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samsno1 · 10 months ago

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Honesty

Sam Winchester x Reader

lmao, i'm sorry. this is kind of an au where instead of sam getting the trials...you do! haha......might make a second part to this but i'll see how it'll do. also, in this there isn't the stupid "sam doesn't look for dean in purgatory" because the writers were fucked up when they wrote that, respectfully (or not)

Summary: You finally have a chance to close the Gates of Hell, forever, but everything comes with a cost, the question is, are you willing to pay for it?

Warnings: ANGST, love confessions, sad sammy, kisses, reader sees bobby as a father figure, reader is shorter than Sam, NOT PROOF-READ, english is not my first language

WC: 3.7k

You can learn how to change Y/N for your actual name here

enjoy!

As you lie there, soaked in hellhound's blood, panting after a fight against the creature, the glasses you wore to be able to see it dirty and obstructing your view, Sam and Dean stare at you, frozen and horrified.

You knew they would try and talk you out of doing the trials, especially after Dean's words to both you and Sam before he went on to almost get killed by the hellhound. Of course you two had followed him, even if Dean explicitly said not to, and you ended up under the dog, his disgusting breath fanning on your face as he barked above you, trying to rip your neck off. You knifed it and it quite literally exploded over you, bathing you in his gooey substance.

Now, all of you were in a room, Dean pacing back and forth while Sam just stood with his head down. You had your arms crossed, your eyes accompanied Dean's movements. He was restless, probably angry and desperately trying to find a way to counter this.

“We can find another hellhound,” He argues “I kill it then it's all solved”

“Dean, Crowley will be even more on our asses over this, he will not let his dogs out of the leash” You say, calmly, trying to counter Dean's protectiveness in the lightest way possible. “I can do them”

After you said that Dean stopped pacing around and both him and Sam looked up at you, eyebrows furrowed, almost as if you had just admitted to an unforgivable crime. The crime in the case was wanting to protect the brothers from these crazy trials. You knew how death followed them around like a plague and you couldn't handle losing them.

“No, Y/N, you're not doing these trials” Sam speaks up, a tinge of anger in his tone. Anger, worry. He looked at you, his hair casting a shadow over his face because of the poor lightning in the environment. “You could die”

“Well, too bad Sam” You said and the boys shared that look, a silent conversation between both of them, something that pissed you off in these moments because you had the right to know what they were plotting. “Look, I know you two feel like you have some responsibility over me, this…instinct to protect me ever since Bobby…” You trailed off, the memory of the man you considered to be your father still too heavy on you. Sam frowned and Dean changed his position, on edge. You cleared your throat, the sudden lump bothering you. “But I can protect myself, I can fight my own battles and, honestly? If we do close the gates of hell for good, which battles will be there to fight?” You say with a faint smile.

You look between both of them. They seemed deep in thought. Too deep and that worried you. You slowly walked towards Sam and when he took notice he stiffened up, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed harshly, his eyes taking in your rather dirty appearance. But still beautiful, he mentally stated.

Sam always thought you were the most incredible woman he ever met, invincible even, nothing could ever put you down and you could make everything work your way with your amazing mind and skills. And, obviously, your killer looks always managed to stun him every time, everywhere.

He was used to seeing you in any type of clothing, from suits and dresses to sweats and shirts with corny sayings written in the front, which you argued were comfortable. And you always looked absolutely gorgeous wearing anything. Sam used to think he just admired you, the looks from afar were just friendly appreciation, his yearn to be around you was just a protective instinct, the goosebumps on his skin when you’d touch him were just a natural reaction…

Until it wasn’t just. It was. And that was horrifying.

And it got worse when both you and him spent the last year alone looking for Dean and Cas. Spending so much time beside you made Sam realize what he truly felt towards you and he was scared. Scared to say anything and scared to lose you. So, when you killed that hellhound, his heart fell to his stomach because he knew you would want to do the trials.

And when you stretched your hand to him, looking directly in his eyes, that determined gaze of yours slicing through his soul, he knew you would do anything to go along with this.

“Sam, give me the spell” You said firmly, not a request, a demand. He swallowed again, still speechless, still frozen, his fist tightening around the small paper which contained the words in enochian you were supposed to recite for the trials to start. You emphasize your demand by widening your eyes angrily and doing ‘come here’ motions with your stretched hand. “Sam”

“Y/N-”

“Dean.” You interrupt, anger seeping into your tone, making Dean shut his mouth into a thin line and a huff of air come out of his nose, just like a child would do when it was refused candy before dinner. He thought he’d seen you like this before, determined, practically unstoppable but boy was he wrong. You were more than insistent and that rang an alarm in Dean’s head. You knew that the one responsible for the trials could die and you were willingly going with it.

“Dean, can you give us a moment” Sam speaks up again and you quirk an eyebrow at him, looking between him and his brother. Sam looks at Dean, his pleading eyes and subtle nod giving enough information for Dean to get the message across. If there is one thing that can make you understand is honesty.

Dean slowly walks out of the room, giving you one last look that said clearly that you needed to listen with an open heart and mind to anything Sam would say. When he closed the door behind him, Sam’s eyes were already on you, trained on your features and you shifted your weight on your feet, his stare intimidating.

“So?” You said, trying to keep your ground. Sam sighed and lowered his head, considering all his options in the situation, he could tell you everything and be either rejected or accepted, he could lie to you, give you the wrong spell and work his way out like he always did and still keep you safe. Honesty. The word echoed in his mind like a chant.

He pushed himself off the table he was leaning on, crossing with you and going towards the bed to sit down. Your whole body accompanied his movements, his long strides making the distance between the table and the bed shorter than it actually was.

Once sat he looked at you and then at the spot beside him on the bed, silently asking you to sit with him and you caved, obliging to him. Your feet were light on the floor, quiet, accustomed to being silent while being a hunter, as you walked to the bed. The hardness of the cushion was not too much of a bother but still kept you grounded. Don’t let your guard down.

After making yourself as comfortable as possible, sitting criss-crossed, you turned towards Sam who was with both his feet on the floor, staring at his hands drying his sweat on his jeans. You waited for him to travel inside his own mind, finding the words, the phrases, the honesty.

Honesty. Honesty. Honesty.

You swam in your own thoughts, especially those in which Sam was included. And those were the few thousands of reasons you wanted to be the one doing the trials, not him, not Dean. In your time alone, Sam had opened up to you about his want to live a normal life, away from apocalypses, monsters, gods…White picket fence, the whole nine. Dean had wanted that too, hell maybe he wouldn’t let go completely of the hunting but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with demons on his ass, never ever again. You didn’t see yourself getting out.

You grew up in this, much like the boys, but to you was different. You liked it. The adrenaline was like a drug pumping through your veins everytime you killed an abomination and, honestly, family wasn’t your strongest trait. All those whom you considered family were cremated – just because…we don’t usually bury hunters, so you can’t say they are six-feet under. Your love life was most definitely inexistent, you didn’t have time for falling in love with anyone.

Until. You did.

Until you fell. And hard. Face first in a bag of nails because you knew it would be trouble falling in love with Sam Winchester. You were both unlucky when it came to that feeling, always losing, always sacrificing, always in a battle. But how could you not? He was a gentleman in full, kind, sweet, caring and at the same time deadly – no pun intended. He would protect those he cared for with his life, his sense of protection his greatest quality. He was so selfless sometimes it made you mad. You had told him once ‘Be selfish, just this one time!’ and even so he couldn’t. It wasn’t his nature.

Sam wanted out of this and you wouldn’t let him abandon that dream because of you. You weren’t worth his life, you told him once after following a lead on how to open the doors to Purgatory and pull Cas and Dean out that almost got both of you killed. You were crying as you drove him to the hospital, the blood on your hands staining the steering wheel.

He was pale, his hand weekly pressing over the wound on his stomach, his breathing shallow. When you told him that, he trained his tired eyes on your face and in a rough and tired voice told you to shut up. Shut it, jerk. And fainted.

At the hospital you stayed hours by his bed every day. The doctors had told you he would be okay, that thankfully no vital organs were damaged and when he woke up you hugged him tightly, your arms wrapping around his neck desperately trying to make sure he wasn’t going anywhere. His hands soothed you, rubbing your back up and down. You won’t get rid of me that easily, he had said and you laughed.

Ever since then you swore to yourself that you would guarantee that Sam wouldn’t put himself in danger for you anymore and you were not breaking that promise.

“Do you remember the night we met?” Sam spoke and you turned your eyes to his face, his hair shining against the yellow light and worry lines between his eyebrows.

“John had left you at Bobby’s and when I came back from school you scared the shit out of me. I had my gun in hand and everything until Bobby popped up, desperately trying to explain” You said, smiling at the memory. You were all so young back then, Sam was still shorter than you – which didn’t last long – and you had lost your parents a few months back.

“Ever since that night I knew you would be…something in the long run” You gave him a puzzled look and he laughed lightly at your face, his dimples appearing on his cheeks. “I knew you would turn out to be strong, brave and I knew you would end up being one of the most important people to me”

You smiled stupidly at that, your face heating up. You didn’t know what to say to him, your eyes drifting to your fingers over your lap because you couldn't keep his strong gaze. Sam sighed and considered his options, he could either hide his feelings for longer or be honest. Honesty, honesty. The word echoed through his mind like a mantra.

Sam reached his hand to wrap over one of yours, making your eyes shift from your hands to his face again. Physical touch wasn't uncommon between the both of you. Sleeping in the same bed when motels were full, sleeping on each other's shoulders, – more you than Sam given the height difference – hugs, cheek kisses, cuddling while watching movies. But something about this hand hold felt more intimate, like a wave of emotions were being poured over you like cold water. Sam squeezed your hand.

“I can't lose you” Sam said, his voice low because he knew that if he spoke any louder he could break.

“Sam–”

“Y/N. Please.” He begs, even if he doesn't know what he's begging for. Please, let me talk. Please, don't do the trials. Please, love me like I love you. “I can't lose you”

He repeats and you feel like you just got punched in the guts or like a knife went through your chest. He sounded so raw. Those four words meaning more than any poetry you've ever laid eyes upon. You squeeze his hand to ground yourself.

“Can't or won't?” You ask, voice weak.

“Both” He answers. “Both because I won't let you do this and can't because if I lose you I won't know how to keep going.”

You shake your head no, closing your eyes for a brief moment, your memories together flooding in again. His smile tattooed in your brain, his laugh playing over and over like a broken vinyl. You needed to do this.

“If I do this then that means you can finally have a life, a wife, kids…I can't let you lose this.” You say, tears welling up in your eyes. “And I need to do this for you, for Dean, for Charlie…Losing me is just a consequence for the greater good”

Now it's Sam who shakes his head, low breathy no's coming out of his mouth. He looks up at you, eyes watery and those stupid puppy dog eyes staring right into your soul, crushing your heart to pieces.

“You don't get it” He says “When I look into the future I can't imagine–” He takes a breath, considering whether to tell you or not. Fuck it. “I can't imagine it without you. The house, the kids running around, the dog…they're ours.” He stops for a moment, waiting to see if you caught what he meant but you just looked at him, wide beautiful eyes full of confusion.

“Sam what are you–”

“And you're the wife. My wife.” He says and he can see the realization come into your face, slowly. The way your jaw drops slightly, your shoulders tense and your hand squeezes his even harder. Sam swallows but now he can't back away. “So I can't let you do this because if you do it and die I won't be able to keep going because I love you, Y/N. I love you and even if you don't reciprocate I won't stop loving you. You're the first thing I think when I wake up and the last thing I think about once I fall asleep.” He keeps going, almost out of breath once he finishes, avoiding your eyes, avoiding rejection. “So, please, don't”

Don't do this, don't reject me, don't run.

