of an over acheiving hardass. The bastard expects me to be the same way."

"You don't sound to fond of your old man, why do you still talk to 'im?"

"I-I don't really know..." you hesitated, "He's the only family I have left, if I cut him off then I'm all alone."

You took one last puff of your cigarette, before putting it out on the concrete roof.

"My cig's out. Guess that means I gotta go to bed, man I hate work."

"Heh, tell ya what, (Name), I'll be here again on Friday. Talk to ya then, ok? You can tell me all about your old man."

You smiled, "Sure thing, Hotshot. See you on Friday."

With that you walked away from the wall, and down the stairs into your apartment complex.

.........................................

Perhaps the start of a new series 👀👀 hmm we'll see...

[tiny-pretty-sana]

be as one | twice

pairings: nayeon x jeongyeon, momo x mina, sana x jihyo genre: christmas fluff warnings/tags: au, unnie line as mothers, school meal club as kids, twice reunion, stablished relationships, domestic fluff, christmas day, subtle past angst, not proofread w/c: 11.2 K a/n: i wanted to post this for christmas but it's too cute to stay in my drafts, so take it as a belated christmas gift from me 🧸🤎

"Aren't you excited to meet the dogs?" Sana asks the little girl in the back seat as Jihyo watches her from the rearview mirror. 

Tzuyu looks at her with her eyes wide open and nods her head sheepishly even though she has been waiting a whole week to meet not one but three doggies as promised by her new moms, Sana and Jihyo. They also told her that she will meet two girls like her and their mothers, but this part is not so exciting to her and they know it. 

She is a really shy kid. She gets nervous in crowded places and it takes her a while to feel comfortable around new people. It took her around five visits to start talking back to Jihyo and Sana and she finally told them she wanted to go home with them after six months of almost weekly visits. So the idea of meeting six new people for the first time at the same time is not very appealing, that is why their moms have made sure that their friends bring their dogs. Tzuyu loves dogs and Sana and Jihyo love Tzuyu and they are willing to do anything they can to make her feel comfortable, safe, protected, cared for and heard. 

It has been a month since she arrived home and since then the three of them have been going through a process of adaptation that is not over yet. Soon she will have to start school, so when Jeongyeon told them that her sister had rented a hanok for her to spend Christmas with her family and invited them to join them with Momo and Mina as well, they did not hesitate to accept the offer. It would be the perfect opportunity to introduce them to Tzuyu and besides, their daughter could start socializing with children her age and it might go better than their attempts to get her to interact with other kids at the park.

A little further on, in Jeongyeon and Nayeon's car, Chaeyoung asks her moms in concern "Does Tzuyu like strawberries?" while absent-mindedly caressing Kookeu that sleeps resting his head on her lap.

Jeongyeon sighs while driving because she has already lost count of how many questions her daughter has asked them about the new member of their unique family. Since she found out that it was not a baby but a six-year-old girl like her, her interest increased and she has been asking nonstop about things like her favorite color, if she likes painting or drawing, what food does she like and a dozen other things that Nayeon and Jeongyeon can only answer by saying that she can ask them herself when they arrive.

Something similar happens with Dahyun, although her questions are undoubtedly much more complicated, as she doesn't quite understand how her aunts have had a daughter Chaeyoung's age instead of a baby. "I don't get it" she says, crossing her arms somewhat frustrated and looking at her mother suspiciously. 

"It doesn't make sense, mommy" she says fussing and raising her voice slightly "How can auntie Sana have a 6 year old girl in her belly? She can't fit in! And auntie Jihyo is even smaller!" she cries out.

In the driver's seat Momo tries to hold back her laughter, but can't help but let out a chuckle with her last statement. Next to her, Mina just giggles as she realizes why her daughter is so worried about the whole situation, maybe they should have had this conversation earlier and not on the way to meet Tzuyu, but with everything that Mina has had on her mind these past few weeks she has been letting the now unavoidable conversation slide.

"Honey, Tzuyu doesn't come from Sana's or Jihyo's belly. Remember when we talked about the different types of families there are?" Mina begins to explain.

"Yes" Dahyun nods energetically. "Some people have a daddy and a mommy, other people have two daddies or two mommies and sometimes they have just a mommy like me, but there are as many types of families as there are colors" she quotes the explanation her mother has given her so many times.

Mina can't help but smile as she hears her daughter repeat word for word the phrase she has repeated every time she leaves the father's information blank on field trip permission slips, when other children ask her where their father is, or that time she had to make a family tree. Her daughter knows these words by heart and she can only hope that she feels that way too. 

"Well, there are also children who don't have parents and there are families who don't have children, so they adopt those children and become a family. Tzuyu used to have no mommy and daddy, but now she lives with Sana and Jihyo who are her mommies" she explains, trying to find the best words.

During the explanation Dahyun listens attentively and her mother can see her opening her mouth slightly showing the gap left by her baby teeth that are no longer there as she processes all this new information. 

"What does it mean to adopt?" she asks, frowning at the new word. 

This time it is Momo who leads into the answer "It means they take her home to live with them and now they take care of her, give her hugs, help her get dressed, feed her...just like I did with Boo and-".

But before Momo can finish she is cut off by a slap from Mina on her thigh "Oh my god you're not comparing the dogs to Sana and Jihyo's daughter" Mina scolds her in a hushed tone so Dahyun can't hear her. 

"Sorry" Momo mutters as she turns her attention back to the road, pero Boo después de escuchar su nombre ladra durante unos instantes. 

"But if she didn't come out of no one's belly how can she be their daughter?". 

"She doesn't need to have come out of any of your aunt's belly" Mina smiles softly "Don't you love Momo?".

"I love Momo" she says, nodding quickly. 

"And I love you, Dubu" Momo speaks again with a big smile. 

"And she's your family, right?" Mina already knows the answer, as this has been confirmed to her by all the drawings pinned on the fridge door with three stick figures surrounded by hearts and joined by two circles with ears that are supposed to be Boo and Dobby. 

"Yes!".

"But you weren't in her belly and Momo takes care of you just like I do, she makes you breakfast, walks you to school, takes care of you when you are sick, dances with you and lets you sit on the counter while she cooks. She loves you just like I do" she says, watching Momo's cheeks blush.

"MOMO IS ALSO MY MOTHER?!” she screams and immediately adds a second question “Can I call her mom?" Dahyun asks, causing Momo to almost swerve

This time there is only one person who can answer the question, so Mina just looks at her partner with the most loving gaze while Momo is short-circuiting. It's not as if the conversation never came up, the two have talked about it many times and she knows that, to Momo, Dahyun is her daughter and that she loves her as such, even if she hasn't vocalized it yet at least consciously. On occasion the little girl has called her “mom” or “mommy”, but she always assumed she did it accidentally, so to hear from her own mouth that she wants to call her the same way she does with Mina is a big deal.

“S-sure” Momo stutters after a few seconds and just smiles widely.

Beside her, Mina feels like her chest is going to burst as she grabs Momo's hand and looks at her smiling with eyes sparkling with love. The truth is that for some time now when she thinks of family she no longer thinks only of Dahyun and her older brother but also of Momo, Boo and Dobby. When she thinks of family she thinks of her friends whom she sees as sisters and her daughters whom she sees as nieces. It's just a word, but it makes it all more real. They are a family. 

While the two adults in the front seats try their best to hold their tears back, behind them Dahyun starts rambling about how she will tell Chaeyoung that now she has two mothers too and that her mom can cook just like Jeongyeon, so she has a mom and a mommy who can cook yummy things as if it's some kind of competition. They know that at some point they will have to tell her that she should not brag about these things to other children, but for now they let her enjoy the moment.

The way is long, but they all think it is worth it when they see the stunning place that Jeongyeon's rich and famous sister has rented a belated birthday present and an early Christmas present so that they can enjoy this holiday with their other family, the one that her sister and sister-in-law have built and chosen. Jeongyeon's parents did not like the idea of not spending Christmas spoiling their first and only granddaughter, but when Jeongyeon told them that it would be a good opportunity to meet the newly adopted daughter of her friend Jihyo and her wife Sana, they were quick to ask their daughter and Nayeon to organize a lunch at their house with all the kids and went straight to buy matching pajamas for Chaeyoung and the other girls.

It is a large traditional style house surrounded by nature, away from the city, but close enough to a village not to be too isolated, to be able to easily go to a supermarket to buy some last minute ingredients or to take a walk. The air is fresh, there is no pollution and the only thing that can be heard is the one or two birds, since at this time of the year most of them have flown to other places in search of higher temperatures. Without a doubt, it is the perfect place to celebrate Christmas and take a well-deserved rest that will last until the last days of the year. The truth is that there is still no agreement on whether they will celebrate the New Year here as well, but at least they will stay long enough to celebrate Sana's birthday together.

They all arrive around the same time and as soon as the cars stop two little whirlwinds jump out of Jeongyeon and Jihyo's cars.

"BROOOOOOO!" they both scream at the same time as they do their – secret in theory – handshake before melting into an embrace as if they hadn't seen each other a few days ago at school. 

Mina sighs and covers her face with her hand "I need to have a word with my brother" she says aloud as a reminder to herself. 

"I think she's adorable" Momo replies. 

"Momoring, you are the least objective person in the world when it comes to these two" she smiles at her girlfriend. "They can literally do anything and you'd say they're adorable." 

Between all the fuss caused by the two girls who are slightly over a meter tall Tzuyu goes almost unnoticed for a few seconds as she clings to Sana's leg and grabs Jihyo's hand with her other hand.

"This is Chaeyoung and Dahyun, I promise you they are usually quieter" Jihyo informs Tzuyu as Sana laughs at the sight of the two's handshake and greeting. 

At the sound of their names the two immediately turn their heads to their Aunt Jihyo and then to the girl holding her hand. Their eyes widen and point at her, then they look at their aunt again and it is Dahyun who speaks first.

"Is she Tzuyu?" she asks in excitement.

Jihyo and Sana nod at the same time while Tzuyu shyly waves her hand without saying a word. 

They again turn their gaze to Tzuyu and then look at each other. 

"You are very pretty" Chayeoung says, looking at her again. 

"You are very tall" Dahyun says.

“Gracias” Tzuyu dice en apenas un susurro mientras intenta refugierse aún más tras las piernas de Sana. 

The women noticing how shy the little girl is decide to give her some space before starting the introductions. 

"Why don't we start taking things inside?" Jeongyeon asks saving the new family member. "And you girls could give the dogs a turn to pee, since there are three I think we're going to need Tzuyu's help, don't you think?".

The girls nod their heads and to which the eyes of the one Jeongyeon just named light up at the suggestion as since she got out of the car she hasn't taken her eyes off the three doggies still waiting in the cars for their seat belts to be unbuckled. 

"Tzuyu would love it" Sana states as she crouches down to Tzuyu's height to explain that she is her friend Jeongyeon, the mom of Chaeyoung and a pomeranian named Kookeu.

She just nods and stays silent but lets herself be guided by Sana, who walks with her to Momo's car, where Dahyun starts with the introductions. She introduces herself first, then her mom Mina, her mommy Momo and it is the latter who introduces her to Boo and Dobby while she puts the leashes on them and hands Boo's to Dahyun and Dobby's to Tzuyu who, despite her shyness, is clearly filled with joy. 