“Sam, look at me” You say, one hand slowly grasping his cheek, your thumb drying a tear that he didn't know had fallen. Once he looked at you he saw you smiling. Smiling with teary eyes. “I love you, too”

You practically whispered and a feeling rushed into Sam's body. Like someone had shot him up with adrenaline and suddenly he was aware of everything around him, your warm hand on his cheek, your hand under his, the white noise of the animals outside. And his own heartbeat.

He closed the distance between the both of you, his lips finally touching yours in desperation. Pure and raw desperation. His hand went up your arm to your neck, gently pulling you more into him and yours slipped to tangle into his hair, running the soft locks through your fingers.

The kiss felt electric and it burned. Burned you from the inside out with the wave of a thousand emotions. Your head went back to those moments with Sam. Your mind was just completely him.

And it was the same for the Winchester.

He already had thoughts consisting mostly of you but now he felt in heaven, like in finally connected with whom he mostly desired, both physically and emotionally. His other hand slipped around your waist to pull yourself over him as he laid down on the bed.

You followed and slightly smiled into the kiss. Until you grounded yourself. Sam wouldn't let you do the trials, not now that you had confessed, not now that he knew you loved him too. So you had to take matters into your own hands.

As Sam laid you over him, you straddled his hips, the kiss continuing into an unexplained hunger and lust for each other. You sensually dragged your hand down his chest, earning a soft gasp out of him, both his hands tangling in your hair, messing up your curls.

Your hand that slid down his body discreetly went into his pocket, feeling for the paper with the spell written on it. You mentally apologized over and over to Sam, your mouth opening to let his tongue in to explore it, butterflies flying around in your stomach. He was gentle, caring but yet hungry and you could feel it.

I'm sorry.

You pulled away breathless, the paper clutched in your hand and Sam looked at you through hooded eyes, his chest heaving with his heavy breaths and a confused frown on his face.

“I'm sorry Sammy” You said as you got off the bed and started to quickly pronounce the words in enochian, your hands trembling around the paper. Sam widened his eyes once he realized what you'd done, patting his pocket in reflex, knowing you had taken it out of there, and stubbled off the bed.

“Y/N, no, please!” He yelled but it was too late. Once you said the last word an almost unbearable pain cursed through your whole body, knocking you to your knees, a loud groan of pain leaving your throat.

Sam kneeled beside you with a hand on your back, mumbling curses and apologies to you but you couldn't hear him, the pain so strong it made your ears ring. You felt a burn, like you had injected lava into your veins, opening your eyes to see your arms shining. Everything was spinning and the only thing guaranteeing you that you were still alive was Sam's warm touch over your back.

After seconds of excruciating pain you felt it going down and saw your arms returning to their normal tone. You collapsed into Sam's arms and he made sure to hold you tightly, still mumbling apologies with his eyes glossy with tears.

“Why did you do this?” He repeated, over and over. He didn't know if he wanted to kill you or hug you so he decided for the latter. He hugged your frame, pressing your head against his chest with a trembling hand and giving light kisses over it.

His other hand pressed your back against him, making your whole body stay in contact with his. His knees hurt on the hard ground but nothing compared to the pain he felt in his heart. He felt helpless.

You opened your eyes to look up at him, a faint smile on your face. You lifted a hand up to his cheek and took a very good look at the handsome man you loved. He was crying but he always looked beautiful, no matter how.

At your touch he closed his eyes, guilt spreading through his body. He touched his forehead to yours, making you close your eyes until you spoke up.

“I did this because I love you” You said and he opened his mouth to protest. You gave him a look, saying you weren’t done. “I love you too much to see you die and I know you can keep going if I die, you are one of the strongest men I know. You’re smart, you’re brave and you went through so much that I can’t let you give it up because of me. And you know I would never, ever, let you take responsibility over this and I don’t want you to blame yourself, this was my choice”

“I can’t– I’m sorry, Y/N, I’m so sorry I got you into this, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you–” You stopped him with a kiss and he sighed sadly, his hands wrapping around you tighter as if you would disappear at any second. You felt horrible but at the same time relieved. Relieved that if anything happened, Sam would live.

“Don’t say that” You whisper against his lips. “Don’t apologize for something that isn’t your fault. This is on me.” You say as you pull slowly away to look into his eyes, the mix of colors hypnotizing you. You felt like you could see every ounce of his soul through those eyes and it was filled with sadness.

Sam was angry, not at you, at himself. The moment he saw the hellhound die above you, bathing you in its blood he knew it was over, that you wouldn’t back away but still he blamed himself. If I were quicker. If I were smarter. The words ran around in his brain. When he looked at you he saw yet another one of those he loved dead. Another corpse that hung over his shoulder.

“We can do this, I can do this. I’m strong enough” You said. Sam knew you were strong but this was beyond you. This was God and Demons and Heaven and Hell. This was biblical and nothing like the things you faced before. He was scared.

“I know you are but what if I’m not?” He asks and you wait for him to continue. “What if I’m not strong enough to let you go if it comes to it?”

“You’ll have to be. If not for yourself, for me. Keep going for me” You reply with a soft look and a slight smile that made Sam choke on a sob and smash his lips against yours.

This kiss was filled with different emotions. Sadness, grief and guilt were poured into it but yet so much love. So, so much.

You didn’t get a verbal answer from Sam but you got plenty of information from the kiss. I’ll try, for you.

And that was enough.

A/N: Notes and reblogs encourage me to keep writing, feedback makes those writings better. Thank you for reading, Xoxo.

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guiltysungho · 5 months ago

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— boynextdoor if they were gonna do a public confession.

genre : tags. fluff, confessions, f2l

wordcount. 200 - 400 each

a/n. i hope y’all like this i was kicking my feet thinking about these. same vibe as the first headcanons (public) but now its inclusive not 18+ who jumped?? :D

sungho;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you had been getting used to each other’s company, you only recently met through a friend but the feelings were undeniable.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི one of the reasons he felt so drawn to you was your similar taste in movies, every time he’d bring up a favorite you would gasp in excitement, sharing your love for the movie as well.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you would often stay up just reminiscing of the first time you watched a comfort movie, the first time made you cry all the emotions in it, shared with your new favorite stranger.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི it was lucky that there was a outdoor movie theater open in the city, it was fate that they were showing one of your shared favorites. he had to take you there, and maybe he would let the words slip.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི watching the movie together, the sun setting in the background, he knew it was the perfect moment.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི bringing your gaze to his with a his hand on your chin, the sound of the movie playing in the background as he echoed the words to you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i want you. i want all of you, forever, you and me, every day.”

ᡣ𐭩ྀི the curve on your lips planted a fire in his heart, watching as you leaned closer, eyes bouncing between yours and the gap in your lips.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི one pull by the collar and his lips were all yours.

riwoo;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he knows what this feeling is, why your proximity makes his whole body heat up but he just didn’t expect to feel this with you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི whatever you were feeling wasn’t clear to him, you had been friends for the longest time so any display of affection could mean anything.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he could be misinterpreting your quiet sweet nothings whispered into his neck whenever you cuddled on the couch, your soft lips grazing his adam’s apple every now and then forcing him to divert his focus.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི maybe you didn’t mean anything when you’d tell him, how much you missed him in the dead of the night when you were away.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི but it was all getting to him and he was really hoping it meant something.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he knows it could wait, you were at a park under a tree just watching people pass by. you rested your head on his chest with his arm wrapped around you, he couldn’t tell if you were asleep or not but the words couldn’t wait.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i like you here in my arms, i find myself loving you more when you’re so close” he whispers to you, you’re quiet so he continues, he could at least get it off his chest.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i genuinely do love you, in ways i don’t even understand, more than you know.”

ᡣ𐭩ྀི when you look up, he’s obviously flustered he thought he’d been talking to himself but you heard it all. the smile on your face relieves his tension, and then you let him know your love with a delicate kiss.

jaehyun;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you probably already knew how jaehyun felt about you, everyone did. he never really tried hiding his feelings even though he didn’t explicitly expose them.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི it was in his touch that you knew, his hands would always find their way in your hair, pushing a couple strands behind your ear when you were busy. using childish tactics just so he could hold your hand occasionally.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི and yet he never told you his true feelings, because your feelings were never truly clear but now he could tell.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he took you out to a karaoke bar, he knew what he wanted to do and how he wanted to do it. he wanted you to feel special amongst the crowd because that was what you were to him.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི after a few duets and a couple drinks, he goes up on the mini stage picking out a song, glancing up at you before starting.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “this song is called bad by wave to earth, i’m dedicating it to all the good in my life” he’s addressing the public but he’s only talking to you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི his voice is perfect with the song, not a single crack just pure melody, beautiful harmonies for you. he bounces off the stage, singing as he makes his way over to you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i’m sorry i made you wait, i love you” he smiles watching you blush at his words spoken loudly in the mic.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི pulling the mic away from his lips, you whisper the words back before placing a kiss on his lips. as soon as you pull away he brings the mic back to his lips, “she loves me y’all”

taesan;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he hates that he likes you because he doesn’t want to be one of those guys that can’t keep a female friend but the feelings are clearly there.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he doesn’t show it and doesn’t plan on telling you, he just chooses to enjoy having you as a friend, instead of self sabotaging.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི it felt impossible that you would reciprocate the feelings anyways because you had mentioned liking someone for the longest time so he was sure of his choice.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you would go out often together to your favorite spots, sharing your interests, new or old just rediscovering yourselves through music or art.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི this time around he brought you to a different vinyl store from the one he usually went to, bigger with more variety. he’d encourage you to pick out a few records to listen to, picking a couple of his own for you to listen to.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི there were no booth just vinyl players with connected headphones, he helped you setting up the music. glancing over your shoulder to him as he grabbed the headphones, placing them on your ears letting the music play for.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི whenever you became a part of his safe space, it made him want you more like you were meant to be here with him.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he just leaned over on the side watching you enjoy the music you picked out, telling him what you thought of the songs as they played, he couldn’t help the adoring smile on his face.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i picked out this song specifically for you, it makes me think of you” he tells you, unaware you can hear him clearly even with the music.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི Something by the Beatles, the lyrics make it clear but his words clear any doubts.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “you drive me crazy” he scoffs at himself, ruffling his bangs before turning back to a shelf. you take off the headphones and make your way over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder for him to turn to him, his brows flinch at the sight of you so close but then he smiles. you smile back as you pull him in closer towards you arms around his neck, kissing him cautiously.

leehan;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི at first he just thought he just found you pretty, you were undeniably one of the most attractive girls he’d met. physical attraction would make sense but that really wasn’t it.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི not when everything you did brought him joy, just watching you swipe through your phone aimlessly, he found himself smiling like a fool.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you weren’t even that close but everything he learned about you made him want to know you more, your likes and dislikes, your dreams and aspirations, he wanted to be the one you shared those thoughts with.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི when you agreed to spend the day with him, he made up his mind to be honest about his heart.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he waited patiently for the right moment at the end of the day after watching a movie together, a nice walk in the cool winter breeze leading you to an ice rink.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི the smile on your face as you got on the ice together made it worth the wait, you were unsteady taking little steps while holding on to the wall.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི you’d apologize for your clumsiness after almost slipping a couple times but he was just glad to see you having fun even after losing your balance you’d laugh it off. looking at the pure bliss on your face, he only wanted it to last.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “here take my hands” stretching his hands open for you to hold, “just follow my movements, don’t pay attention to anything else. if you fall i’ll catch you trust me.”

ᡣ𐭩ྀི so you did as he said holding onto his hands, slight panic in your eyes as he started gliding backwards allowing you to move along with him, shaky eyes watching your feet “hey look up at me, you’re doing fine”

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “you’re doing so well, i’m impressed” he says looking at you with a dazed smile. it happens in a flash, his eyes widen as his body falls back pulling you along with him.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི the fall isn’t a painful one maybe since you were on him, you pull away from his chest a surprised smile on your face as you check up on him. an embarrassed laugh escapes his lips and then a pause as he realizes how close you were, his eyes are locked on your lips for a second before coming back up to your eyes.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “i want to kiss you, right here in front of everyone” his hand reaching towards your face, pushing your hair behind your ear, “tell me that’s okay”

ᡣ𐭩ྀི one silent nod from you and his lips are on yours, kissing you so gently the cold ice under your knees adding to the chills across your body.

woonhak;

ᡣ𐭩ྀི woonhak likes you, he likes your laugh, he likes your groans, he likes your burps, he likes your everything. he doesn’t really know why but you’ve been the only thing on his mind ever since he thought of you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he’s not sure how you feel but he doesn’t really worry about it, he’s too focused on being completely enamored by you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི your voice from across the room, discussing a random topic with your friends, makes coming to class worth the while. even if that’s the only thing he listens to.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he knows you’ll show up to his basketball game, you always do thats where he first met you. your loud cheering, tiny jumps of joy every time his team scored made him curious, it wasn’t unfamiliar to him but you were.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི and there you were once again, a cute wave to him the moment you noticed him on the court. he could get used to that, your little gestures just for him.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི the whole match he barely could keep his eyes off you with every ball bounce came a glance in your direction, whenever he’d score he’d flex his arms up at you with a big smile, proud of his achievement.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི he knew he had to make this shot in the last minutes of the match, less for the team and more for you.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “hey y/n! this last shot is for you, i’m taking you out after this” he yells as he sprints across the court dribbling the ball, dodging the opposing team before shooting the ball through the hoop with a light jump.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི as the ball passes through the match ends, he turns to you shocked by his own skills, jogging over to you before lifting you up in his arms.

ᡣ𐭩ྀི “did you love that?” he looks up at you up in his arms, you can’t help the smile growing on your lips as you look at him, “i love you” he says under his breath.

174 notes · View notes

bvidzsoo · 1 year ago

Text

An Imprisoned Nightingale

Author: bvidzsoo

Warnings: violence, a lot of manhandling, cursing, and mentions of human trafficking

Pairing: Choi San x female reader

Word count: 15,4k

Summary: Choi San was everything you needed him to be. A hunter? He’d hunt down anything for you. An assassin? You wanted someone dead, he’d do it. An inside man? That information you needed; he’d bring it to you. He was a mercenary. Ruthless, fearless, uncaring, unfeeling. All he dreamed of was money and power. Everyone who heard his name feared him, people stepped aside on a busy road for him, women never approached him out of fear of being captured and then sold by him. You loved singing, despite working as a waitress, you dreamed of performing on a stage one day. Your whole life you've worked hard, knowing that one day you'll be discovered and your life would change; you'd become a performer for the wealthy. And your life did change, but instead, you became a prisoner, soon to be sold off by nobody else than Choi San. (Reader is called Im Ara in the following oneshots.)

A/N: My God, writing this was a whole ass ride, I want to punch San personally lol. It's never explicitly said that it's human trafficking, but it's quite obvious that it's that. :// I don't go into much detail about it, so yeah...the third part of the series is up and I hope you'll enjoy it. Hongjoong's part will be up in around two to three weeks because I'm going on vacation. If you want to be added to the taglist, just comment on the post. And don't forget to let me know what you think about this part, enjoy now!

Taglist: @pingyu-in-wonderland @marievllr-abg @lelaleleb @loveforred @horanghae8 @jeonghanscarat7 @orshii @mundayoonimnida @m3tavita @silentcry329

Series Masterlist ↭ Previous Part

The sun shone down on the little cottage sitting by the end of the cobblestone street, stationed somewhere on the outskirts of the bustling city. The neighborhood was quiet, most families living in the neighboring cottages being of working class, with three to four children. I liked this part of the city, because everyone was nice and it was clean. The further you ventured inside the city, the dirtier and louder it got. It was an industrial city and the markets reeked of fish and pigs; the smells combined disgusting. If I could, I stayed away from that side of the city, content with the serenity the outskirts offered. And perhaps living here felt like I was closer to achieving my dreams. If I walked down the path leading towards the forest and hiked for an hour, I would arrive to a huge clearing adorned by a house smaller than a castle, yet bigger than a mansion. The Royal Family loved coming here during the summer, it was their little hideout. Wealthy businessmen and gorgeous rich ladies would walk the streets, all headed towards the Royal Family’s place, invited for an afternoon tea or perhaps a midnight ball. I always peaked out the window when I heard horses pulling carriages by the house, knowing very well that all I could do for now was admire from afar. I was working towards to achieving my dream, but I was still a long way from it. The false sense of richness and wealth this little cottage offered was nothing but fake. I could barely afford it, sometimes not having money for weeks lead me to cultivating my own garden, which turned out to be a lot harder to do than I had initially expected it to be. The elderly family living next door wasn’t very keen of the idea, saying it lured foxes and other kinds of animals from the forest, threatening their chickens and other pets they kept around, acting as if their animals weren’t the ones drawing in the wild life from the forest. I learned to ignore the couple’s nagging, but continued keeping an eye on them, making sure they wouldn’t attempt sabotaging my little garden.

I had opened the windows, the warm breeze carrying inside as I dusted everything off with a wet cloth. It’s been a week since I’ve had a full day to myself, and so I took advantage of it, and cleaned up my house. It was quite easy and fast as it had only three chambers and a small bathroom, however, my thoughts stole me away from reality quickly and so, this simple task turned into an unnecessarily longer one. The modest pink dress I was wearing seemed to turn into a carefully designed, soft fabric, night gown, making me look like a princess. My short hair always seemed to be pulled into intricate braids, quite impossible in real life as I could barely tie it up into a low ponytail. And the wet cloth I was holding in my hands suddenly turned into a white tissue, or sometimes a small purse, occupying my hands, saving me from feeling too awkward. My humble living room turned into a huge ballroom decorated by expensive marble and low hanging golden chandeliers, paintings from other Kingdoms brought in, captivating everyone’s attention. The living room which only I was occupying was suddenly filled with hundreds of wealthy people, laughing and conversing, enjoying each other’s company. I stood to the sidelines, observing everyone, finding myself smiling at a little girl dancing by herself. She seemed to be lost in her own world, oblivious to everyone around her as she went closer to the band of musicians, the violin catching her attention. My legs started moving and I found myself walking over, approaching her.

“Pretty instrument, isn’t it?” I asked softly, making her look at me with big eyes.

“It sounds lovely.” She said shyly, looking away when I glanced at her. I nodded my head and clasped my hands behind myself, having to agree with the little girl.

“You’re quite lovely as well, little one.” I said with a smile and the girl chuckled, twirling around, showing off her pale blue dress. It complimented her similar colored eyes well, her tan skin glowing underneath the candle lights.

“I like the shade of pink your dress has.” She complimented me back, showing how well raised she was. I thanked her quietly and a woman rushed towards us, panting lightly.

“Here you were,” She muttered as she took her daughter’s hand into hers, slightly relaxing, “Stop walking away from me, Y/N, it’s not safe for a little girl like you to be alone.”

How peculiar, her name was the same as mine. The woman finally seemed to notice me and when she looked up, and made eye contact with me, she seemed to be in awe. She smiled brightly and extended her hand.

“It’s an honor meeting you, Miss Im,” She spoke up as I shook her hand, “My name is Im Nara.”

“Lovely meeting you, Mrs. Im.” I said pleasantly, listening to the woman’s rant about her wishing to meet me sooner but she wasn’t capable of attending balls due to her daughter being too young, and her wish was to bring her child to these exquisite gatherings with herself. I felt accomplished as I listened to the woman, her praises warming my heart, allowing me to take pride in myself. I have worked hard to get on this level, to be recognized and appreciated by men and women alike, even children. Anyone who had a mildly nice voice could become a recognized singer in their little town, but I stayed persistent, hard-working, and never allowed anyone to push me down, and that’s how I became so well known in the four seas and four kingdoms. Queens and Kings requested me to sing at their balls, weddings, and sometimes even invited me over for a quiet afternoon tea, making sure I had everything I needed. I was living the lavished life I always wanted and for once in my life, I felt accomplished.

I excused myself from the woman and her child as the lovely musicians stopped playing and announced that a special performer would entertain the guests for an hour now. I smiled and after taking a sip of water, soaking my throat for a little, I walked up to the middle of the stage and bowed my head, “Welcome, everyone, I hope your evening has been lovely so far. Allow me to entertain you for the following hour, I have been Im Y/N.”

And so I allowed my voice to grab everyone’s attention as I started singing a soft tune everyone knew. The song was about a pair in love whom had to go through hardships in life before they found each other and settled for a simple life. The man was a fisherman and the woman a princess, but she gave up everything for him. Her parents were strict and never allowed her to love someone freely, so she ran away from home and accidentally bumped into the love of her life on a pirate ship. Not many lived to tell the tale of such an encounter as pirates were known to be ruthless and scary, yet somehow, the princess seemed to charm the sailor. Everyone clapped when I finished the song and I cleared my throat, continuing with the next one, my powerful voice resounding in the expanse of the vast room, bouncing back off the walls. Once my little act of entertainment was over, everyone clapped loudly and I bowed deeply, thanking them for their attention and appreciation before I walked off the stage, headed to the little bar to ask for some water to freshen up my vocal chords.

A few minutes have barely passed since I had gotten off the stage and I was already surrounded by various people, each trying to grab my attention. I chatted with the lovely ladies, complimenting their outfits or jewelry, getting invited to their get togethers in return as a performer. The single wealthy men seemed to watch me from afar before reluctantly approaching me, remaining delicate as if they were scared I would run away. Some tried to win me over with tales of their doings, or by bragging about their money, something I wasn’t interested in. The one and only question they had to answer was that if we ever fell in love and married one day, would they want me to be a pretty trophy staying at home all day long and doing nothing or would they let me to continue my singing career. If the answer was that they’d prefer I stayed at home, I would excuse myself and find company from someone else, however if they said I was allowed to continue singing, I would entertain the conversation, wondering if we were a match made in Heaven. However, nobody ever seemed to be good enough. Their personalities just pushed me away as I didn’t feel appreciated enough, and I found peace in my solace, content with being able to fend for myself and live a happy life.

The King’s second cousin seemed to find me in the crowd of people and he invited me over to their table, asking me to sit with them. It was an honor, so I couldn’t refuse. I greeted everyone politely and the women were quick to ask where my gown was from and if they sent an invite to sing at their birthday parties, if I would come. I chuckled and told them that if I was free I would gladly do so, making them squeal in excitement before they whispered to each other excitedly. I accepted the glass of champaign from the King’s second cousin and he made a silly toast, the table erupting in laughter. As I took a sip from the champaign, I felt eyes watching me. I attempted to look around the room, but the culprit was sitting right across from me. He was a very handsome man. His jet-black hair was gelled back, a few stray strands falling into his sharp, slit like eyes, their color a deep brown. His lips were plump and glistened from having licked them after taking a sip of his own champaign, the bridge of his nose tall, complimenting his manly face well. His aura was rather intimidating, yet no malice radiated off of him. Catching myself staring at him, I blushed, and quickly looked away, making the man smile. His whole demeanor seemed to change once a charming smile was on his lips, he looked rather endearing. He was wearing a General’s uniform, making it quite clear that he was part of the Royal Guard. I have never seen such good-looking man, and I found myself wishing to talk to him, bewitched. He seemed to be quiet as he observed the people around the table, only speaking when spoken to and rarely laughing or smiling. My heartrate picked up when we made eye contact again, becoming shy as he flashed me a small smile, his adorable dimples showing. The King’s second cousin tapped my hand to gain my attention and I looked at him with a smile, trying to focus on the conversation at hand rather than at the handsome General.

“Tell us, Miss Im,” The King’s cousin started, with a cheeky smile, “Still haven’t found your other half?”

I chuckled, a little embarrassed that my love life was brought up in front of the General, but played it off, “I haven’t, Sir, it seems as though the perfect match for a hopeless romantic like myself doesn’t exist.”