At all times Sana stays by her side and gives her comforting glances every time she looks up and gently squeezes her hand reminding her that she is by her side. The gesture reassures Tzuyu who dares to thank Dahyun, Momo and Mina and then says in a whisper "I am Tzuyu, nice to meet you", just as her moms have taught her.

Dahyun smiles as she grabs the leash and seconds later Chaeyoung and Kookeu join in. This time, the oldest girl introduces Chaeyoung and Tzuyu formally explaining that they are both the same age even though Chaeyoung is shorter and Tzuyu is even taller than Dahyun herself. Sana watches the interaction closely and can't help but laugh, her heart melts every time she sees Dahyun taking on the role of unnie as she usually does with Chae, and now she is doing it with her daughter. She walks and watches over the three of them as they explore the surroundings of the house with the dogs before going inside while the rest of the mothers are taking bags and backpacks full of clothes, food, supplies and - of course - gifts out of the cars while the girls are distracted and out of sight.

"No, no, no, no" they hear Nayeon say as she takes some bags from her wife's hands. 

"Oh come on honey, are you serious?" grumbles Jeongyeon. 

"I'm dead serious, join Sana and the girls. I'm not going to let you carry anything."

"Nayeon... Even on the assumption that I was you-know-what, I could carry this. I'm already taking all the precautions and taking vitamins, but I'm not going to be getting the pregnant woman treatment as if I can't do anything. I refuse to do that" she argues and in response receives a negative head shake. 

"Look, I have a good feeling so I'm not going to let you carry anything. And the only reason I'm letting you drive, for now, is because we both know that between you and me only one of us is capable of getting us safely to a house in the middle of the mountains. And obviously the one with the side of the car with scratches in the three colors of the parking column is not the one".

"Don't tell me you scratched the car again" sighs Jeongyeon tiredly. 

"Don't change the subject and go inside the house now or go stretch your legs a bit with your daughter before we lose her among these plants that I'm sure are taller than her."

Faced with such an argument, Jeongyeon has no choice but to accept her wife's suggestion and joins Sana, the three girls and the three dogs. 

Once inside the house, Nayeon, Momo, Jihyo and Mina put everything in order and catch up with each other. Since the group was formed they try to see each other regularly and in the case of Momo, Mina and Nayeon - along with Jeongyeon - they often see each other at school and occasionally on play dates in the park. However, with the hectic pace of work, raising the girls and taking care of the house, sometimes it is almost impossible to meet all of them together. Besides the fact that Jihyo and Sana have been practically absent these last few months, since they spent some time preparing everything for Tzuyu's arrival at home, and that this last month has been entirely dedicated to adapting to this new situation. This is the main topic of conversation among the women who ask Jihyo how she is handling it, if it is difficult, assure her that the best is yet to come, ask her how Sana has been doing and give her some advice.

Jihyo is euphoric, she and Sana are the extroverts of the group and in general she is a very vocal person, but it is more than obvious to everyone that she is more talkative than usual. It is not the first time they see her like this, she was the same way when she met Tzuyu for the first time and when they started the adoption procedure. They love to see their friends like this and Mina and Nayeon remember that feeling of being new moms and how their friends were there to share the joy, the fears, the doubts and how they listened to them talk for hours about names, diapers, cribs, milk, clothes, ultrasounds and a thousand other things. 

In fact, it was Jihyo and Sana who were present during their pregnancies respectively. Jihyo was the one who took a Nayeon who was suffering from contractions to the hospital while Jeongyeon at her side told her how to breathe, even though she was the one who needed the breathing exercises the most at that moment. And well, Sana was even present when Mina gave birth to Dahyun taking the place of the biological father - or the sperm donor as Sana calls him -.

Momo, despite being the most recent addition to the group, two years ago, shares the excitement equally as the three of them listen to the first anecdotes that Sana and Jihyo have already experienced with Tzuyu at home. The truth is that they have all been hearing about her for more than half a year and although today they have finally met her, they already feel that they have known her for a long time and that she is part of their family. 

"And it looks like Jihyo and Sana aren't the only new moms in the group, right Momo?" asks Nayeon arching her eyebrows looking at her "new" best friend. 

Mina hearing it can't help but smile and Jihyo makes a surprised face, they both look at Momo who smiles shyly.

"It seems so" she says while still smiling "Dubu has officially given me the title".

"I was honestly surprised she hadn't called her mom by now. There are times she looks more like your daughter than mine" she says to Momo as she holds out her hand and strokes it with her thumb. 

Mina takes advantage of Nayeon bringing up the topic of conversation and explains that it all came up in the car talking about Tzuyu and the adoption thing. Nayeon almost gets tears of laughter listening to Dahyun's confusion with the logistics of the matter and, like Momo, can't help but let out a laugh when she hears that one of the things she was really worried about is that Jihyo would have had someone so big in her belly when she was so small. Nayeon, for her part thanks aloud that Chae's questions were not so complicated, although they all agree that she and Jeongyeon have admirable patience after hearing that the questions didn't stop during the three-hour drive. 

Jihyo's heart warms, despite her height being a joke even to her seven-year-old niece, to hear how the little ones have taken the news. It was clear to her that both her friends and her daughters would welcome Tzuyu with open arms, but hearing the girls' doubts and their mothers' responses gives her peace of mind knowing that her daughter is surrounded by such wonderful people. For a while she felt guilty for not being able to give Tzuyu some grandparents to spoil her since the relationship with her parents is non-existent and that Sana's parents live in another country, but that thought disappears from her head when she listens to her friends. This is her family.

Not only is she comforted by listening to the three women but she takes note of their experience and especially Mina's explanation to her daughter about the different types of family in case she ever has to use it with her own daughter. 

"Wow that's great" says Jihyo excitedly "Tzuyu still calls us by our name from time to time, but at least she has stopped calling us Mrs. Jihyo and Mrs. Sana" she laughs.

Once everything is in place, Mina starts preparing tea for the adults and milkshake for the girls. Chocolate for Dahyun, strawberry for Chaeyoun and for Tzuyu... When she is about to look for Jihyo to ask her about it, the three dogs run in followed by the two children, Jeongyeon and finally Tzuyu who hasn't left Sana's side the whole time. Seeing the cute scene makes Mina smile tenderly, it reminds her a bit of herself when she was a child, so she can't help but laugh a little as she imagines how such a shy girl will handle having the most outgoing people she knows as mothers, for now they seem to be handling it quite well, she doesn't remember seeing Sana this calm in her life. 

"Tzuyu, which milkshake do you prefer? We have chocolate, strawberry and vanilla" she asks her.

The girl looks first at her mother who gives her a little squeeze on the shoulder encouraging her to answer herself, even though she already knows the answer.

"Vanilla, please. Thank you" she replies immediately.

"Good choice. Dahyun is going to be delighted but you might break Chaeyoung's heart". 

"Don't worry about that part, Mitang. We brought that ice cream that has all three flavors and I think everyone will be happy" says Sana looking at her daughter. 

"Is Jihyo still competing with Nayeon for the favorite aunt spot?" Mina asks while Sana nods, rolling her eyes. "I think Nayeon brought the ingredients to make hot chocolate, I just hope Dahyun doesn't try to eat it all." 

Sana laughs and replies "If it happens let's hope then he won't get a stomach ache like that time. I just can't stop Jihyo, you know how she is. She is very sexy when she gets into competitive mode." 

"Have some decorum" she says laughing, covering half of her face with her hand and looking towards the little girl. "I can imagine, it's going to be fun when school starts. Remember when Nayeon almost got into a fight with a parent on sports day."

The two laugh while Tzuyu plays distractedly with the seams of her mother's pants and also with her hands and rings. The conversation does not last much longer because when the girl sees the dogs, she asks her mother to come with her to play with them.

As soon as Sana disappears from the kitchen Jeongyeon shows up, offering to help Mina, but they both know it's just an excuse. Like Momo and Nayeon, they haven't known each other practically all their lives - as is Jeongyeon's case with Nayeon and Jihyo - but from the beginning they connected very well and are now quite close probably because of how similar their personalities are. Being two people who sometimes deal with a bit of anxiety and have a tendency to overthink, they have found someone to lean on who understands them.

"You haven't done it yet, have you? "Jeongyeon asks Mina first. 

She shakes her head "I've tried, I promise. But the truth I'm glad I waited, if you give me a hand tonight I think I will do it" she says, unable to hide her gummy smile as she thinks about it.

"Yeah sure, just tell me what you have in mind and we'll find time to set it up."

"Same goes for you, I overheard your conversation with Nayeon earlier. So if there's anything I can help with, let me know" she offers.

"Don't worry about me, I've got it all planned out, Mitang" she tells her as she starts placing the cups of tea and milkshakes on a tray. "Or should I say bro" she teases her. 

"Oh shut up Jeong, I'm regretting letting my brother babysit. The other day she called me 'bro'!" she says making her friend laugh.

When Mina and Jeongyeon appear in the living room, they all sit around a table and start drinking tea while the girls drink their smoothies, obviously Tzuyu's choice of flavor doesn't go unnoticed by the other two. Just as Mina predicted, Dahyun couldn't be happier to keep all the chocolate for herself while Chaeyoung is a little put off that her new friend doesn't share her passion for strawberries, although she is more reassured when she tells her that her favorite is vanilla but she also really likes strawberries. Chae and Dahyun soon get up to start exploring the house and play hide and seek while Tzuyu, still overwhelmed by all these new people, stays by herself playing with the dogs.

She talks to them, throws the ball and tries to teach them tricks although the only one who responds to her commands is Kookeu.  They all look at Tzuyu with adoring eyes as they see how tender she is with the animals while Nayeon's look of pride is directed at her beloved dog. Still she can't resist how adorable her new niece is so she takes the moment to introduce herself while showing her the tricks she has taught the pomeranian, making Tzuyu feel more comfortable. She is a shy and quiet girl and it is normal that the situation is too much for her, but as soon as they start talking about dogs, Nayeon gets to see the Tzuyu that Jihyo and Sana have already known within the walls of their home. She is lively, smiling, intelligent and can become talkative when the topic of conversation interests her, at least if it's about dogs.

After a while Chayeoung goes to look for Tzuyu who is still playing with Kookeu and her mom while Dahyun makes a loud announcement for the adults. It seems that they have found a Christmas tree so big that it almost touches the ceiling with some boxes around it with all kinds of decorations in one of the rooms of the house, some of them similar to the ones they have at home and the ones they themselves have made at school. For the girls it is something magical and the adults let them believe it. 

The next few hours they are all together decorating the tree, both kids and adults, while talking, laughing and singing. The end result is... colorful and eclectic. The tree has lights, ornaments of different colors and shapes that they had at home, the girls have collaborated with diy decorations full of glitter and doodles and some stuffed animals and superhero toys and even Mina and Jeongyeon have made their contribution with ornaments made of LEGO. All that's left is to put the star on the top of the tree.