The people at the table laughed at my words, apparently funnier than I thought they were as I was being honest, but it seemed to gain the General’s attention. He sat up straighter in his seat and raised his glass when he caught me peaking at him, lightly tilting it in my direction. I grabbed my own glass of champagne and nodded, the two of us drinking from our glasses at the same time, “Well, dear Miss Im, I feel it became my personal mission to find you an educated and well-mannered man.”

I truly wished the King’s second cousin stopped talking, but he was tipsy and his filters disappeared, “Everyone at this table, however, is already married—”

“I am not.” All eyes fell on the General, who’s voice demanded respect, not too deep yet not high pitched either. I couldn’t help but blush and avert my eyes when his gaze became too much, and the King’s second cousin let out a satisfied sound.

“How silly of me!” He exclaimed, and stood, taking my hand in his, “Let’s introduce you to General Choi.”

Despite wanting to act coy, I couldn’t help but feel excited as the King’s cousin walked us around the table, towards the General, who stood up. I couldn’t help but find myself mesmerized by his presence, his eyes drawing me in. Who was this man? Have I finally found my other half? And as the General extended a white glowed hand to shake, loud knocking caught my attention. I glanced around to see if anyone else heard it, but nobody moved, nobody reacted. I smiled, a little tense, and went to shake the General’s hand, when the knocking turned into banging. I jumped, frightened, watching as the image around me became washed out, fading away. I panicked and tried to hold onto the General’s hand, desperately wishing for him to be real, but instead, I found myself crashing against the front door.

“Im Y/N! Open the door!” The scratchy voice of the landlady made me groan, head resting against the door as my perfect fantasy faded away. I wasn’t the famous singer anymore attending balls of the wealthy, getting invited to get togethers and birthday parties, meeting the love of my life. I was just a poor girl living in a cottage I could barely afford, working at an Inn which didn’t pay well, and also, I have barely cleaned anything in the house.

I sighed, and opened the front door, “Were you trying to ignore me, cheeky girl?!”

“No, Mrs. Yoon, I was just—”

“Disturbing everyone with your loud screeching.” The woman interrupted me rudely, making my jaw clench. The one screeching here was her and not me.

“Where’s my money, anyway?” My eyebrows furrowed and I quickly glanced behind me, eyes falling on the calendar I designed myself placed on the wall. The end of the month would be in two weeks, why was she asking for rent right now?

“You’re a bit early on rent, Mrs. Yoon—”

“I’m not early, you’re the one late.” I sucked in a deep breath, telling myself that it was alright if she interrupted me, “You didn’t pay last month, and haven’t paid this month either.”

“Because it’s not the end of the month, yet.” I tried to reason with the old woman, but she just scoffed and gave me a glare.

“You have until the end of the week to pay me last month’s and this month’s rent, young lady.” My stomach churned at her words, realizing I didn’t have enough money for that. And I wouldn’t have by the end of the week either, “And stop screaming.”

That was the last straw as my patience evaporated and I snapped at the old hag, eyes narrowed at her, “I’m singing, not screaming!”

The old woman just scoffed and turned on her heels, stalking off as she kept throwing glares at my way, making me grimace at her before I slammed the door shut, doom seemingly looming over my head. I can’t lose the cottage, what am I supposed to do now?!

My free day passed by quickly and I found myself almost oversleeping my shift, having to get ready in a frenzy. Usually the afternoon naps I took to be able to work all night long were short, however, after working all day in the garden beforehand left me tired and I didn’t wake up in time. I was lucky I had prepared my dress before going to sleep and all I had to do was put it on before running out the door, wishing I owned a horse as I would get to the Inn faster. It was a good twenty minutes’ walk away, on top of a hill to make my life even more torturing than it already was. The petite sandals I wore to match the dress weren’t made for running and my feet kept tangling together every second step, making me lose my cool quite quickly. I could usually control my temper, but sometimes the smallest things got to me. However, I managed to be on time and the Inn’s owner gave me a glance and a nod of approval before she told me to put on my apron and start waitering the tables. Thankfully, I managed to convince the owner to allow me to sing in the weekends, entertain the guests a little without her having to pay me for it, the tips of the people would do. At the beginning it was awkward as the people seemed to find it weird, but after getting used to it, more and more people started coming to the Inn, intrigued by the new form of fun. Sometimes drunk sailors who were passing through the city would ask me to sing them old tales, something I didn’t know even existed until now, making me become an expert at them in about just a month. Sometimes people wished for lullabies, some sad ones, and I would do as they asked despite the Inn not being a place for feeling nostalgic. My favorite ones were the catchy ones, to which everyone sang along and sometimes even danced if the atmosphere was right.

Tonight it seemed to be a busy night as all tables were occupied, somebody entering the Inn every fifteen minutes. My act of entertainment lasted less as I had to help out the other girls, but I promised to sing to the people more when I had a little free time, making them cheer loudly. Unfortunately, my singing career hasn’t taken off in the real world like in my fantasy world, I was not invited to wealthy outings. I hoped and prayed every night that it would happen sooner than later, trusting in it and allowing the Heaven’s to guide me. I couldn’t let my dream go to waste; I wouldn’t accept living a normal, regular life. Not when I was talented, not when I loved singing. I knew my worth, I knew I deserved more than working in a run-down Inn, the payment not even enough to live in a nice, small cottage.

“Hey, Y/N, bring us another jug!” I heard a regular calling out drunkenly and I sighed, running up to the bar and filling five jugs with beer. I placed them on my tray and walked up to their table, placing the jugs of beer on the table and taking the empty ones. As I was walking back to the bar to wash the used jugs, I felt someone tugging on my skirt, halting my steps. I turned around, eyebrows furrowed at who was grabbing me.

“Can you bring us more beer too?” It was a man, teeth crocked and clothes dirty, quite foul smelling. I tried to keep a straight face, having not recognized him as he wasn’t a local. I nodded wordlessly and yanked the skirt of my dress out of his grip, sighing to myself. The other girls were working hard, everyone busy with their own tables and I watched one as I filled three more jugs with beer. She was the youngest and quite pretty, but she allowed men to touch her too much. They were all over her, groping her, saying disgusting things to her. And she remained silent, she just took it, and even flirted back, making me feel sick to my stomach. No man has ever touched me, not here and not anywhere else. I wouldn’t allow a lowlife to taint me, when I knew there were good man out there too, the ones who were on my level, the ones who would treat me right. I walked with the jugs of beer back to the table of the unknown man, placing them down on the table. They looked at me and snickered at each other, but I ignored it. I was usually very nice to everyone, always smiling and soft-spoken, but I did not like their approach towards me, therefore I tried to convey the very obvious message without having to say something. However, they seemed to not catch onto it, as the same man who grabbed me before, suddenly held onto my skirt again.

“Listen, pretty lady,” He slurred, making me glare down at him, “We’re just passing through the city and decided to stop here tonight, heard there was a really good singer. And you weren’t just good, look at how beautiful you are too!”

“Thank you.” I managed to say and tried to pull my skirt out of his grip, but he was holding it rather firmly.

“Do you get paid enough?” I didn’t answer his intruding question, just tugged on the skirt again, “Well, there’s always more ways to make money, beautiful, and I could give you not just that, but a memorable night too—”

“Let go of my skirt, right now.” I snapped, my voice raising. The man looked taken aback by my demeanor, all softness and kindness having disappeared.

“That’s not how a lady should talk like—”

“I said, let go of my skirt.” I yanked rather harshly on it, finally getting it free from his grip. The man didn’t seem too happy and when I went to walk away, he grabbed my wrist, looking at me with a sneer.

“You should respect men more—” I chuckled, gripping his wrist back with my other hand, glaring at him as I cut his words off.

“A lowlife like you should respect women more—” Then I squeezed his wrist hard, making him hiss as he released my hand suddenly, “And don’t touch me.”

Well, I have angered the man now, and he stood up, trying to get all up in my face, but I pushed him hard enough to have him sit back down. He was being loud and a few people started glancing our way, “How dare a bitch like you talk to me like that?! As if you don’t sell your body—”

The slap which cut his words off resounded in the whole room, making people look at us wide eyed. The man was speechless for a few seconds, before his hands turned into fists and he jumped up, about to punch me, but a man stood in front of me, gripping the foreigner’s collar, “We don’t appreciate men who hurt women here, buddy.”

It was the regular who asked for beers before these hooligans, “My advice is you either settle down or get lost.”

The regular was a big man and despite his friendly aura and happy demeanor, he was scary whenever he got angry. You rarely saw him angry, so that’s why it was even scarier when he truly was. He was quite gentle with all the girls here and on busy nights we found him lingering around, looking out for us without a reason. Later we found out he was the owner’s nephew and felt like we were exposed to men like this foreigner, who did not know how to behave, quite frequently, so when he had nothing else to do he’d keep an eye out for us.

The owner of the Inn assessed the situation as she came out from the backroom, and quickly approached us, asking her nephew to release the foreigner, “Sir, please calm down and don’t cause a scene—”

“That bitch can’t behave!” The drunk sailor pointed at me as he screamed, making the owner’s nephew take a threatening step towards him. The sailor cowered a little bit and sat down as his comrades started telling him to stop it, realizing the man looking out for me could knock them out in a fight anytime. He was twice their sizes. The owner motioned for me to follow her and I turned at her nephew for a second, thanking him quietly, before walking towards the backroom.

“What happened out there?” She asked as she sat down in her chair, eyebrows furrowed. I sat opposite her, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“He started touching me and implying disgusting things, so I asked him to stop and he didn’t listen…” I trailed off, looking away as the owner narrowed her eyes at me.

“Did you slap the man?” She knew me too well; I couldn’t even lie. This wouldn’t be the first incident; she has already warned me to behave. I could only hope she wouldn’t fire me; I really didn’t know what I would do next then.

“I did—”

“You should head home,” My eyes widened at the owner’s words, confused as to why, “Your shift would end in an hour either way, so it doesn’t matter much. I don’t have the money, so come back tomorrow for the payment.”

I nodded and got up from the chair, untying the apron from my waist and placing it on her desk, “I’ll see you tomorrow then, good night.” I bowed my head and she stopped me as I got to the door.

“Be careful on your way home, I heard Ateez docked down in the city a few days ago.” When I continued to look confused at my boss, her eyebrows furrowed, “Women have been disappearing, Y/N, I’m telling you to look out.”

“Oh,” I chuckled and brushed off her words, my route not taking me towards the center of the city, “Thank you for your concern, but don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow then.” My boss muttered and I bowed my head before going outside, leaving through the back of the Inn, not wanting to see that foul foreigner again. I couldn’t guarantee that I wouldn’t have slapped him again if I did see him. Men like him disgusted me. I hated these types of so-called men. They held no value in my eyes, they worth nothing.

I checked my surroundings, my boss’ words getting a little bit to me, but I knew there was nothing to be afraid of. The crime rate in this city was low and since I lived towards the outskirts of it, it was safer than walking towards the center, where the markets were. At night it was littered with drunk men, looking for one-night stands. Perhaps if I lived there, I would have been scared walking alone at night, but here it was fine. I was humming to myself, skipping from one cobalt stone to the other, imagining that I was walking towards my carriage to head back to my little mansion. I would take a bath there, have a ravishing dinner and perhaps gaze at the stars in my rose garden before going to sleep. My butler would be already asleep, and I’d try to remain quiet as to not wake him up, but he’d still wake up, and so I’d ask him to join me in the garden, point out the constellations I was unable to see. He loved astronomy and would talk about it a lot, passing his interest onto me as well. Footsteps behind me made me snap out of my daydream and I looked behind, but nobody was there. I rolled my eyes and continued walking, figuring it was a stray animal or something. But a few minutes later I heard it again, now faster and harder, and before I could panic and take off running, I felt a body collide against mine. I would’ve screamed if it weren’t for the cloth pressed harshly against my mouth and nose, smelling foul, the smell making my throat itch as I inhaled it. I wanted to push this person away, but my muscles went numb fast and my vision started blurring, until it became blacker than the night sky.