Deciding who puts the star turns into a rock-paper-scissors competition between Chaeyoung and Dahyun, but also between Nayeon and Jihyo who want their daughters to place the star. After three rounds, Sana encourages her wife who has already rolled up her shirt sleeves showing her shoulders and put her cap on backwards and it is not until Jeongyeon sees the same competitive expression on her wife and daughter's face that she decides to put an end to it. Fortunately, they make the wise decision to have the three girls together put on the star with the help of their mothers. Jeongyeon, being the tallest of them all, has no problem holding Chaeyoung in her arms. Mina is a little taller than Momo, but her daughter has grown up and she finds it harder and harder to carry her in her arms as she did before, so the girl ends up in the arms of the oldest one. The same happens with Sana and Jihyo, however, Jihyo's strength does not make up for her height even though Tzuyu is quite tall so she reluctantly lets Sana hold Tzuyu while Nayeon looks at her amused.

Each of the little hands holds a part of the star with the help of their mothers and it is Nayeon who captures the moment first with her film camera and then with her phone, sending the photos to the group chat instantly. As soon as she receives the photo, Mina smiles when she sees one of them with only Momo and her daughter in it and quickly makes it her new lockscreen. The camera stays in Nayeon's hands for the rest of the day. 

Decorating the tree together gets the youngest out of her shell, she continues to play with the dogs, but she also starts playing with Dahyun and Chaeyoung. They run around the house for a while until Chaeyoung takes out her notebooks, coloring books and crayons. In the kitchen Jeongyeon, Momo and Mina prepare lunch and in the dining room Sana, Jihyo and Nayeon set the table. The house is full of voices, laughter, jokes, curious questions from the girls and some barking from the dogs and the girls. When the food is ready all nine manage to adjust to the small table eating with their arms glued to the one next to them. They wouldn't change it for the world, but they comment that they should come back during the spring or summer so they might be able to eat at the large outdoor table under the sakura tree to enjoy the beautiful place where they are. From that moment some of them take out their phones and start looking at dates on the calendar, but Mina's mind travels to other places when she hears that the big tree outside the house is a sakura.

After eating and cleaning up together with the help of their daughters, they go around the house. Surprisingly, they get the girls to agree to take a nap, probably tired from being up early and having been awake throughout the long car ride. Jihyo joins them, as do Boo and Dobby who find a gap between Dahyun and Tzuyu, the younger one snuggles up to Jihyo's chest who even in her sleep puts her arms around her protectively, something that comes naturally to her.

In another room the rest have some Japanese sweets made by Mina and Momo with a game of cards between them, without Jihyo and Chaeyoung, there is no one to fuel Nayeon's competitiveness, leading to the most peaceful card game they have had in their life. It's certainly something that tends to happen when Nayeon is around Mina as long as Jihyo and some kind of game, competition or betting isn't also present and it seems that Tzuyu has that same effect on her mothers. But like all good things, the quiet is short lived and in less than an hour the girls wake up and show up with Jihyo, she could still take another hour of rest. She instead sits behind Sana resting her chin on her shoulder and wrapping her arms around her until she realizes that her wife has some cards in her hands and after giving Nayeon a defiant look she starts whispering a strategy in her partner's ear.

Dahyun realizes that they are playing cards and runs to her backpack and takes out her UNO for children and they start a more serious and less noisy game than their mothers. If it wasn't for the colors and the animals that appear on the cards, anyone would think that they are the ones who are betting money and not Jihyo and Nayeon who keep shouting while Sana only laughs. This time it is Momo who captures the moment on film after being the first to lose in the game. She stealthily sits next to Dobby and Boo and caresses them while watching and listening to them, she can't help but smile as she listens to the questions they ask Tzuyu trying to get to know her. When the game ends in a draw by Dahyun's decision and without any protest from Chaeyoung and Tzuyu, even though Momo doubts they have understood the game well, she finally asks.

"Who wants to make cookies?". 

The question revolts the three little girls who immediately get up and squeal an enthusiastic "YES YES YES!" in unison joined by an excited Sana. 

Momo takes them to the kitchen where there are two bags with everything they need. From the first bag she takes out three aprons like the one she wears in her restaurant, but these are a small version with each one's name embroidered on them. This small detail touches them so much that for a moment they forget the reason why they have put them on and Sana, despite not having an apron for herself, gives Momo a huge smile and says "thank you", touched by her friend's gesture.

In the end the little cooking class that Momo had prepared attracts the attention of the older ones as well and they all end up in the kitchen among flour, eggs, dough, icing and all kinds of toppings with all kinds of colors. Of course, they replace the Christmas gingerbread cookies with chocolate cookies, vanilla flavored cookies and cookies with strawberry icing to please everyone's tastes. Some mix, some knead, some shape the cookies and then bake them, and each one ends up with a pile of cookies to decorate according to her taste and decorating skills. When they are done with the cookies, they all dare to make a big cookie house, all nine of them.

To say that when they finished the kitchen was the typical mess after cooking would be an understatement, as it took almost as long to clean up as it did to make dozens of cookies and the eccentric cookie house. When everything is finally cooled down, they make some hot chocolate and coffee with whipped cream, marshmallow, caramel... Then again they gather around the table with a cup in their hands.

It's not very late, but it's been dark for a few hours now and the only light outside is from the lamps hanging from the ceilings of the house and some bulbs decorating the garden of the house and the lights of some houses in the distance. It's time to shower and get ready for bed, at least for the kids who instead of getting more and more tired are more and more animated as the evening comes and the time when Santa Claus will bring them their presents is closer. There are only three girls, each under the care of two adults, but it takes them more than an hour to get them showered and dressed in their matching pajamas in the bed they have prepared for them. At first Tzuyu does not seem very sure about the idea, not that she is not used to it, in fact she used to sleep in a room with about ten or fifteen other girls, but this month she has spent it in the bed between Sana and Jihyo because she is still not able to sleep alone and now the idea of sleeping without them does not convince her.

"Come on, Tzuyu sleep with us" asks Chaeyoung, who can't stay away from her new friend. 

"Sleep with us Tzuyu, you can sleep in the middle, since you are the little one we can take care of you just like when I let Chae the side of the wall so she won't fall" Dahyun tries to convince her.

That last statement just melts the heart of all the women who are watching their little negotiation, but especially Sana and Jihyo. They are no strangers to these special moments between girls but now, witnessing it as mothers, hits different.

"I have an idea" interjects Sana. "Why don't I read a bedtime story to the three of you so Tzu can test if she likes this bed and if she likes it you can leave her one of the sides so she can come to our room if she needs it" she says while looking at her daughter who nods in agreement with the solution offered by her mommy. 

"Yes, you read it, auntie Sana!" exclaims Chae excitedly as Dahyun nods.

They love to listen to Sana telling them bedtime stories with the funny voices she does and Sana loves to read them bedtime stories. It has always been her favorite part of babysitting either of them and on occasion when she and Jihyo would invite them to have a sleepover at home giving their moms a break while at the same time she could enjoy something she thought she would never have until Tzuyu came into their lives. Sana has always had a very strong maternal instinct and with these things it shows even more. Her storytelling, answering the strangest questions and convincing three kids excited for Christmas to be in bed even before their usual bedtime are things that come naturally to her. Jihyo feels like her heart is about to explode when she sees these kinds of scenes and her friends couldn't be happier for her, to see that finally something she saw as an impossible dream is now a reality.

Normally the only one who usually stays awake until the end of the story is Chae because she gets absorbed with each story and can't sleep unless she hears the end, but this time Sana has to read them up to three stories until they all finally fall asleep.

Finally it's time for the adults to relax, drink some wine, beer or soju and be able to talk and gossip without having to keep an eye on their surroundings to make sure that there is not a half-meter girl that they can badly influence if they hear them say a swear word or talk about some inappropriate topic. From time to time one of them goes to the room to check that everything is all right and that they are still asleep.

Once again, Mina somewhat nervously finds an excuse to drag Jeongyeon into the kitchen where she finally tells her about her plan and asks her to keep an eye out in case Dahyun wakes up or needs her while asking for some discretion. As she leaves the kitchen she heads to her room and returns with two coats, giving one to Momo to go with her to get some air. The others either don't notice or for Mina's sake pretend not to notice except for Jeongyeon who gives her a subtle thumbs up.

Her obvious nervousness and shaking hands suddenly catches Momo's attention causing her cheerful and slightly drunk expression to change to a worried face holding Mina's hands immediately.

"Babe, has anything happened, has your family called?" asks Momo worriedly knowing it's one of the things that triggers Mina's anxiety around this time of the year. 

"No, no. Everything is fine" Mina assures her with a nervous smile and unable to hold her gaze. 

"We've already talked about this, your hands are shaking. You can tell me anything, Mina. I got you" says Momo wrapping her arms around her and Mina can only feel lucky to have someone like that by her side.

She lets herself be taken in by the embrace and breathes in Momo's perfume, something that always soothes her, before pulling away and starting to talk. 

"Baby, I'm okay. I promise" she says, grabbing her hands to stop the shaking of her own hands. "But if I'm going to need you to listen to me".

Momo nods and looks at her expectantly.

"I'm going to need us to move to that tree" she says pointing to the huge tree that by this time has not a single leaf or flower. 

Once they are under the tree sitting on a small wooden bench while holding hands looking into each other's eyes, the youngest takes a breath and begins her speech.

"This isn't as cute as I had originally envisioned in my mind, but this is a sakura tree" she says gesturing awkwardly as if she is introducing the tree as the other looks at her in confusion. "I don't know if you remember" she takes a deep breath trying to calm her nerves so her voice doesn't sound so shaky. "But when things started to get serious between us, when I was afraid to let you into my life and Dahyun's, you told me that when you looked at the two of us you felt the same as when you saw the sakura blooming in the spring when you had only been here in Korea for a short time because they made you feel at home. I feel something like that too. When I think of you I think of family and when I think of family Dahyun's face is not the only one I see, I see you too." She thinks about her words for a bit and adds "It's not like I didn't see you as part of my family before, but today when Dahyun started calling you 'mom' I felt like everything was finally in place.... W-what I want to say is that I want you to be our Dubu's mom, I want to say that you are my daughter's mom when people ask me and I also want to say that you are my wife" she finishes saying with bright eyes full of tears while looking at Momo in expectation.

Momo also has some tears in the corners of her eyes and can barely articulate any words for a moment until she finally speaks "Minari, are you asking me to marry you?" she asks with a smile from ear to ear.

"Yes, s-sorry I forgot the most important thing" she stutters nervously searching for the ring in the pockets of the huge jacket until she finally pulls out a small velvet box and opens it before her eyes "I wanted to wait for the sakura bloom, but I couldn't wait any longer and when she asked if she could call you mom-" she starts to ramble as she does when she gets nervous.

They have been together for more than two years and it still happens to her at times like this. It still happens to her just like it did during the dozens of encounters they had until Momo understood that her best customer might be interested in more than just the Japanese food she missed so much and finally asked her if she would like to meet outside her restaurant. Mina hates that she still makes her stutter sometimes and for Momo it is one of her favorite things in the world to know that despite the time she still has the same effect on Mina. 

Suddenly she feels Momo's lips crashing against hers in an clumsy and rushed kiss, but full of emotions. Their arms are wrapped around each other's body and they can feel their cheeks wet with tears as the older one pulls away and softly says "Yes!".

"Let me ask you the question!" she whines. "Hirai Momo, will you marry me?" she asks finally resting one knee to the ground and all. 