My stomach was violently ill when I finally came to it, the stench of fish unbearable as it made me gag. I moved the back of my hand against my nose, trying to repress the smell, but it wasn’t doing much. My ears seemed to be ringing and I was thrown forward, as if something crushed into us. I didn’t understand the predicament I woke up to at first, confusedly looking around, until my eyes fell on the iron bars holding me captive in a small dice shaped cage. The weight around my wrists finally caught my attention and I looked at them flabbergasted, tugging on the chain, to no avail. I was chained against the wall, having little freedom to move around in the cage. My eyebrows furrowed as I tried to remember how and when I got here, but my last memory was of walking home after my boss sent me off. And then it clicked, the foul-smelling cloth pressed against my nose and mouth, I was drugged. I was drugged and brought onto this…ship? A lump formed in my throat as I frantically looked around, assessing the situation, trying to think of something. However, my heart beat faltered when I saw the other girls around me. There were three more cages besides the one I was in and two scared looking girls in each one of them. A quiet whimper caught my attention and I looked to my right, eyes falling on a younger looking girl, who was curled up in a ball, eyes teary. Her wide eyes looked at me, fright bouncing off of her. My heart started beating faster as things started sinking in, and I found it harder to breathe. My throat was closing in on me, restricting any air from getting to my lungs. I tried to divert my attention to anything else, even find comfort in one of my fantasy scenarios, but nothing seemed to work as I felt my face going red, starting to gasp for air.

“Hey, you!” I heard someone slightly raising their voice, making my head snap in their direction. Across from us, in the cage to the right, a middle-aged woman was looking my way, eyebrows furrowed, “What’s your name?”

I licked my lips and tried to suck in a deep breath, but it wasn’t working and I felt like I was about to choke, “No-no, keep breathing, copy me.”

The middle-aged woman started taking deep breaths, counting for me, and I tried to copy her, but nothing happening for a few minutes. Then suddenly, I could feel my throat loosening up and air finally flowing into my lungs, filling them to the brim. I started coughing as I desperately breathed in more air, looking at the woman with gratefulness written all over my face, “My name is Y/N.”

“I’m Hyolin.” She introduced herself and I bowed my head slightly, noticing that she was the only one not crying besides me. Her eyes were red and she kept sniffing, but no tears left her eyes, “We’re on a pirate ship, if you’ve been wondering.”

My heart started beating faster again as I looked around, pulling on the chains of my handcuffs, but they were too strong to break. The chamber was huge and it looked like some sort of basement, filled with supplies, barrels, and a big variety of guns and other weapons. I could see a fishnet filled with a bunch of dead fish and it made my stomach sicker, forcing me to gag as I averted my eyes, falling on my cellmate. She was crying quietly and I fought my own tears from rolling down my cheeks, trying to stop my brain from processing that I was a hostage on a pirate ship.

“For how long was I out?” I whispered to the young girl and she jumped, slowly looking at me. Her body was shaking and she looked at the floor before whispering back that I was out for a whole day. It felt like a punch to my gut and I looked away biting my lower lip, realizing that if I was out for a whole day, we have sailed out onto the sea already, taking me far away from my home. My head started thumping suddenly, all of my dreams slipping right through my fingers. I would never become a famous singer, I would never live a lavished life, I will never be remembered. Instead, I would be either sold off or killed, forever lost on the sea or in some creepy man’s basement. The first tear trickled down my cheek and I quickly wiped it off, the commotion behind the heavy wooden door making my body tremble. There were multiple male voices behind the door before it slowly opened, strong light flooding inside as they walked down the stairs, stalking towards our cages. All of us tried to make ourselves look smaller as the three pirates stopped in front of our cages, looking left and right before opening the cage across from ours.

“Stand up, all of you.” The man inside the respective cage demanded, his voice harsh and frightening, so we did as told. I could only see his backside, but he had jet-black hair and his shoulders were wide and concealed by a black leather jacket. The man seemed to be inspecting all of us, murmuring to himself about our looks. Normally, I wouldn’t have allowed him to make such comments, but right now I was not in a favorable position and my body was shaking from fear. I had no idea why he was doing this and I was scared that one wrong move would get me killed. On this ship I couldn’t do much but try and survive, however, once on land, I could try and run away, asking for help and making sure these monsters were behind bars, in a real prison. The tallest of the three seemed to notice my piercing gaze and I quickly looked down when he raised his eyebrows, lips pulling into an amused smile. There was nothing amusing about this situation.

“So, what do you think?” The other guy, who was the shortest out of them all and had a white cloth wrapped around his right forearm, signaling that he was the Captain, asked in a quite bored tone.

“They aren’t the brightest so far.” The man inspecting us dared to say with a sneer, checking the other girls. My blood boiled at his words, but I bit my lip and continued glaring at the floor.

“We can’t afford making a shitty deal, San.” The Captain snapped, arms crossed in front of his chest, “Not after Yuri almost destroyed our ship and Jongho released our Siren.”

The tallest scratched his nape, pouting, “Well, it wasn’t entirely Jongho’s fault, Captain…we should probably thank the Siren he’s still alive, to be honest—”

“Whatever, Mingi,” The Captain snapped, shooting him a glare, “If we don’t get high payment on these girls I’m afraid we’ll have to return to our old ways of survival for a while.”

San, the one checking all girls, opened our cage as he snickered, “I don’t mind at all. It’s been too long since I had bloodied my sword.”

My body shivered and my cellmate started crying loudly as San touched her hair, moving it out of her face, forcing her to look him in the eyes. I wished I could’ve punched the man and held the crying girl, but I was rooted to my place, just as frightened as her. I refused to show my true feelings, however, having no intention of showing weakness to these monsters. I tensed up once I saw a pair of glistening black shoes stop in front of me, the man’s presence powerful. I lowered my head even more, for once wishing I had longer hair so that it would cover my face, restrict the men from seeing it. San tsked as he harshly grabbed my chin and raised my head by it, our eyes finding each other. Perhaps in a different scenario I would’ve been easily charmed by the man standing in front of me, his beauty unmatched. His jet-black hair fell messily on his forehead, he had clearly run his fingers through it numerous times. His sharp, slit like eyes, their color a deep brown were intense, keeping you pinned to your place, and I found myself scared to even breathe as we stared each other down. His lips were plump and glistened from having licked them just seconds ago, the bridge of his nose tall, complimenting his manly face well. He was intimidating and I fought against my will of wanting to cover away from him, refusing to show him any fear despite the very obvious tears gathered up in my eyes. Suddenly, he chuckled and smirked, eyes running all over my face, then down my body before stopping on my hair again.

“I knew you’d bring us a lot of money when I spotted you last night,” My jaw clenched as his words made the Captain and the other man, called Mingi, look my way, “You’re drop dead gorgeous, angel, pity your hair isn’t longer, you would’ve made us even more money.”

My jaw clenched and I ripped my head out of his hold, looking off to the side, head turned away from him. I couldn’t believe such malice could hide behind such a beautiful face. I hated him as he chuckled, looking me over one more time before he walked out of our cage, locking the iron door behind him, smirking at the Captain.

“We’ll be filthy rich, Hongjoong.” San said with the evilest laughter I’ve ever heard and the other two men chuckled as the three of them took off, headed for the stairs. The silence was deafening as we waited for them to be gone, and I felt the tears finally streaming down my cheeks once they were out the door, locking it behind them. My knees gave out and I fell down, holding my head in my hands as I started sobbing loudly. I felt the pitiful gazes of the other girls and it made me cry even harder. I wished I was so ugly they would just feed me to the sharks, at least I could try and swim away then, have a chance at saving myself. I couldn’t lose my perfect life like this, I just couldn’t.

We couldn’t tell whether it was day or night due to being locked down here, but when Mingi walked in with a few more lanterns and muttered that he’d bring us dinner soon, we realized it was probably around the evening. Everyone seemingly had calmed down a little bit since San examined us, the girls constantly giving me pitiful glances. I hated it, wanted to ask them to stop, but remained quiet. If they thought they were safe because San called just me beautiful, I wouldn’t want to destroy their small sense of security, because I knew how much it meant. I tried to distract myself multiple times, the rocking of the boat making me sleepy but I refused to sleep, scared that the pirates would do something to me. No matter how hard I tried to imagine that I was in a different place, finding a fitting scenario for my current reality, it never lasted for too long. The image became blurry until it disappeared altogether, making me sit on the floor with my back against the wall defeated, wondering where they were taking us. I was from the South Kingdom, living on the furthest island from the mainland. It would take around four to five days to travel between the two on a big ship, but I didn’t know how big and fast these pirates ship was, so I couldn’t judge how much it would take us to arrive. I assumed they were taking us to the Capital, but I wasn’t even sure why I was captured in the first place. Hyolin, who turned out to be the oldest amongst us girls, seemed to be the only one fully understanding the situation, but she refused to tell us. She asked us if we’ve heard about Ateez and Choi San, and remained silent after hearing our answers. I did know Ateez was a pirate crew, but I didn’t know who Choi San was…until today. I assumed he was some sort of trader, but his physique said otherwise. His muscular and well-defined body begged to differ, and the big sword secured around his hips also proved my theory to be true. He was probably something like a soldier, not a trader. I had no idea what ranks pirates had on their ships, but I imagined San to be at the front leading, fighting the enemy.

Not knowing what to do with myself anymore, I found myself quietly humming as three girls had fallen asleep, curled up on the cold floor into themselves, hugging their torsos. The young girl sharing the cage with me had calmed down hours ago, but she wouldn’t stop sniffing and rocking back and forth. She also wasn’t talking to us, so I figured I could try and distract her with a sailor song I knew. I found myself quietly singing, staring off into the distance, looking at nothing in particular as I lost myself in the story of the song. It was about a young woman who lived by the beach by herself and wished to meet her lover who got lost on the sea years ago. They would have been married already, but the mates of her lover said he got shoved into the sea by a big wave, forever lost to the water. The young woman never believed her lover was dead, her gut telling her that he’d return home to her and they’d live a happy life together. And she seemed to be right as one night someone knocked on her door, making her almost faint. It was her lover and he looked better than ever. She flung herself in his arms and they cried for hours, the man telling her everything that’s happened to him after he fell in the sea. Apparently, some mermaids saved him but kept him hostage, scared that he’d lead other sailors to their lair. After years of teaching them about humans and helping them whenever one of them was sick, they finally released the man, trusting him enough to keep the secret about their existence. The woman couldn’t care less about mermaids and finding them, her biggest treasure was sitting right in front of her, all she needed was him.

“Your voice is so beautiful.” The young girl spoke up for the first time willingly since we’ve been here, her voice high pitched and shaky. I looked at her surprised, and smiled at her softly.

“Thank you, dear.” I whispered, resting my chin on my knees, which were pulled up to my chest.

“Where did you learn to sing like that?” She asked, finally willing to converse with us. She had nothing to lose by doing so at this point.

“Nowhere,” I sighed, playing with the skirt of my dress, “My grandparents once took me to their good friends when I was little and they asked if I played any instrument. When I told them I didn’t they told me I could always try and sing, use my own voice as an instrument.”

The young girl listened closely, looking a little curious, “You’ve been singing for a long time, then. Are you famous?”

I chuckled and shook my head, “No, not even a little bit.”

A gloomy feeling seemed to loom over our heads as I sighed loudly, closing my eyes, “It was my dream…to become famous. To sing for the wealthy. To be invited to gatherings and the Royal family’s balls as a performer, but—now I’m a prisoner on a pirate ship. I’ll never become a well-known singer. All of my hard-work was in vain, I just—I wish I was rather dead, than on this ship.”