"Yes. I will marry you, Myoui Mina" she says laughing as she uses her full name.

Momo smiles as she sees her with one knee on the ground giving her the ring, a scene she thought she would never experience like so many other things when she discovered she liked girls in her last year of high school. Now she has the most beautiful woman in the world saying she wants her to be a mother and a wife, asking her once again to make a family together. They are already family and they both know that the ring doesn't change anything because they have been a family since the moment Mina decided to introduce Momo as her girlfriend in front of her friends and then her daughter, when Dahyun started treating Dobby and Boo like her own dogs, when Momo offered to pick up her daughter from school when Mina couldn't, when Mina asked her if she would like to live with her and Dahyun, when Momo started calling the little girl Dubu and started reading her bedtime stories or just a few hours ago when Dahyun asked her if she could call her mom.

"I'm sorry but Nayeon and Sana's rings are going to have to go to the other hand", Mina bothers him being now more relaxed, taking her out of her thoughts while she takes her hand and starts to put the ring on it. 

It is a thin, simple, white gold ring decorated with three diamonds, while she puts the engagement ring on her finger she explains that since she prefers simple rings she thought it would probably be better to have a few small diamonds than one big one and that she liked the idea of three diamonds because they are three. This time she explains it more calmly, as if she isn't feeling her heart pounding in her chest at full speed.

"I love you" says Momo, this time in her mother tongue. 

"I love you, Momoring".

It's been impromptu, no picnic in the spring watching the sakuras bloom and no dinner at the nice restaurant she saw when they passed through the nearby village and the speech she's been preparing for a month was forgotten as soon as she saw how Momo cared about her when she thought something bad had happened, but Mina couldn't care less. Momo has said yes to continue having a life together now with the promise of forever and that's all she needs. 

It's cold and the first snowflakes are starting to fall from what looks like it will be the first snow of the year. Neither of them move, enjoying a little alone time before going back inside the house. The two cuddle and kiss, some of those kisses are short pecks on the lips and some turn into heated kisses that leave them breathless. When Mina's freezing hands sneak under several layers of clothing to caress the skin of Momo's stomach under her shirt sending a shiver throughout her body they go back inside.

When they came back they all know, even though all she asked Jeongyeon to do was to keep an eye on Dahyun and keep her mouth shut. You can't really blame her, the time they were there for them felt like an instant but it was really over forty five minutes of listening to Nayeon and Jihyo listing every moment they had told her some secret or gossip since they have known each other while Sana was about to have a breakdown thinking they were arguing and thinking about what she would do if they made her pick a side. All this while her social battery was at a minimum, so she ended up confessing everything and even shared some parts of the speech Mina had texted her asking if it was too cheesy.

As soon as she enters the door all eyes turn to Momo's hand and before Nayeon, Sana and Jihyo start to scream, Jihyo cures Sana's mouth with her hand and Jeongyeon covers Nayeon and Jihyo's mouths. Mina and Momo are completely blushing trying to hide in each other's neck while Jeongyeon apologizes for announcing it before them, knowing that they would have preferred to say it one by one to avoid this.

The three of them start asking them a million questions and start planning their wedding. Then Sana whines about not being the first to know but this topic doesn't last long because they all agree that she would have been so happy that she would have told the others and maybe even Momo herself if Mina had told her about her plans. After a while Jihyo shows up with more soju and even a bottle of champagne she had prepared in case they stayed to celebrate New Year's Eve, but the occasion is worth it. And if there's one thing Jihyo doesn't mess around with, it's alcohol, so you can trust that it's some good, expensive champagne.

They all toast to Momo and Mina's engagement with champagne except for Jeongyeon who raises her cup of tea, no one is shocked because since she started the artificial insemination treatments she has not been drinking for months, but they all need to know as soon as possible if she is finally pregnant because they really need to get used to the idea that Nayeon is going to keep drinking for the two of them at every celebration. Nayeon is not a bad drinker, but as she is drunk she won't be still for a second, she even becomes more giggly and hits the arm of anyone next to her. Jihyo and Jeongyeon tell that sometimes during their college outings they would wake up with bruises on their arms.

When they decide it's way too late and they have to put all the presents on the tree, the only one who is drunk – thankfully – is Nayeon. Momo and Sana have a slight blush on their cheeks while Jihyo has drunk twice as much as Nayeon and is doing better than Mina who has only had a glass of champagne because it is her own engagement, but is still a bit dizzy from today's emotions. 

It doesn't take them long to place the gifts despite Nayeon's interruptions and her and Sana's giggles threatening to wake up the girls. Luckily, Jeongyeon and Momo go a couple of times to check that they are sound asleep when they hear a soft snore from one of them.

They all say their good nights among smiles and laughter, feeling as excited as their daughters to open the presents as a family. Each couple disappears into their respective rooms and the moment they lay their heads on the pillow, they all fall asleep instantly. It has been a tiring and intense day and the best is yet to come. 

The next morning they are all woken up at 7 am one by one by the three girls who only scream "CHRISTMAS", "SANTA" and "PRESENTS". The strategy they follow is the same, Dahyun and Chaeyoung come in screeching and jump on top of the adults shaking them followed by Tzuyu who is less shy around them but not enough to assault the adults like her friends do, so she just carefully tugs at their pajama sleeves while the others do the rest of the work. When they arrive at Nayeon and Jeongyeon's room things are different and Chaeyoung instructs the attack to be directed only at Nayeon because she has told her that she has to be careful with her mama.

The older ones have only had a couple of hours of sleep and some have a slight headache, but they make their way to the tree at about the same speed as their daughters until all nine are seated around the tree. Nayeon takes pictures with her camera while Momo has her cell phone in one hand and a video camera in the other with the intention of recording at least the highlights. Each time she checks that the camera settings are correct she can't help but smile at the sight of the new ring that now decorates her hand. 

Finally it's time to open the presents.

Dahyun receives a small digital piano that is halfway between a toy and a real one to start with and a microphone, lately she is in her singer and rapper phase. Momo and Mina know that in a few days they might regret leaving her not one but two things that make noise and they also know that they will end up dancing and singing with her or that they will enjoy the small recitals that their little Dubu organizes at home. Another surprise they have prepared is for her to start piano lessons, but first they have to make sure that they know she would be going to real piano lessons and that it is not like when she plays her toy piano keyboard at home. They also give her some books from her favorite collection and of course, chocolate.

Chaeyoung, like every Christmas, birthday or any other special occasion, receives paints, sketchpads, watercolors, pencils and other art supplies that are of better quality as she gets older. The little girl always gets excited as if it were the first time she gets them as a gift because in a month half of the things are already used up and her mothers no longer know where to keep so many drawings. The last gift she opens, however, is something that makes her even more excited and that is a toy set to make temporary tattoos with markers. Since she was a toddler, she has had the habit of painting all over her arms and legs even before she could speak, and now there is not a day that goes by that she doesn't come home with a drawing in one hand and a note from her teacher in the other. When Nayeon saw the advertisement for the toy while she was on her phone, she ordered it online and it has been hidden in a corner of her house since summer.

Both Chaeyoun and Dahyun have among their gifts a package of a different color than the rest, Dahyun insists that Santa Claus knows they are bros and that's why he always gives them something that matches. The truth is that it's Jihyo and Sana who always get their nieces something special, since they didn't have a child to buy presents for until now. The fact that this year Tzuyu has come into their lives is not going to change this little tradition. This year Dahyun receives a stuffed eagle and Chaeyoung a tiger, their favorite animals. The choice of the oldest is surprising and even more surprising is that the couple found a cute stuffed animal of an eagle.

As for the new member of the family, she has been receiving gifts from her mothers ever since she arrived at her new home. Most of them such as clothes, school supplies, books and toys were just things that a 7-year-old girl needs at home, but Sana and Jihyo are still in the excitement of being new mothers so it is likely that she has been spoiled a little too much. After asking their friends for advice, they decided it was best to give her a few meaningful gifts rather than showering her with presents as they originally planned.

They didn't count on the fact that Tzuyu, given where she came from and with her background, is not the type of kid who asks for things, instead if she likes something you can see it on her face and maybe she mentions it because it has genuinely caught her attention and not because she is asking for it in a subtle way. They are both very happy to have such a good little girl and know that anything will be welcomed with sincere joy as they have seen so far, however it has made the job of being Santa Claus difficult for them. Luckily, since they discovered Tzuyu's passion for dogs, it was clear to them what the perfect gift would be. A dog, this was the perfect gift, except that they had their doubts about it. After much discussion and thinking about it, Jihyo and Sana agreed that they didn't want to be the kind of mothers who give a dog as a toy for Christmas, especially after listening to Jeongyeon talking about how many dogs arrive at the shelter a few months after Christmas when they are no longer adorable puppies.

Tzuyu for the first time receives presents that are actually for her and not generic toys donated to the orphanage. On her first Christmas with her new family Tzuyu opens a package bigger than her and almost the size of Jihyo, it is a life-size golden retriever stuffed dog that makes Tzuyu cry instantly. As soon as the stuffed dog is free from the wrapping paper the little girl hugs it tightly and goes to her mothers and hugs both of them. 

"Thank you mommy Sana, thank you mommy Ji" she says sobbing making her mothers also cry with her. 

"You don't have to thank us Tzu" says Sana as jihyo takes her and the huge stuffed dog in her arms. "Santa got it for you because you've been such a good girl," she says. 

" All we did was tell Santa that you changed your address," Jihyo adds and kisses her on the head.

There are still two gifts to be opened, one of them an illustrated book about dogs and then a letter that her mommy Ji has to read to her. It is an invitation to visit the shelter and help the dogs living there. At the bottom of the invitation are a pair of paw prints of different dogs for which Sana and Jihyo are very grateful to Jeongyeon who has also offered to be the one to accompany them to the shelter where she started volunteering and where she now works as a veterinarian. 

The other two children don't quite know what is going on, so they clap their hands when their mothers assure them that they are crying from happiness and not sadness. They themselves try to hold back their tears and in Nayeon's case hide them by covering themselves with the camera as she captures the emotional moment.

The next picture they take is one of the girls holding their stuffed animals. Dahyun poses like a rapper, Chaeyoun still doesn't know how to smile in photos and next to her Tzuyu stares at the camera with her eyes a little too wide. They take a total of thirty photos of them and they all agree that it's best to save those photos for posterity and not for Instagram. Luckily, the girls come out much better when they get their pictures taken while playing and Nayeon keeps saying that she can wait to develop the two rolls of film she has already spent since they arrived the day before. 

After the photos it's time for the older ones to open the gifts and as with the card game the task of telling who is more mature is difficult. Of course, Nayeon turns it into another rock-paper-scissors competition to choose the order and Jihyo accepts so the others are dragged into the game. The oldest loses and in addition to enduring her wounded pride, Nayeon will have to wait until the end to receive the gift. 

Contrary to other years when they have played secret friend, they have preferred to take the easy way and the gifts are only between the couples with the only condition that they are not allowed to give each other inappropriate gifts in front of the children. A rule especially addressed to Sana who on all Jihyo's birthdays gives her a lingerie set which is actually for herself and which Jihyo accepts with too much enthusiasm in front of all of them.

Sana gives Jihyo a designer leather jacket, a bottle of a really expensive soju that Jihyo loves with some glasses with a nice and elegant accompanying the bottle. " I'll give you your other gift later in the room" Sana whispers in her ear before giving her a kiss. 

Nayeon gifts Jeongyeon a fancy watch and a letter which she asks her to read another time and is quite insistent that she doesn't read it in front of the others.

Mina tells Momo that her gift was given to her in the evening, but she has a small detail. In the package is a t-shirt with a drawing of the family done by Dahyun, there are a total of five t-shirts and Momo for a moment freaks out at the sight of two small t-shirts until Mina tells her that they are for Boo and Dobby making everyone laugh at Momo's momentary panic.

In between laughter, there is a loud sob and suddenly they all realize that Jeongyeon is crying her eyes out as she reads the letter. "Jeong! I told you not to read it!" says Nayeon in between laughing and crying as he wraps his arms around his wife and whispers "Well it's already in the letter, I love you baby." At another time her friends would have teased, but Jeongyeon seems to be truly touched so they leave the couple a moment and continue. 

Mina is next and receives a LEGO set that Momo has caught her browsing through more than once when they go to the mall and a Nintendo Switch game, as well as a simple necklace adorned with three hearts. Mina loves it all and Momo is still surprised that jewelry always ends up being the gift that costs her the least money and effort.

Sana is surprised to receive an envelope from Jihyo because she has always been very thoughtful with gifts and usually receives a seasonal branded bag among other things. What she sees in the envelope, however, makes her scream in excitement more than any bag when she sees the tickets to go to Japan with their and Tzuyu's names on it. "Let's go see your parents next week, so they can finally meet their granddaughter," Jihyo says before she has to look up the details on the tickets herself.

Last of all is Nayeon. Finally her turn comes and she can't stop jumping up and down with excitement when she sees the box that Jeongyeon hands her. She tears the wrapping paper excitedly and when she opens the box and sees what's inside, her smile disappears. 

"Seriously Yoo Jeongyeon" she sighs, looking at her seriously.

The others just stay quiet not sure how to react because Nayeon seems really annoyed so they just watch the exchange between the couple. Then she takes out what's in the box and they all burst out laughing when they see a t-shirt that reads 'World's #1 Dad' on it.

It's a good joke and it's nothing that's unusual for the couple, they love teasing each other as much as they love giving each other kisses and whispering sweet nothings. This time it looks like Nayeon is not having it.

"I hope you have something better hidden, I spent days looking for the perfect watch" she whines and at that moment everyone sees the usual Nayeon again and the mood of the room instantly lightens up.

Jeongyeon also looks serious but it is obvious that she is holding in laughter when she says "I think I should have gotten you new eyeglasses, haven't you seen what else is in the box?".

Her wife rolls her eyes and looks in the box again, not very convinced that there is anything in there, thinking it is still just part of Jeong's joke. You never know with these two, once Nayeon gave her fifteenf boxes tucked inside each other for their anniversary in college, though then he gave her something that kept them busy for several days locked in the room. One of the best gifts she ever gave her, unless you ask Jihyo who at the time was sleeping in the room next door. To this day, the youngest of the three has not wanted to know what that gift was, but today she is dying of curiosity, just like the others.

"OH MY GOD JEONGYEON!" she screams at the top of her lungs, making her friends jump in their seats and catching the attention of the girls who have been busy with their new gifts for a while now. "If this is a joke I swear-" she says trying to sound tough as she starts bawling her eyes out.

"I'm serious," Jeongyeon says in a whisper, taking the paper Nayeon is holding in her hands and showing her friends the ultrasound.  "We're going to be mommies again" she says with a huge smile.

It takes a few seconds for everyone to react and all of a sudden everyone starts to congratulate them while the oldest one complains to her wife that she didn't tell her, even more so when she finds out that she is almost three months pregnant and that they are expecting twins. Neither of them can believe that Jeongyeon made it on the first try and they couldn't be happier, especially with Chaeyoun's reaction. The little girl stares at them with wide eyes and when they confirm that she will be the big sister to two babies, her eyes glaze over and she climbs onto her mom's lap to hug them and caress her mama's belly. 

"This is a better gift than the tattoo machine" she says, still pouting.

All these emotions seem to have made them hungry and they soon gather at the small table, which is now more crowded with the girls' stuffed animals. In the middle of the table they have a mountain of cookies that they didn't finish yesterday and there is also hot chocolate, tea, coffee and milkshakes. The Myoui-Hirai family is wearing their t-shirts. Sana and Jihyo tell Tzuyu about Japan, tell her about the food and let her know that she will meet more new people, this time it will be her grandparents. Jeongyeon is still forced to listen to a scolding from her wife for not telling her earlier that she is pregnant and lists one by one the things that could have happened until Jeong admits that she was afraid something would go wrong and Nayeon's gaze softens.  She knows that fear better than anyone, so she just stops and reminds her that everything will be okay because they have each other and because they have this wonderful family they've built. A family that was formed within the walls of their shared dorm during university and that has been growing ever since.

[peach-and-bugs]

💚Bean Sprout - Lottie Matthews x fem!Reader💚

Chapter 1 - Ch 2

Fanfiction master list

disclaimer: don't repost my work. I only post on Tumblr and on Ao3. anything else is stolen and should be removed immediately

Summary: You've been happily married to Charlotte Matthews for some odd years now, but it feels like it's time to take a step in a new direction together... aka mama!Lottie

Warnings: Mild nudity, but not really. otherwise nothing

Word Count: 2,839

A/N: Oh my god, it's here and it has a title! Hello Loves! It's finally time for the start of my Mama!Lottie fic that I haven't been able to stop talking and thinking about! This is a pretty light introductory chapter, just setting some of the groundwork for the fic as a whole, but I think it's a really sweet chapter and I really hope you enjoy! As always, feel free to leave questions or comments in my comments or ask box, and happy reading!

Lottie Matthews Tag List: (open) @elliesjoints

Yellowjackets Tag List: @frasersgf @minimickzy

"Bean Sprout" Tag List:

General Tag List: @summergeezburr

-💚-

Summer had hit and become the time of the year when school was letting out and the next generation of kids was graduating from school and heading out into the world. One of these kids happened to be Callie, the daughter of one of your wife’s closest friends. You’d been invited to her graduation party and after making the drive back to Wiskayok, New Jersey you found yourself celebrating in a nice backyard, sitting at a round table under a shady tree with a drink in hand chatting with your wife and some of her other friends. 

You mostly stayed quiet, listening to the conversation rather than chiming in. While you knew Lottie’s friends from high school, you'd been a freshman during their senior year, so there hadn’t been much overlap. You’d only gotten close to Lottie because of you’re excelled French placement and even then you hadn’t connected till you were both much older. They’d always been a kind group of women though, always willing to engage with you. 

“I still can’t believe she’s graduating,” Taissa marveled, her eyes trained on Callie from across the yard as she laughed with her group of friends. 

“Trust me, I know,” Shauna said with a sigh as she took in a swig of her drink only to grimace down into it. “Starting to wish one of them would spike the punch,” she murmured. She was nudged by Natalie, who pulled a flask out of her jacket followed by her eyes darting down at the flask and then back up at Shauna. The mom sighed and offered out her cup, as did Taissa. Your wife shook her head but said nothing while you smiled, biting your bottom lip as you suppressed your giggles. 

“You always were old reliable when it came to boos,” Van said as she approached the group with Misty trailing behind. The two had made a run back to the snack bar earlier. Natalie shrugged nonchalantly, taking a chip from Misty’s plate as the blonde saddled up beside her, taking her seat again around the table

“Someone had to provide,” she hummed, tucking the flask back in her pocket. The conversation drew on to general catching up and Natalie had started telling a story when Taissa’s son Sammy ran up to her and tugged at her sleeve. 

“Mama, they aren’t playing fair,” the boy complained, pointing to the small collection of children who were gathered together in a corner of the yard. One little girl seemed to be telling off another child who had their face red and squished in irritation with crossed arms. The other kids around stood awkwardly listening to the argument, unsure of what to do. A soccer ball lye abandoned between the two children in the grass. Taissa bit her lip before running her hand over her son’s hair. 

“Well, kiddo, sometimes people don’t play fair. But we don't get to tell them what to do,” she started to explain. “Why don’t you suggest another game,” she offered up. Sammy scrunched his face, lips pressed together tightly as he shook his head. 

“They said we can only play soccer because that's the only ball we have,” he pointed to the two arguing children again. Taissa looked on, wracking her brain over what she could suggest instead when Lottie tapped your shoulder and handed you her drink. 

“I can teach you a game, Sammy,” she suggested, smiling kindly as she got out of her seat and began walking toward the group of kids. Sammy seemed unsure for a moment till Taissa patted him on the shoulder. 

“Yeah, that sounds like a great idea! Let your Aunt Lottie teach you something new,” Sammy caved and then smiled with a nod. He trotted after Lottie, who had stopped and was waiting for him only to take her hand when he reached her, guiding her over to the group of kids to interrupt their growing argument. You smiled fondly, watching as she crouched down to talk to the kids, supposedly explaining the game as she took the ball into her hands. 

“Hey Shauna!” a voice yelled from the back porch of the house. You all looked up to see a woman standing at the door, baby on her hip. Shauna’s eyes lit up and she smiled, waving. 

“I’ll be back, it’s my sister and my niece,” she explained, leaving the group to go into the house. She called for Callie as she left, gesturing for the graduate to go and say hello. 

“Jease, everyone’s having kids now,” Natalie mumbled under her breath, pulling her flask back out to pour more of its contents into her nearly drained cup. Tai shrugged with a sigh. 

“Yeah, that’s the next step in growing up these days,” Natalie smirked ans shook her head. 

“Not for me,” she raised her brows, taking a long swig of her drink. 

“I’ve always thought about having kids. Maybe not now, but I thought it over when I was younger and liked the idea,” Misty jumped into the conversation, giving her two cents on the topic. The group nodded, acknowledging what she had to say before a squealing laugh distracted them. Eyes followed back over to Lottie who was now jumping hand in hand with one of the previously arguing little girls, supposedly having won some part of the game she’d taught them maybe. You felt a smile pull at your lips again at the sight of her side profile, eyes shut with an opened-mouth smile as she laughed, her shoulders hunching in with the sound. 

“What about you, y/n?” Van asked suddenly. You shook from your thoughts and turned to her, mildly confused having forgotten the conversation at hand. The redhead tilted her head, gesturing back to Lottie and the kids. “Well, you and Lot are the last of us to have tied the knot without having a kid…” your brows raised, lips pressed as you understood the implication of her question. You felt yourself grow shy under questioning. 

“Oh, I dunno,” you paused, eyes trailing back to your wife, who now stood with her hands on her hips, proudly watching the kids running around their patch of grass, chasing the soccer ball that bounced at their feet. “I mean, the topics come up once or twice but that was back when we were dating. We’ve got Buckweed though,” You brought up your dog instead, who’d been left back at the air b&b you were staying at for the night before driving back home Monday. 