An amused deep chuckle made all the girls still awake tense. The young girl beside me hid her face again, turning into the wall, her whole body shaking again. I opened my eyes and looked up, startled to find San standing right outside my cage. When did he get here? And how did we not hear him or even notice him until now? His lips were pulled into a twisted smile, looking very amused as he unlocked the door. I watched as he took a step inside, placing a tray of food down on the floor, never breaking eye contact with me. The young girl started whimpering, irritating me to no end, but I didn’t show my feelings. I tried to remain neutral as San stared me down, challenging me with his gaze to look away, to succumb to him. But I would never do that, I refused to cover in front of a lowlife like him.

“You’re not just beautiful, you have a beautiful voice too.” He said sounding almost amazed, an excited glint in his eyes, “You’ll be worth more than I thought initially.”

His words made me gulp and my palms turn into fists, but I refrained myself from saying anything, refusing to feed his energy with mine by being weak. San smirked and slightly leaned down, tilting his head to the side as I glared at him, “And forget about dying, beautiful, because nothing harmful will happen to you as long as you’re under my watch.”

But he was the reason I was even placed in a harmful situation. It was his fault that once we’re on the mainland something horrible will happen to me, to the other women in these cages. It was his fault that I would never achieve my dreams, it being the very few reason I found living worth. I acted without thinking, without considering that the tray of food was both for myself and my cellmate, without considering how hungry she must’ve been, forgetting how hungry I was myself. I kicked the tray with my leg, food getting on the floor, glaring at San with full hatred as his eyes slightly widened, his smug expression slipping for a second. He was far away from me, but it felt like he was breathing down my neck as he stood up straight, wide shoulders pulled back, jaw clenching. His gaze made me shiver involuntarily and he was out of the cage, slamming the door shut before locking it. The young girl jumped and I remained staring at San until he was out of the room, Mingi being the one to bring the other women their dinners. I wanted nothing more but to escape this hell.

One or two days have passed since we’ve been taken prisoners on the pirate ship, but I couldn’t really pin point how much time has passed since I was kidnapped. It was continuously dark down here, where they kept us, and if it weren’t for Mingi always announcing what type of meal he was bringing for us, I wouldn’t have even known what time of the day it was. The atmosphere was quite somber as everyone was scared for their own lives, covering away whenever San entered the room. He kept coming down, sometimes laughing at us and teasing us with vile words, words I tuned out once I realized how foul of a person he was. He did this for his own enjoyment, because he liked seeing us scared and helpless. If I wasn’t on a ship, behind bars, I would’ve stood up for myself, making sure he never disrespected a woman ever again. But I couldn’t do that here, not when my scared cellmate started crying as San told us to change our clothes in front of him. She was begging him to turn around, embarrassed and humiliated when he slapped her hard, shouting at her to shut up. My body was shaking from anger and I clenched my hands into fists, trying to keep my breathing even, not wanting him to see how easily he could get a reaction from me. He smirked the whole time, entertained by the whole ordeal as the girls sniffled and whimpered while changing, covering underneath his intense gaze.

I didn’t feel better than them, I felt violated as his gaze ran over my body hungrily once I was out of my second-hand dress, the silk nightgown I was wearing the only thing concealing my private parts from unwanted eyes. I felt humiliated when he muttered that my freckle covered body was exotic and men would kill each other to get their hands on me, but I didn’t let any emotion show on my face as I held eye contact with him, chin high, as I pulled on the simple white dress he brought for us, staring him down spitefully. San seemed to be enjoying it, eyebrows raising when I threw my dress in front of his feet, making him bend down and pick it up himself, unlike the other girls who handed him their own dresses themselves. I could play innocent and fragile, and I would do just that, but not when my privacy and decency were being violated. Not when I wasn’t treated like a human being, not when I wasn’t respected. San’s lips pulled up in a wide grin, dimples forming on his cheeks, but he didn’t seem happy as he eyed the dress in front of him, shaking his head as he sucked on his cheeks. He probably didn’t expect any type of disrespect or challenge from any of us, thinking we were too scared to stand up for ourselves. But what could happen to me other than dying, while I was on this ship? Nothing, nothing that could scare me into subordination. Despite thinking that San would throw a fit and make me grab my dress and hand it to him, he didn’t, he just leaned down and picked it up, feeling the fabric of it.

“For someone who regards themselves so highly, you look rather cheap, Y/N.” I chuckled, his words triggering me enough to finally show just how irritated I was, but I remained silent. His gaze pinned me to my spot, challenging me as he waited for a retort, but nothing happened. I didn’t speak, didn’t move. He didn’t speak, he didn’t move. It was so quiet in the chamber, that I thought the other girls stopped breathing. A ruckus upstairs seemed to get San’s attention, and finally someone called out to him, telling him to go help them. Our stare down finally came to an end and San walked away with a smirk, dangling the keys to our cages in his hands mockingly. If I could, I would’ve punched him unconscious right then and there, but the chains and iron bars were in my way, so I had to settle with the power of my imagination, where San wasn’t even breathing anymore.

Dinner time had approached once again, and us, the girls, had somewhat calmed down from the whole fiasco from earlier. It took a lot of coercing and encouragement from us for my cellmate to finally stop crying and I sung her whatever songs she wanted to hear, finally lightening her mood. Somehow I got her to smile as Hyolin and I told her funny happenings from our jobs, Hyolin being a baker. The young girl, who’s name we finally found out, was Eunchae. She was barely seventeen and it broke my heart that she was here with us, her whole youth stolen from her. It’s not like I was much older than her, but at least I got to live my life a little bit up until now. She told us her mother had only her and relied on her, so Eunchae was scared what would happen to her mother now that she’s disappeared from her life. We tried reassuring her that her mother would probably figure something out, but it only made Eunchae cry again. I felt bad, so bad for her. And promised myself, that if I could somehow save myself from this nightmare, I’d take her with me. Hyolin was a strong woman, I knew I didn’t have to worry much for her and the other women with us seemed to like her more than Eunchae or I, which was probably good. If Hyolin tried to break free as well, they’d follow her no doubt.

When the heavy door opened, everyone tensed and we watched as Mingi and San walked down with trays of food, each one of them handing them out to two cages. Of course, it came as no surprise, as San chose Eunchae and I’s cage, his eyes amused as I avoided his stare, preoccupied with my nails which had gotten a bit dirty. I didn’t want to see him after what he did earlier, anger cursing through my veins just at the memory of it. But I had to be smart. I was smart despite what everyone thought about me. I survived this long after my grandparents deaths thanks to it. I could be soft and persuasive, fragile looking, in the eyes of men. I knew I played my cards a little bit wrong until now in front of San, but damage control was still doable. I could still act dainty, and blame my previous behavior on the stress I was feeling, if he asked. Once he placed the tray of food on the floor for us, he didn’t leave the cage, just looked around, before leaning against the bars with a smug look, crossing his arms in front of his chest. Today he was wearing a casual fit, a white shirt which was barely buttoned, tucked inside his leather pants. He had two swords on each side of his hips and a long, dark blue, coat kept him warm from the harsh wind up on the deck. My body ached for some sunlight and a breeze, but I knew it wasn’t possible until I was on this ship.

“Well, I come bearing good news,” My heart shouldn’t have skipped a beat at his words, knowing not to hope for anything good since it was coming from this lowlife pirate, “we’re docking down tomorrow on the mainland, isn’t that exciting?”

Nobody answered his question, my body tense as my eyebrows furrowed. What would that mean? What would happen to us?

“Isn’t that exciting?” He repeated himself, his voice hard and it made Eunchae whimper as she quickly nodded her head, afraid he’d slap her again. My blood boiled, but I ignored it, having to play coy for once again.

“One small advice,” San dragged his words out, eyes falling on me, burning a hole in the side of my head, “When you’ll be no longer with me, behave, and your lives will be easier. Men don’t like stubborn and rude women, they like them weak and respectful, especially the men I do business with.”

I wanted to tell him to go jump off the ship, become the sharks dinner, but I bit my lower lip and gulped, still refusing to look at him, knowing very well he was directing his words mainly at me. But I still didn’t fully understand why I was here, and I wanted to know. Hyolin seemed to have accepted her fate long ago, but didn’t care to share it with us, seeing that we were quite literally in the same boat.

“What—” I stuttered, hoping it would look authentic as my voice was small, “What will happen to us once—once we’ll get to the mainland?”

I stared at the floor, playing my role, hopefully, well, “A couple of things, beautiful, but the most important one is that you’ll bring me tons of money.”

I gulped, “How?”

San chuckled as if my question was the funniest ever, crouching down, lowering his head as he was trying to make eye contact with me, but I didn’t look his way, “How, you ask? By selling your body for me.”

My blood ran cold when I heard his words, and my heart started beating like crazy, ears suddenly turning red. My hands started shaking and I clenched them into fists, hoping he wouldn’t notice as San stared at me with a crazed look in his eyes. No, this couldn’t be happening. I was pure, I was untouched, I couldn’t let men just…ruin my life like that. I had full autonomy over my body, nobody could take that away from me. Not San. Not anyone else. I let out a quiet breath, trying to think of a way of saving myself, of charming San into letting me off. I would be betraying the other women here with me, but I had to try. And if I succeeded, perhaps I could help them too later on.

“You—you said I have a beautiful voice—” I wasn’t faking my stutter anymore, my thoughts were so jumbled together that I didn’t know what I wanted to say first, “I can sing for you, entertain your men for you. My body—my body is not worth more than my voice, I—I can make you richer with my talent, I—”

“Angel,” San cut me off, slightly coming closer, voice almost softening, “If I wanted to make you a famous singer, you wouldn’t be here right now. And your voice isn’t worth more than your body.”

I gulped, feeling dread settling in my stomach. This really was the worst that could have ever happened to me. I shook my head slowly, feeling the tears in my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall. I couldn’t humiliate myself even more, not in front of this monster. San seemed to have lost interest in me as he stood up straight, smoothing out his coat, looking down at me with an amused expression.

“Did you think I kidnapped you to make you a princess, Y/N? This is the real world, not some sort of fantasy land. We all have to make money in some way—”

“But you’re selling women, to make money.” My voice was harsh as I snapped, raising my head, finally looking at him. I knew my face was red from anger, my cheeks burning as I pushed myself up, standing tall, yet shorter than San, “You’re using humans to make money, to live a lavished life, while you make others miserable. While you steal our lives away, you get to live a free life—”

“Not everything is fair in life, angel.” San said with a nonchalant shrug, seemingly amused by my outburst, only fueling my anger.

“Something not being fair in life means getting fired from your job, it means losing a loved one, it means working-hard yet never quite achieving your dreams not—not getting kidnapped off the streets by someone who’s playing God!” I couldn’t help it as I screamed at him by the end of my sentence, breathing hard and wishing my glare could kill him. San didn’t seem so amused anymore, his eyes narrowing at me, “A lowlife like you shouldn’t even look in our direction, San."

San tsked, letting out a loud laugh, startling the other women as they watched me with fearful eyes, Eunchae shaking her head, begging me to stop with her eyes, “Is that how you see me? What you think of me? A lowlife?”

“Have you never been insulted by a woman before?” I raised my eyebrows mockingly, watching San stalk towards me slowly, “Did you think just because you view us as some objects we wouldn’t have a brain to think with and to feel with? Can you even sell me off if I will not behave like a doll?”

“Yes,” San nodded, chuckling, stopping right in front of me, eyes piercing mine, “I can still sell you, because there’s some men who love it when their objects have a big mouth and more than two thoughts in their skulls, makes it more exciting, you know? More satisfying to see them succumb to them. More enticing when they fight back, only to be disciplined in mere minutes—”

It took me a great deal of self-control to not step back as San invaded my personal space, stopping just inches away from me as his voice dropped to a low whisper, “It makes it so fucking hot when you finally get to fuck them dumb into the mattress, making them a mess of cries and pleas, asking you to stop but they are never in charge, even if you let them think so for a moment.”