“I always thought Lottie would have kids for sure,” you heard Misty comment again. “She always liked babysitting,” You bit your bottom lip. Did Lottie still want kids? You hadn’t thought of it recently, now that you thought about it. Maybe you’d been waiting for her to breach the subject before you did. Would she regret it if you didn’t have kids? Did you still want them? You felt your brain begin scrambling at all the sudden questions. 

“Hey, you alright?” Tai asked, shaking you from your silent spiral, her hand on your shoulder. You forced a smile and chuckled nervously. 

“Yeah! Yeah, I’m good. Just overthinking,” you mumbled, forcing a laugh. Taissa shared an awkward look with the rest of the group. 

“Lottie would talk about it if she wanted to,” Natalie jumped in, seeming completely unphased. She got disgruntled looks from both Taissa and Van. “What? Am I wrong? Lottie’s always been upfront about things like that,” she turned her attention to you. After a flicker of consideration, you nodded in agreement with her. Lottie had always been very honest with what she wanted, especially with you. If kids had been something she thought about, she’d have brought it up. Foturnintly, the conversation shifted away from you as Shauna rejoined the group, only now she had a baby in her arm, balanced so naturally on her hip. You assumed this was her niece, who smiled brightly and waved as she was brought over to the group. 

“Sorry about that,” Shauna smiled, readjusting the baby as she spoke. “My sisters getting something to eat, so I get to hang on to Pheobe,” she added a higher pitch to her voice, scrunching her nose as she tickled the little girl's stomach.

“Pheobe. That’s a pretty name,” Misty joined in, leaning towards Shauna who she was sitting next to to give the baby her attention. Shauna chuckled as Misty began poking at the baby, making her continue with her babbling giggles. 

“Mckenna was always a big fan of ‘Friends’,” She said with a shrug. “But, she’s eleven months and just started working on walking,” Shauna mused about her niece, who had turned to look over Shauna’s shoulder onto the party. 

“Mom!” you all heard Callie yell from across the yard. Shauna closed her eyes, cursing under her breath at yet another interruption. “Dad can’t find the cake!” Shauna sighed opening her eyes again and grimaced as she stood up. 

“Well, the world must be ending if Jeff can’t find a cake,” she grumbled, causing a few chuckles to sound around the table. But she turned her attention to you momentarily. “Can you take her from me? Just for a few minutes,” she gestured to Pheobe but was already offering her to you. You nodded, managing to ignore any initial hesitation, and took the baby onto your lap, sitting her so she was propped at the table like she was in her chair. Shauna gave you her thanks as she left and Pheobe made an excited squeal as she leaned forward, using her chubby little hands to smack at the table she could now reach. 

Your hands naturally found their place at her sides, giving her just enough wiggle room to move around but not get away from you. You began bouncing your knee just slightly, which she seemed to enjoy as she began gurgling and babbling the few words that she knew as she clapped her hands. You began to smile, looking down at her with her big brown eyes, just like her aunts. 

“Well, aren't you just a sweetheart,” you murmured with a light chuckle as the baby began kicking her feet in excitement from all the colors and sounds of the party around her. Unbeknownst to you, Taissa shared a knowing look between herself, Van, and Natalie as she leaned back in her chair. This was also when the cake was brought out, along with what looked like a truckload of cupcakes and all the kids went running, tearing towards the new treats to load up on even more sugar, subsequently relinquishing Lottie from her duties as entertainment. 

She made her way back to your table, laughing as the kids fought for the first slice of cake or cupcake. She was quite surprised to find you with a baby in your lap. Phoebe has started playing with your fingers, grabbing at your hands and smacking her tiny palms against yours, enjoying the sound that contact made. She took her seat beside you and leaned in to watch the interaction, wrapping her arm around the back of your chair as she scooted closer. 

“And who’s this?” she murmured, smiling at the baby as attention turned from your hands to her, though there was still a tight grasp on your pointer finger. 

“Shauna’s niece, Phoebe,” Lottie hummed, offering out her hand for the baby’s entertainment, which was greatly appreciated by Phoebe, who smacked at her palm in a child's attempt at a high five. 

“Well hello, Phoebe,” she laughed. 

-💚-

You didn’t talk much on the drive back to the house you were staying at. Not for any particular reason. You’d ended up staying at the party far longer than intended and were tired, so some comfortable silence was welcomed. You watched Lottie as she focused on the road ahead of her as she drive. The sun had started to set and streetlights turned on, offering a soft light that danced over your wife’s features. She glanced at you momentarily when she noticed you staring. She smiled without a word, reaching with her free hand for yours. She gave your hand a comfortable squeeze and kissed your knuckles, her eyes returning to the road. You hummed your thanks and leaned against the headrest, shutting your eyes. 

You didn’t talk to one another till you made it back into the air b&b. Buckwheat was very excited to have his people back with him and he barked eagerly wagging his tail as he hopped off of the coach upon hearing the door unlock. Lottie took him into the kitchen for a late dinner while you made your way into the bedroom to change into something more comfortable. You listened through the tiny house as you rummaged through your luggage. The kitchen light turned on with a soft click followed by kibble hitting the ceramic of Buckweed's bowl. You settled on changing into a pair of sweatpants and a tank top, not bothering to shut the bedroom door before stripping. 

Lottie walked in when you were halfway finished, wearing only your tank top and underwear with a pair of socks on before putting your pants on. She hummed her acknowledgment but moved to the bed to sit down and take her shoes off. You stalled, pausing before abandoning the pants altogether to approach her. You sat next to her on the bed but looked down at your knees. She finished with her shoes and scooted on the bed, patting the space beside her, awaiting you to join her. You did just that, crawling up to the pillow just as her arm draped around you like it had a hundred times before, comfortably settling on the curve of your hip.  

“You've been quiet,” she commented, running her fingers over your forehead, brushing loose hair from your eyes so she could get a good look at you. “Tired?” she questioned. You shook your head, nuzzling into her hand. 

“Thinking,” she hummed, eyes trailing over your face. 

“Care to share,” 

“You looked like you had a lot of fun with those kids today,” she smiled fondly and hummed again. 

“I did. They had a lot of spirit,” she adjusted her position in the bed, scooting closer to you. “But that’s not what you’re thinking about,” she knew you too well. It could get irritating sometimes. But in the long run, you appreciated it. Your eyes drifted and you bit the fat of your inner cheek, you're brow growing to crease with consideration. 

“Do you wish we had a kid?” Lottie seemed taken aback by the question, but she didn’t answer right away. 

“Where did that come from?” you bit your lip now.

“Well you looked so happy running around with those kids, and the other girls started asking if we planned on having any and saying they always thought you would and I just,” your words began to quicken as you said more. That is till Lottie brought her hand up to your cheek, running her thumb over the corner of your mouth to get your attention. 

“Darling, you’re overthinking again,” You sighed with a tiny laugh and nodded, pressing a chaste kiss to her thumb.

“I worried,” 

“Don’t”

“That’s far easier said than done,” you scoffed. She smiled softly and sighed. 

“Do you want a baby?” 

“I dunno. Yes? Maybe?”

“That doesn’t sound very confident of you,” she was messing with you now. You sat up, which you knew she wouldn’t enjoy only to maneuver so that you could pin her down on her back and straddle her waist with your hips. You pressed her shoulders down into the bed with either hand and you felt a tight squeeze of her hands on your hips. You knew she enjoyed this, as did you, but right now it was simply a means to keep her quiet and on topic. 

“Charlotte,” you started. You knew how she felt about you using her full first name. She kept her lips tightly shut as she stared up at you. “I need you to be completely honest with me and tell me exactly what you feel on impulse. Can you do that,” she nodded but didn’t let out a sound. 

“Should we have a baby?” 

“Yes,” she answered with zero hesitation, completely on impulse like you'd told her. Her features smiled and she began to laugh. “Yes! We should have a baby,” 

“Are you sure?” you grew excited at her enthusiasm. She continued to laugh and reached up, pulling you down on top of her fully. You practically crashed into her with a loud yelp, her arms wrapping around you tight as she continued with her giggles. 

“Oh, mon ange, I’m as sure as when I asked you to marry me,” she cooed, kissing your forehead and cheeks. If you looked close enough you could swear she was tearing up and you couldn’t blame her. You felt like you could burst into tears at any second too. “Let’s have a baby,”

[lovingaquarius]

💐 ANOTHER ASTROLOGY OBSERVATIONS BY MOI 💐 #3 i believe?

‼️ DISCLAIMER this is completely based on my personal experiences and observations do not take what i say literally i am NOT a professional astrologer‼️

🌸 there’s something with aquarius suns and when upset just going silent. i can attest to this but i’ve seen this alot like if i’m upset at you and can’t leave the immediate vicinity i go MUTE like i can not conjure up the energy or tolerance to say anything. i’m absolutely the type when i’m upset to be on the FARTHEST side of the seat closest to the door cause i just wanna GET AWAY

🌺 maybe it’s bc cancer is ruled by the moon which is a feminine but all the cancer sun males i’ve known have been more feminine or in touch with their feminine and kind of “emotional” (not to cater towards the stereotype that all women are emotional! but we are inherently more emotionally intelligent) they seem to take it rlly personal if you don’t like them back as well. the type who could not be friends with an ex yk

🌼i feel like virgo and capricorn are the placements that like colder, dimly lit environments with a whole bunch of candles lit and blankets -also i feel like cap placements are the ones to be more winter people than summer or spring? lmk if this is resonates with you!!

🌹 maybe some can relate but me and my mercury ruled friend group all will make the most random noises out loud at the most random times. it’s therapeutic honestly 😩 we usually have a random word we’ll make up and keep adding on to it over time until it becomes our own little language LMAO

🌷 idk if this is a gem moon thing because we’re known to be sharers of random knowledge but istg all my friends and some of my family come to me for answers about virtually anything but esp about spirituality. they will literally expect me to have all the answers in the world. i’ve said i don’t know a couple times and ppl have been like “YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS!!” LMAOO

🪻 can anyone with 6h neptune or maybe more specifically w piscean energy there (i have aqua sun, neptune in the 12 degree of pisces and than pisces uranus there as well ) have very vivid dreams to the point that you can’t figure out if some things that happened in your life were dreams or not+ frequently have dreams within dreams. i get deja vu at LEAST once a day or i think the correct term would be deja reve which means you feel as if you’ve dreamt that moment before. i’ve had dreams that became real but it’s never important things. for example: before i got my youngest cat i had a dream we got him a year earlier. and then just last week i had a dream that my washing machine started leaking and i ran in there and fell LMAO and then two days later my washing machine started leaking (and this has never happened before) thankfully this time i was careful and did not fall 😌

🌻 let me know if im alone in this but i think it’s kind of funny. i have 11h cancer saturn (rx) and i have all my life struggled with connecting with kids and have never really felt maternal but for my friends i suddenly morph into a whole mother, making sure they’re eating well and sleeping like HUH??

🪷 aries mars/aries 1h

-holding alot of tension in head ex: jaw, eyebrows, neck

^ also getting headaches after crying or getting angry+ have frequent headaches or some kind of headache disorder

a chiropractor could probably be useful for this placement. just ALWAYS be discerning when finding one, getting a good one you trust is essential.