My lips parted in shock and I couldn’t help but gasp at his vulgar words, taking a step back, but San reacted fast as his hand was in my hair, yanking my head back, making me yelp. I had no time to react as something sharp and cold was pressed against my neck, making me freeze as I was afraid to even breathe, “I know the type of woman you are, angel. You act fragile and sweet as long as things are going your way, but once you realize you’re at disadvantage your true self starts showing. You can’t manipulate me and you can’t make me feel bad for you, because I don’t give a shit about you, angel. All I see is a bunch of coins in return for you body when I look at you, and that’s all I need. What happens to you after you’re free from my hands, I don’t give two shits about. You can go jump off a cliff or you can live the miserable life you were going to live either way in that small, foul and good for nothing city, Y/N. I made it worse, perhaps, or I made it better. I’ll never find out.”

“You have no idea what life I was living,” I breathed out, voice shaky as the knife pressed against my Adam’s apple, “But I can promise you that I will ruin you.”

San’s gaze melted into mine, his face lowering, our noses almost touching. My heartbeat faltered for a second and I shrunk back a little bit, his dominating aura finally getting to me. I hated him, so much, and I hoped he could see it in my eyes, in my expression. He should just kill me right now, making his own life easier. I always kept my promises, and this was my promise to him. I would make sure he’d be ruined once I was sold off. Suddenly, San started laughing loudly and he pushed me away, making me fall into the iron bars as I was thrown off balance, making the others stare at the ground as his wild eyes looked around, challenging the other women to say anything. Nobody seemed to be able to do so and he left us alone, not even bothering to lock my cell door, showing just how much power he held over us. How little good my outburst did.

Our night was sleepless after my little fiasco and the other women were beyond frightened, whispering amongst each other, sometimes throwing glares my way. I couldn’t care less, I didn’t do anything wrong, I did no harm to them, I just ruined my chances of ever getting out of here unscratched. It was hilarious how my plan backfired on me, but it only showed how unlucky I have been lately. Nothing was going my way and nothing would ever go my way from now on. When the heavy door finally opened again, everyone knew it was the morning. Everyone knew we got to the mainland. Everyone knew our doom was closer than ever. It was Mingi again, with San walking after him. Mingi was holding a bunch of clothes, their color an ugly orange, and he opened all the cages, handing us the dresses as we stood ready. He was respectful enough to walk away once we had the dresses in our hands, knowing that we’d have to change now. San, just like last time, remained, watching us with a very pleased expression on his face.

“Well, ladies,” He said in a cheery voice, walking down between the cages, “We have finally arrived, I hope you enjoyed sailing with Ateez.”

I sneered at his words, but undressed myself, staring at the dress in my hands with disgust. It was heavy in my hands, and thick, the design tasteless the longer I looked at it. I couldn’t believe I was forced to dress into something so atrocious, but I just swallowed and pulled it on, instantly regretting it. It stuck to my skin and warmed me up, making my skin itchier. I haven’t washed up in days and it was only making me feel dirtier than I already was. San just smiled at me, not sincere nor happy, just mocking as his eyes ran over my body.

“What a fall from grace, angel, I suppose a dress like that wasn’t on your wish list, was it?” I scoffed and look at him as I have finished tying the front of the dress together.

“Orange is not my color, so thank you, for making me look uglier.” I bowed my head mockingly at him, his lean frame leaning against the doorway of the cage.

“I don’t mean to sadden you, but the men won’t be looking at your dress at all, angel, just at your pretty face.” Something wasn’t right about the dress though, it was sitting weirdly against my collarbones, I could feel it. I pulled on the sleeves of it, but it didn’t do much to fix the feeling, and San rolled his eyes before he walked up to me. I stepped back slightly, trying to maintain a normal distance between our bodies, but he just kept walking towards me until my back hit the wall, leaving no space for me to escape. My heart started thumping fast and I couldn’t help the sudden heat on my cheeks, so I just looked away, trying to conceal my face from him. He chuckled, but paid no mind as he raised his hand, about to touch the collar of my dress, right above my breast, but I slapped his hand away, whipping my head around to face him. San raised an eyebrow but tried to touch me again, and I just slapped his hand away again, but before I could lower my hand, he caught my wrist in his hand, holding me firmly.

“Don’t you think if I wanted to do anything to you I would’ve done it already?” He asked quietly, both eyebrows raised as he studied my face. I gulped but didn’t look away, just ripped my wrist out of his hand. He huffed and touched the collar of my dress again, not gentle at all, as he yanked on the fabric, making me gasp. Suddenly, a white collar, which I haven’t noticed was there before, came up from underneath my dress, going from my breasts up to my shoulders. I tensed when San’s finger lightly grazed against my skin, too close to my breast, but when I looked at him, he was already looking at me. I hissed and held his wrist the same way he held mine.

“You fixed the dress already,” I snapped, “No need to keep touching me.”

“I was just checking to make sure I did it right.” San answered smugly and I released his wrist, pushing him slightly back, hoping he’d get the message to disappear and leave me alone. He chuckled and batted his eye lashes at me mockingly before he turned around to walk away. I glared at the back of his head, wishing he would just disappear, never to be seen or heard of. I figured he wouldn’t be easy to take down in a fight due to his physique and sheer force he always seemed to use, but what if his attacker had the element of surprise? What if he didn’t see nor hear his attacker? What if he never even thought that person would attack him?

Without a second thought, my body flung into motion, acting on its own. I strained the chains of the handcuffs connected together and charged towards San as he was still close enough to attack from behind. I got on my tip toes and threw the chain around his neck, pulling it harshly towards me. The other girls exclaimed loudly as San gasped, his hands holding onto the chain barely, trying to pull it away from his throat, but I used all my force and power to choke him. Eunchae started crying loudly as San tried gasping for air, his body falling into mine almost as I applied even more force, panting as San was fighting back. My arms were straining and my wrists started aching from the handcuffs, but I didn’t stop pulling on the chain, determined to get the others and myself out of here before it was too late. But my initial thoughts about San turned out to be true, he was a lot stronger than he looked like, and with one harsh tug, I face planted into his wide and firm back, knowing that I messed up really bad now. The other girls suddenly went quiet and all was heard was San’s ragged breathing, his back moving up and down quickly. I shuddered and prepared myself for the repercussion of my actions, which came straight away. San turned around and his dark eyes fell on mine as he grabbed me by the hair harshly, a new glint in his eyes as he watched me enraged. My cuffed hands were behind his back now and I tried to break free, raise the chain over his head and push him away, but San didn’t allow me to do so. His flexed palm came flying towards my face and I tried to cover away, but to my surprise, he hit my Adam’s apple with such force that all air left my lungs instantly, making me fall forward, into him. Despite trying to breathe, my throat closed up and I could do nothing as I started choking in San’s arms, his hand still holding my hair harshly, looking down at me. As dark spots appeared in my vision I could swear San’s eyes softened just a bit, a sinister smirk appearing on his lips. And then everything went black.

After getting knocked unconscious I woke up to being carried by San, the hot sun beaming down on my face. I gasped as I looked around, noticing that we were off the ship, even far away from the shore. Eunchae seemed to be walked by Mingi meanwhile another woman by a man I didn’t know, leading the group. I wasn’t chained up anymore and as I looked around, assessing the situation, San gave me one warning glare and muttered that if I tried running away or creating a scene he’d slit my throat before I could scream. That scared me enough to behave as we were led towards a run-down looking house, somewhere in the town. San placed me down minutes ago and I was able to walk on my own, his firm grip around my forearm keeping me close to his body. I took in our surroundings, trying to find a way of escape once San wasn’t by my side anymore, but we were quickly shoved inside the house, walked to a backroom, loud manly voices coming through the only other door in the room. My heart was in my throat, and I found myself sweating profoundly as San finally released me, giving me a glance before he disappeared through the door. I tried to take a peak while the door was open, and my heart sank when I saw tons of men in the other room. Was this really how our life would be from now on? Sold again and again, corrupted and used? I bit my lower lip and looked around the room, trying to find an exit, but there were no windows and the only door leading outside was blocked by Mingi, who seemed very focused in guarding the door. His eyebrows were furrowed and he looked straight ahead, his hands clasped together in front of his body. He probably felt my gaze on him as he spared a glance my way, but when the other door opened, he quickly looked away. San stepped inside and dragged Hyolin away, slamming the door shut behind him. Eunchae started whimpering again as the other women gathered together, holding each other tightly. I found myself looking between the door and Mingi, begging with my eyes for him to let us go, but he wouldn’t look at me again. As Eunchae started crying, I found myself hugging her tightly, patting her head, telling her that everything would be alright. But nothing would be. She’ll be tainted, and I’ll be tainted too for life. I thought the Heavens wouldn’t do such thing to a human, but I realized my prayers were futile right now. No divine God would save me anymore. The door opened again and San took away another woman. Then another. And another. Two more went and when the door opened again, his eyes fell on Eunchae and I. I knew he’d come our way, so I pushed Eunchae behind myself and stood tall and fearless, staring him down. A smirk appeared on his lips as he stopped a few steps away from me, going to grab my cheek. I flinched and closed my eyes, but suddenly Eunchae’s wail snapped me back to reality, my eyes widening as San started pulling her after him.

“No—no—San—” But his glare instantly silenced me as he reached the door, eyes ablaze. Eunchae tried to wipe her tears away out of fear and tried to look somewhat composed, but one warning look from San made them fall again. I went to run up to them, but the other woman remaining in the room with me grabbed my wrist as San and Eunchae disappeared through the door, the young girl never to be seen again. My heart clenched and I wanted to cry out. I wanted to trash the room we were in. I wanted to rip the dress of myself and I wanted someone to punch me until my face was all bruised up, never to be called beautiful again. I hated everything about this. The tug on my wrist was harsh and I sniffed as I came face to face with the other woman, whose name was Dahyun.

“Pull it together,” She snapped, her own eyes teary, “You were the bravest out of all of us, if anyone can escape this, it’s you.”

I sniffed, a few tears falling from my eyes, “But he took Eunchae, I can’t run off like that—all of you will suffer, I can’t—”

“Stop thinking about us.” Dahyun’s voice raised but she glanced at Mingi and continued in a whisper, “We’re a lost cause, we don’t matter anymore. Save yourself while you can, Y/N, San seems to have taken a slight liking to you, use that to your advantage. You can charm anyone you want to.”

Her words gave me a little courage and I wiped my tears away, muttering a quiet ‘alright’ as the door opened and San looked inside. How did Eunchae get sold so fast? All of the other girls took around five to ten minutes, it’s been barely three. My heart clenched as I tried looking through the open door, the younger girl nowhere in sight. Dahyun seemed to have understood San as she sighed and released me, placing on a poker face as she walked towards him, brushing his hand off her forearm as she walked through the door by herself. San’s eyes met mine and his face was unreadable as he closed the door. I was next. I was the last one. After this, San would walk back to the pirate ship rich and I would walk away with a destroyed life. I had to stop this. I couldn’t just stand here and wait for my awful fate to happen.

“Do you enjoy this?” I found myself turning around, glaring at Mingi, “Watching women get sold off to some disgusting pigs?!”

Mingi didn’t react as he stared at the wall blankly, “Does it bring satisfaction to you seeing us in pain and despair? Are we really just some objects in your eyes?”

I was trying to make him feel any sort of emotion, but Mingi just sighed and slightly glanced at me.

“Please, I don’t deserve this—”

“I know, but it’s none of my business what happens here.” Mingi finally has had enough, his eyebrows furrowed as he looked at me with pity, “Everyone on the ship makes money in their own ways and I won’t sabotage San’s way of working.”

I gulped, trying to convince him somehow to let me go, “This is not about San, Mingi. This is about you. Your morals and what you believe in. Your dignity and respect for others—for women.”

“Shut up, please,” The tall man looked at me defeated, his hands clenched into fists, “once San decides to do something, nobody can stop him. If you think me stepping aside and letting you run away will help, will save you, trust me…it won’t. You could hide anywhere in the four seas and four kingdoms, and San would still find you. And once he does, he won’t be nice to you, he won’t try and sell you off again, Y/N. He’ll torture you until you’re barely breathing and then he’ll kill you in the slowest way possible, making you regret that you dared run away. He’s scarier than you think and he’s certainly more dangerous than you could ever imagine.”