+ face getting flushed easily

(my mom has aries in the 1h and i have aries mars and we both 1. cry when we’re mad, 2. face gets soo flushed from wine, and gets red fast when angry) like sometimes something will make me mad or annoyed and my face will flush and get so hot and red) -its also the same for when i get a LITTLE embarrassed which is NOT often it’s so annoying 🙄

💐 this is specific but as someone w a 7h pieces venus i attract a lot of men with venus in pisces for some reason and i finally get a taste of my own medicine bc they will project all their fantasies onto me and be like “i’m in love with you”…sir we have not had one conversation where you asked anything about me…

🌸 if you have ur moon in the 5h you may be a natural with kids or rlly want to be a mother/parent my mom has this and she is so unbelievably good with kids. all of her family would always drop their kids off at our house so she would take care of them and the PATIENCE SHE HAS WITH THEM?!? unreal. they will be having a whole tantrum and she’ll be holding them just joking around which either made them angrier or calm down but they always would come to respect her and listen. even if they are known to be bratty. they would send their naughty kids to our house and call it “angie boot camp” lmaoo

thank you for reading lmk in the comments if any of these resonate for you! until next time <3

[the-great-knight-gay]

Character Analysis: The Seven (Riordanverse)

Each of the seven have issues:

Percy is suicidal as in most of his POVs there is a large lack of regard for his life, multiple times stating he believes people will be better off without him and even stating he wanted to drown in TLF and SoM. On top of that... Physically abused as a kid. C'mon we all remember and hate Gabe. I hate how his entire character was literally forgotten about, despite the fact that an abusive parent should stick with a kid for quite some time.

Here's my headcanon for that. It wasn't forgotten, just not acknowledged. We all remember in the earlier books Percy was pretty much apologizing for doing anything right. That's a trait instilled in people who are used to getting abuse for doing anything. I could just be reading into it too much, and I probably am, but it's the only thing that reassures me that this wasn't forgotten about.

In fact I don't think Rick really understood the implications of what Gabe's actions would have done to Percy as he stated that in the upcoming show Timm Sharp's performance as Gabe had everyone laughing and I think that's the only thing I am slightly apprehensive about in the show.

His lack of self-worth is honestly probably a result of Gabe and I feel so angry that it was never touched.

Annabeth has abandonment issues as nearly everyone she has ever loved has left her at some point. Her mother disowned her after TLH, her father chose her mortal family over her and ignored her as she grew up, Luke betrayed her and Thalia joined the Hunters. There was even that time when Chiron was going to leave for good in SoM. That was why she was so threatened by Rachel. Because she was taking away the one good person left who stood by her.

Yes I just ignored Grover. I realize that.

Jason suffers from image issues as he was put on a pedestal from day one, even as a child just because his daddy was a king. He does NOT get enough credit my man suffered as a kid. This was probably one of the only ones where Rick actually tried to address the problem and eventually he found his calling and grew past that. Then Trials of Apollo came along. *Ugly sobbing intensifies*

Piper suffers from neglect from her father who didn't have enough time to spend with her and from her mother leaving. Even when her mother was there in Charleston, she paid much more attention to Hazel and Annabeth than she did to her own daughter.

Leo... Where to start? The kid was homeless and slept in sewers. That on its own is just sad but even more, he believed he was the reason his mom was dead. He was shunned by his own flesh and blood and was forced to retreat behind the comfort of his machines and even then, Festus was brutally taken away by those lasers. Rick really just pulled out the most brutal, sad backstory for this kid ever.

Frank is one of the less traumatized ones but still, a dead mother and having to watch his home burn down with his grandmother inside? Not good.

Hazel... Pulled out of time into unfamiliar circumstances. Having to deal with the knowledge that her childhood friend moved away, thinking that it was his fault that Hazel left (Sammy and the diamond). Having to deal with the knowledge that she was part of the reason one of the giants had risen. Forcibly exiling herself from Elysium into Asphodel just so her mom wouldn't suffer. And speaking of her mom... Maria Levesque's treatment of Hazel, acting as if she were a curse and not a living child, making her sympathize with the Minotaur of all creature, would leave lasting scars on all of them.

The most consolation I can get for this is that it looks like most of them have managed to move past all of this. Jury is still out on Annabeth and Percy as I have not read CotG yet but I'm hopeful.

Except Jason. They just had to completely overhaul him by ripping away the relationship he had with Piper, which didn't need to happen, right before he died.

My reason for not liking the Jasiper break up is the fact that, the argument that they were forced into the relationship happened at the wrong time. This was after they had done a fresh start of the end of BoO. Anytime before that I can understand, but at that point? There was no reason. Then they just had to kill my boy. RICK I SWEAR TO ALL THE GODS IF THIS HAPPENS TO ANYONE IN THE WRATH OF THE TRIPLE GODDESS AND WHATEVER THE FINAL BOOK OF THIS NEW TRILOGY IS I WILL FIND YOU!

Apologies I get a bit worked up sometimes.

DON'T KILL GROVER

It's a bad habit.

PERCABETH BETTER NOT FACE ANY RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS THEY ARE PERFECT DON'T RUIN IT!

Anyways, Knight out!

Go check out my Ao3 and Wattpad

No Riordanverse fics yet as I am still focusing on my Pokémon OC story but just you wait! It's coming!

[strangersatellites]

maple syrup, coffee, pancakes for four

a cute little steddie dads ditty based on this tweet

Steve chuckles under his breath and flips the page. 

He’s got his back against the headboard in the low lamp light. It’s late and he’s reading some goofy romance novel that Max left for him last time she was over. Something about people on vacation. He doesn’t really know or care but it’s kept his mind occupied long enough.

Eddie’s sat at the other end of the bed, taking breaks from lightly strumming his guitar to jot down melodies or lyrics or whatever it is he writes in that notebook of his that he carries everywhere.

When Steve tries to start the next page the words stop being about the shitty hotel the characters are at and they start being measurements, instructions. 

He slams the book closed in his lap and tugs off his glasses, gets Eddie’s attention and meets his eyes, curious.

“Do you think we should’ve gotten chocolate chip instead?”

Eddie rolls his eyes with a smile and sits his guitar beside him. Huffs a laugh under his breath as he crawls up to wrap both long arms around Steve’s waist.

“Well,” he drags it out, dramatic as always, “Since both of the girls said they liked blueberry better, I’m putting my money on blueberry being the better option.”

Steve’s weighing the options in his head, nodding because he knows Eddie’s right.

“I know, Robbie flips out every time we have regular pancakes but,” he huffs, runs a hand through his hair, “It's pancake day. It has to be perfect. Do we even have syrup?”

Eddie pulls his head back from where he’d rested his chin on Steve’s shoulder, his eyes now less amused and more confused.

“Okay, I thought we were stressing because it’s her first sleepover, what in the world is pancake day?”

Now Steve’s the one who looks confused, down-right offended.

“Uh, hello? Didn’t you have pancakes on Saturday morning after every sleepover growing up?”

Eddie wrinkles his eyebrows up. “No? Uncle Wayne woke us up and took us to the diner.”

And, well. Steve can forgive that. 

“Oh. That sounds pretty fun actually.”

Eddie snorts. 

“Yeah it was. It was probably just an excuse for him to go see his lady friend but I wasn’t gonna turn it down.”

Steve laughs and smiles at the thought of a grumpy Wayne trying to hit on the waitress and a child version of Eddie flicking eggs across the table.

“I wish I could’ve seen that.” He drops a kiss to Eddie’s temple before he continues. “When I was a kid, my mom always made a big pancake breakfast with syrup and whipped cream and sprinkles and it was the best part of the sleepover. I’ve always wanted to do that for Robbie.”

Eddie’s smile is soft and he’s tangling their fingers together over his lap. 

“Aaaaaand now that she’s old enough it has to be perfect. That right?”

Steve nods, lets out the breath he was holding in, lets some of the tension seep right out of his own skin and lets Eddie carry it for a while.

Eddie shifts and tugs Steve so that his head is tucked just near where his guitar pick sits in the hollow of his throat.

“Well, lucky for you, when I took the girls to Rob’s room for bed earlier, when I kissed her good night she told me this was the best day ever.” He tightens his arms around Steve and he can hear the smile in his voice. “I think you could feed them cereal and they’d think it was Christmas morning.”

Steve can’t help the smile on his face at the happiness that his daughter brings him. At the idea that letting her friend spend the night is the best day she’s had in the six years of her little life. Thinks that it might be top five days in his own thirty-two.

He snuggles down further into Eddie’s arms and laughs when the man huffs and reaches to turn off the light.

He kisses his chest and closes his eyes.

“Good night, Eds.”

“Good night, baby.”

He falls asleep to the sound of Eddie’s breathing and the hushed giggles down the hall, more excited than he’s maybe ever been.

Eddie’s set an early alarm to go check for syrup.

[wintersnwnderlnd]

Ick (pt 1)- Issac Lahey x Reader

POV: The reader has sex with Matt Daehler. When she reveals to her friends at lunch the experience, little does she knows a certain beta over heard her troubles.

Gender neutral reader, mentions of afab genitalia.

Lights flashed around the Jungle, body's moving to the beat of a song no one could hear the lyrics too. The smell of alcohol and something sweet wafted through the air, mixing with the overwhelming stench of b.o. and sweat from all the dancing bodies.

Nursing my cocktail, I looked around the room, a small laugh leaving my lips as I spotted Erica in the background dancing with and enthusiastic Stiles and Scott, who looked utterly uncomfortable being here.

I felt someone lean against the wall beside me and looked over to see Matt looking at me with a smirk.

"What's a pretty lady like you, doing all alone over here?" He called over the music.

"Waiting for someone." I replied, not wanting to deal with his advances right now. I huffed slightly as he moved in front of me, running a hand along my cheek.

"Oh come on, don't be like that. I can promise you a good time." He whispered against my ear, breath hot as it tickled my skin.

"Fuck it, sure. My place or yours?" I questioned, body already all hot and bothered Erica's comments earlier at lunch.

He smirked, leading me out of the club. Climbing into his car, I silently thanked the gods that I had rode with Stiles and he wasn't expecting to take me home since I didn't live to far away or could always call a rise.

We drove away, pulling off onto a side rode before he pulled me on top of him. My hands tangled in his shirt as he kissed me, his hands settling on my hips as I rocked back and forth.

Pulling back, I leaned back against the wheel to sit up properly as he huffed below me. His grip on my waist tighten as he began to speed up my movement.

I rolled my my hips, trying to find the right angle to get some friction. I gripped his shoulders attempting to chase some friction again when he I felt him throb beneath me.

Are you fucking kidding me did he just cum? Just from dry humping, seriously?

He panted below me, pulling me down to kiss me again, helping me back to my seat. I glanced at the clock, not even 10 minutes since we started.

I squirmed a little, still unsatisfied as he leaned over to ask if I got off. I put on a fake smile, nodding before letting out a yawn asking him to take me home.

‐--------------------------time skip-----‐----‐------------

The next day, I sat at the lunch table with Erica, Lydia and Allison as we laughed about last night.

"Oh come on, let's talk about y/n. I saw you leave with Matt last night, any comments about that?" Erica giggled, I rolled my eyes a grimace crossing my face.

"Please, it couldn't have been that bad. Could it?" Lyds asked.

"Lady bonner gone," I said, causing them to burst out laughing, "he dry humping and huffing like a dog. And he whispers in my ear did I get off. Then he finished, turned over and on our way to drop me off called his mom.".

"You can make this shit up, what the fuck." Allison exclaimed causing us all to laugh again, a small cackle leaving my lips.

Little did I know a certain beta was listening in on my troubles.

[woso-dreamzzz]

hey! long anon here again… w the (as usual) long asks (oops) sorry about this one again, friend!

rereading the earlier bits of injured for fun (masochism) as a result of my nieces spending the weekend with my family. they’re twins and just turned 3… and it made me wonder what bambi was like pre-neglect. my nieces are so small and so excitable and have so much wonder in their eyes (sometimes tho they sit and stare blankly and it seems like they’re in deep thought lol) and it just hurts to think that bambi could be all giggles and excitement the way they are… but she’s been regressed to an apprehensive version of herself.

in the first part of injured bambi’s really cautious and quiet and quite introspective for a young child. bambi in the second part is probably even younger… since it takes place when jenni and alexia are a thing, and it’s cute to see bambi dotes on jenni the way a kid would to their parent (my nieces are constantly in their mom’s lap or sitting with my mom or something.)

it’s cool but sad because my nieces’ dad started working abroad so they’ve been hanging off my dad and brother—my aunt says it’s because they don’t see their dad as much. what do you think it was like for bambi when jenni was out of the picture initially? would we still see this introspective, sort of apprehensive version of bambi had jenni not left and none of this (olga, jaume, neglect) happened? we find out jenni’s been there for the pregnancy and for bambi’s entire life before she left for mexico. she’s young but i keep thinking that she probably lost a bit of herself seeing my nieces be so happy with some “father figure” given they don’t see their dad often anymore.

and then the part where we see bambi begin to realize the lack of attention she’s getting now that she has a younger brother. she’s 4… i think… and holy moly it brings tears to my eyes because ??????????? no kid should ever have to think about whether their parent/s are going to give them attention. especially at that age. so when bambi hides and waits for her mami… yeah. you made me a jenni stan with that one line… even before jenni-ism/the jenni agenda was a REAL thing. and then you cemented it by making bambi rationalize crying silently because alexia yelled at her the last time she expressed her own emotions when alexia was fussing over a crying jaume.

again i was just wondering if there was a large divide or shift in bambi’s personality given the events of neglect taking place in such an important time for development. she’s forced to mature so quickly and at such a young age and that just hurts. trying to mentally prepare myself for this sunday tho!

1010382 apologies to u and the readers bc of this long ask. it was just a thought (that definitely spiralled bc i love my nieces and i also love bambi) gonna go make more teeny and pequenita/natalia and princesse HCs bc they bring me a lot less pain than bambi does

Don't apologise! Your long asks make me really excited every time I see them!

Obviously, there's a space on Bambi's masterlist now for the Before so there's definitely going to be some younger Bambi coming at some point but she's always been quite introspective. It's just how she is but she wasn't nearly as apprehensive as she is now. But she was still giggly and happy and super cute pre-neglect.

In part II, Jenni was also only Tia Jenni but she definitely took a maternal role without it being an obvious thing (and it was in the cards for her adopting Bambi as well before the breakup). It was difficult at first when Jenni left because she definitely saw Jenni as a motherly figure. Jenni has been in Bambi's life since before she could remember so there was definitely a hole that she and Alexia had to adapt too.

Bambi realising that Jaume gets all the attention is so heartbreaking. In situations like this, there's mostly two options they can go with. There's the acting out to get attention and then there's the withdrawing themselves which is what Bambi did. She withdrew from everyone and stopped trying to get attention. She decided to wait it out to see if it would get better but it never did until Alba took her. Bambi crying silently was actually heartbreaking to write because she knows that she won't be getting attention and there's a chance that she'll get yelled at again.

There was definitely a shift in Bambi's personality pre and post-neglect. She was always reserved and a little introverted (there's actually studies about how children of mothers who suffered with long-term post-partum depression are more likely to suffer from difficulties of social and cognitive functioning, problems in externalising problems and anxiety disorders) but the neglect definitely makes it worse and it's something that she never fully recovers from.

It's a little heartbreaking to actually confirm but Bambi does suffer from long term effects of her neglect. It's never the really extreme things like failure to thrive (but that was borderline) but it does affect her future personality. She never fully goes back to how she was in the Before.

Bambi's in a very delicate part of her development so she's still able to bounce back to an extent but never fully. It went on for a bit too long combined with the medical trauma that she suffered during the same period so older Bambi does end up with a nervous disposition and she's often stuck in her head a little bit. She's got a habit of overthinking sometimes.

If Bambi never got neglected then her personality probably would have ended up wildly different.

[eaeulfl]

Definitely spoilers below for anyone who isn’t done watching

.

.

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My mom and I just finished rewatching snk earlier and so I’ve now watched snk, from beginning to end, a grand total of three times and my mom two times. It’s a shame I didn’t think about officially categorizing/compiling some of the episodes/moments into lists after the first time and the second time but here we are. I believe my views/preferences have definitely changed since then, albeit the changes aren’t too dramatic. Anyway I probably just have too much time in my hands lmao

My top 5 most emotional episodes/moments in no particular order:

1. Armin realizing that eren and mikasa didn’t think he was useless and then him trying to convince the soldiers around them that eren wasn’t a threat to humanity

Truly one of the most iconic, most moving parts of the whole show imo. I liked armin so, so much in season 1 and even now my heart still hurts just thinking about the him at the time. He really was the most precious, most promising, sweetest, kindest little thing you’ll ever lay your eyes on. I’m not into any kind of physical contact at all but I just wanted to hug him hold his hand and assure him that everything was going to be alright and that he was doing amazing. Objectively they really only survived because Pyxis arrived just in time, but this doesn’t and shouldn’t diminish the shine of his heart and courage. Season 1 armin will forever remain the best armin for me personally. Absolutely the bestest boy and friend you could ask for.

2. Artur braus: “Sasha…Yer all I hoped for.”

I’ve shed some tears exactly once the entire three times I’ve watched the series but I seriously almost lost it here as well. It was a very, very close call. Sasha is and will forever remain best girl for me and she deserves all of the good the world has to offer.

3. When gabi and falco were screaming their lungs out for Reiner and reiner just kept asking them to be quiet, and then as he transformed again he asked why they wouldn’t just let him die

This one is a bit different. The first time I watched this I didn’t really hurt but I definitely felt a sense of horror. Now I just find it really sad. You can say gabi and falco were trained candidates but specifically in that situation they were just two helpless kids desperately screaming for help and the “help” was ultimately just a guy who had pretty much given up on life because he’d already suffered too much and for too long. It’s insane.

4. When artur braus was talking about how he let Sasha become a soldier not knowing he’d eventually realize that perhaps the world was also just another kind of forest and then after he asked gabi if she was ok and she asked back if he really didn’t hate her kaya came running to kill gabi and Kaya starts screaming and crying after she fails to do so

I had whole-body goosebumps the first time I watched this. Artur and Lisa swallowing their pain and extending their compassion and Kaya struggling with so much anger and sadness were devastating.

5. Levi telling hange to give her heart before she went off to try to slow down the rumbling, her death, and then him telling her to watch over them, and then hange meeting Erwin and the rest

This is the one and only time I’ve ever cried watching the show. I wasn’t ugly sobbing or anything but this really was the heaviest, most painful thing. Exactly after I heard Erwin say “it took off” I lost it. I genuinely don’t think I’ll ever get over hange’s death. Or Erwin’s.

My top 5 best fights/action scenes in no particular order:

1. Sasha freaking fresh graduate braus running down the wall to save Samuel and then shooting the hook of her odm gear into Samuel’s lower calf

This simply isn’t talked about enough. PERSONALLY SASHA IS AND FOREVER WILL BE BEST GIRL.

2. Jean saving Connie and then Marco connie and Annie saving Jean in trost

I really liked the teamwork here and I wish we could’ve seen more of it. Also I’m not like a big fan of Marco or anything but I feel like with some time and experience he could’ve been a good leader too. Or a vice leader. I think it would’ve been interesting to see Jean and Marco work together as commander and vice commander or whatever was next in rank.

3. Everybody working together so that eren could seal the gate with the boulder

This was pretty emotional too.

4. Sasha no odm gear just massive guts and pure skill braus saving kaya

Enough said. Personally still one of the most iconic episodes in the whole gd show.

5. Keith shadis saving surma and rallying and then leading the other cadets, and Jean rallying and leading the soldiers

I absolutely loved that despite his “inferiority complex” or whatever you’d call it Keith is still a soldier and most importantly a leader and a mentor through and through. I loved that even as an older character he still underwent a learning process concerning his own identity and the world. And I’m so proud of Jean for having come so far. Is it Janbo or jeanboyyyyyyyoubetterstopbeforeistartscreamingcryingthrowingup? Also I really appreciate that they acknowledged Pyxis one last time before his death. He really was one of the goats.

My top 5 general moments/episodes in no particular order:

1. When Jean asked armin if abandoning your humanity was the only way to win, and if eren did become that monster would that really be a victory for humanity

This has really stuck with me. Jean best boy.

2. The new Levi squad (eren mikasa armin Sasha jean Connie historia) cleaning the cottage and kinda sorta goofing around and then Levi coming in and inspecting the table and then saying “I’m quite sure I gave you enough time.” lmao

The mood isn’t entirely light here but it’s light enough that they can joke around and get into petty arguments and I really wish we had more episodes like this.

3. Floch telling it like it is before the ceremony to honor their fallen comrades and eren I really can't say if it was the right decision or not jaeger asking armin "What is there beyond the walls?" trying to build his confidence and then finally shutting the hell up after recalling the gruesome death of his aunt faye

Yeah I said I wanted more moments with a lighter mood and this is anything but light, but I'd be lying if I said this wasn’t satisfying to watch. Floch's later ideals were messed up and even without that in the picture it was pretty mean on its own, telling armin that erwin should've lived instead when armin had no say in the decision, but his honesty and objectivity were refreshing. The satisfaction gained from this is still overshadowed by the sacrifices that had been made and by erwin's death, but at the very least this was included into the dialogue. Someone had to tell the truth. Seeing eren unable to continue with his nonsense was just the cherry on top. Again, this is majorly overshadowed by the fact that eren still had his way and the rumbling still happened, but at the very least it was included.

4. Sasha eating seafood/Niccolo's food for the first time

Sasha really undid years of brainwashing and racism by just being herself the beauty of her heart the power she holds SASHA BESTEST MOST LOVABLE GIRL.

5. The first time Sasha eats ice cream and Connie eats from the same ice cream and then sasha goes back to eating the ice cream again

I understand this might not be a big deal for some or maybe a lot of people, but for me this really shows how close they are and how comfortable they are with each other. Neither of them hesitated. It was just so natural for connie to say "Let me try that!" and then to just go for a bite, so natural for sasha I love food braus to extend her arm to offer the ice cream and then to eat it again. I know it's like a really, really, really small thing and maybe not even a thing at all, but it made me feel very warm inside. I've said it before and I'll say it again, how I wish the main trio of snk had been sasha jean and connie instead.