I opened my mouth to say something, but the door opened behind me again. Mingi tensed and quickly averted his eyes back onto the wall, San raising an eyebrow at him as he walked up to me, grabbing my forearm and whirling me around. My jaw clenched and I looked to the side, ignoring San’s burning gaze on my face. I knew he wanted me to look at him, but I wouldn’t. I had enough of his disgusting face. Not wasting any more seconds, he started walking, dragging me after him as my legs refused to move on their own. I really didn’t want to go through the door and when San’s hand gripped the knob, I panicked.

“Please,” I gasped out, hands flying up and holding his cheeks, San’s eyes going wide, “Please, don’t do this to me. I can make you rich in other ways. I can—I can work for you for the rest of my life, please, don’t sell me off. I’ve—I’ve never been touched—by a man before—”

It felt humiliating admitting this to him, but this was my last chance, I had to do my best. San’s dark colored eyes stared deeply into mine, seemingly lost in them as I cupped his cheeks firmly, standing on my tip toes to try and make this more intimate. All I could do was whisper, too scared that my voice would shake if I spoke any louder, “I can sing, I have a beautiful voice. I’m sure you have connections, if you place me amongst wealthy people I can perform for them and all the money will go to you. All you have to do is give me pretty dresses and I’ll handle the rest myself, please, San.”

I really thought my words got through to him as he relaxed in my hold, one hand gently holding my hand against his cheek. He sucked in a deep breath and then his eyes hardened, making me shake my head in a plea. San slowly peeled my hands off his cheeks, tugging me closer as our noses were just inches away from each other.

“Behave.” Was all he said before the door was opened and I was walked outside, the breath knocked from my lungs as I took in the sight before me. At least fifteen men were in the room, sitting helter-skelter and watching me with curious eyes, which slowly turned lustful. I felt my body shake as San still held onto me harshly, making sure I wouldn’t run away. My legs felt numb, even if I tried to, I wouldn’t have been able to move. All of my nightmares sat right in front of me and I bit my lower as San cleared his throat.

“Im Y/N.” His voice held authority as he looked down on everyone, eyes slits, “Quite the beauty, as you can see. She’s a little bit temperamental, but she’s got a rather calm and sweet nature. And I can assure you her voice is just as beautiful as her face and body.”

My jaw clenched and I side glanced San, feeling his grip tighten around me in warning. Everyone was quiet as they watched me and when San nudged me, I understood. He wanted me to sing. But I didn’t want to sing. I felt like a bird held in a cage, only used when needed, never to be free again. Like an imprisoned nightingale. I gulped once and closed my eyes, sighing loudly. If he wanted me to sing, I would sing. The first few octaves were quiet and frail as my voice wavered, but I quickly corrected my pitch and started singing the song about a poor girl taken hostage in a fire exchange between bandits and the constables, only to die an unfortunate death when her kidnapper accidentally killed her after promising to release her once the constables stopped chasing them. The song was short and sad, it usually made people cry, even I felt like crying right now, understanding the poor girl from the song very well. Claps erupted throughout the room, but I didn’t open my eyes, I didn’t want to see who would be my buyer. San had to say nothing as the men started shouting ridiculous sums of money, each one of them trying to be the highest bidding. The room went silent when a deep voice shouted that they were offering five gold bars and a sack full of coins. I heard San gasping quietly beside me and my eyes flew open, falling on a man in his mid-thirties, a black mustache on his face. His eyes were kind and his face friendly as he smiled at me, dressed better than anyone else in the room. Why did he want me? To make me his own captive bird? Despite being the most well dressed in the room, and the kindest and purest looking, there was something in his eyes which sent chills down my body and I knew that my life wouldn’t be long next to that man.

“Sold to the man with the white hat!” San suddenly exclaimed, beaming at the man and bowing his head as he started dragging me back to the room I was held in until now. I looked at him confused, but when he opened the door, Mingi already had a white dress in his hands, waiting for me. San said nothing as he pushed me inside and then slammed the door shut behind me, leaving me with Mingi. My heart was beating like crazy when Mingi walked up to me, carefully extending his arms for me to take the dress, but my legs gave out and I fell forward. Mingi went stiff as I held onto him, suddenly crying into his chest, too short to reach any higher. It took him a few seconds before he reacted, but he started patting my back awkwardly, trying to calm me down. I was bawling by now and I realized how vulnerable Mingi was being right now, perhaps the Heaven’s offered me one last chance. A chance I instantly took. I gripped his arms firmly and kneeled him in the crotch abruptly, making him cry out. I pushed him away and raced towards the door, finding it unlocked. I flung it open and cried out in happiness, not looking back as I took off sprinting, trying to find the center of the town we were in, needing to find the constable this instant. My dress was too long and too thick, but I didn’t care as I raised them above my knees and ran around like a mad woman, getting strange looks from the people walking down the streets, my cheeks still wet from my tears. I was panting by the time I made it to the busier part of the town and I allowed myself to stop for a minute to try and catch my breath. People walked around, all busy with their own things, merchants shouting whatever they had to offer at their stalls. The sun beamed down on me and I couldn’t have felt even more blessed as I allowed myself to chuckle in pure happiness. I was free.

I looked around again, and to utmost luck, my eyes fell on a man wearing a uniform, signaling he was from the night watch. It didn’t matter what his function was as long as he was a figure of authority, someone whom I could ask for help from. The officer was looking around too, watching the people, and when his eyes stopped on me, he slightly smiled. My heart somersaulted and I took off towards him, mouth already forming to cry out for him to help me, when an all too familiar hand around my waist gripped me and turned me around. I bumped into the body, starting to struggle against him, when suddenly a sharp knife was pressed against my liver. It cut through the dress I was wearing and my breath stuttered as I looked up in San’s angry eyes. He found me. I wanted to scream. I wanted to rip myself away from him. I wanted to punch and kick him until he wasn’t breathing anymore.

“If you scream, angel, I swear on the Heavens I will kill you right here.” I whimpered when I felt the knife pressing against my skin harder, gripping San’s biceps as if that would’ve stopped him from doing anything to me. San’s eyes darted to the side and I followed his sight, a lump forming in my throat as the officer was walking towards us, eyebrows furrowed. San looked back down at me, eyebrows slightly furrowing before he leaned down and pressed his lips against mine. I started protesting, gripping his biceps even harder, hoping he’d release me from the pain, but he just pressed his lips harder against mine. I glanced at the officer with desperation written all over my face and San swiftly pulled back just enough to stare in my eyes threateningly, his lips touching mine as he hissed at me.

“If you don’t make it look like we’re a couple, I will torture you until you beg me to kill you.” I really, really wanted to cry, but as San’s lips pressed against mine again, I kissed him back. I made no effort to follow his lead or put any power in the kiss, just smacked my lips against his a few times, hoping it would be enough as I started feeling light headed from the heath and the terror San put me through. His lips were finally away from mine.

“You shouldn’t run away every time we have an argument, angel.” San spoke loudly enough for the officer to hear us as he was close enough, the knife from San’s hand magically having disappeared, “I’m always worried sick about you.”

I just stared into San’s eyes blankly, seeing the officer from the corner of my eyes walk off with a smile, shaking his head. No. I was back in the arms of my kidnapper. Why did I try so hard if it was in vain in the end? San let out a long breath, his forehead wrinkling as he scrunched up his nose, sweat glistening on his temples. He hung his head low, sucking his cheeks in as he held onto my waist with his other hand too, flushing me against his body.

“If I wouldn’t have sold you off already, I would really kill you right now, Y/N.” My jaw clenched at his words and I slightly pushed his biceps, making him look at me.

“I told you I could get you more money if you just allowed me to sing to the wealthy, San.” I tried to coerce him into finally giving in to me, “You get this large sum just once, it will go away eventually. But if you keep me around—if you let me sing—I can bring you weekly the same amount.” I was reaching, but it was worth the try. San didn’t seem to believe me either, and I could feel the resilience radiating off him, so I tried my last method. The method I hated the most, but if it would soften him enough to give in, I had to do it. I cupped his cheeks again and watched his eyes slightly widen as I closed mine, pressing my lips against his. San went stiff as our warm lips molded together, and despite me trying to move mine, his didn’t move. He wasn’t reciprocating it. He refused to fall for my last trick. And it truly was my last trick as I started pulling back defeated, eyes filling with tears, when San cupped my cheeks harshly and crashed his lips against mine. He wasn’t gentle at all, not that I expected him to be, as his lips moved hungrily against mine, devouring me. It was hard to keep up with him as I have never kissed anyone before, but I found my heart thumping loudly in my eardrums as our teeth clashed together, San dominating the kiss. His grip was crushing my cheeks and my lungs were screaming for air as my hands had fallen to his hips, gripping him, reminding myself that I couldn’t fall for his trick. My body was reacting weirdly to his actions, yearning for his lips as he pulled back, taking my lower lip in between his teeth, sucking on it. I felt my cheeks heat up at the action and I was embarrassed, slightly disgusted for making out with him, but fired up. San panted against my lips and he chuckled smugly as I refused to open my eyes, ashamed.

“This took an interesting turn of events, angel, don’t you think?” I didn’t answer him, afraid of what my voice would sound like, but when he nudged my nose with his, I wordlessly nodded, “What did you say? That you can bring me more money weekly than what that crazy rich man just offered me?”

My eyes flew open and the glint of mischief in San’s eyes brought a sense of hope into my system, truly so emotionally tired, that I believed he was genuine this time, “Yes, I can.”

San’s chuckle was high pitched and a crazy look appeared on his face as he bumped his nose against mine again, pushing my head back as he released my cheeks, “Very well, angel, very well.”

I didn’t fully understand what was happening, but I released his hips too as San’s arm went around my shoulders, pulling me into his side as he started walking, “Don’t think you’ll ever be free again, Y/N, because from today on…you’re mine.”

From getting sold off to getting owned by a pirate, neither sounded good nor like a pleasant life. I really didn’t want to cry anymore, but I still wasn’t free. No, I was just owned for life by a deranged and dangerous pirate, who would find me no matter where I went.

I was afraid not even my fantasy worlds were able to save me from the nightmare I found myself tangled up in.

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covenantofthedeep · 1 year ago

Text

i call and you come through ☆

☆ feat. | lumine, zhongli, lyney, lynette, yelan and kunikuzushi ☆ summary | they help you when you're in trouble. ☆ a/n | a lumine for lumiconic. and a country skewer too. this is so not ok. i'm so sorry if lyney/lynette/anyone is ooc!

lumine |

lumine hadn't expected to see anyone at all, much less you. you were somewhat of a subject of interest to her; she wasn't quite sure what you did, and yet she hated you, or at least she told herself she did. she had headed out with the intent of soaking up the cool air before the morning came and the sun sweltered down again, but instead she'd run into you.

she's so focused on your face, at first--the frozen expression of terror as you scrabble uselessly at the drainpipe attached to your house, the way your lips look as you whisper, "back! get back, oh my archons! get back!"--that she doesn't realize what, exactly, you're sending back, and then she looks down. she has to blink a couple of times; are you really scared of cats?

you glance up at her as she makes her way closer, flashing her a pained smile. "thank archons you're here, lumine, seriously. i really can't manage all of these things by myself." her name in your voice sends a spark through her veins, but she ignores it and rolls her eyes at you. "huh, yn, i thought you were so brave? scared off by a couple of cats, are we?" she bends over to grab one around its waist. it mews plaintively at her as she strokes its head, and your eyes flicker to her hands and make their way to her lips. "i guess you aren't so much the brave knight that you let everyone believe you are?" she glances up at you, at the scarlet blush across your cheeks, and wants to drop the cats and give you a kiss.

"i'm just- i can handle everything else, but not cats," you protest, nudging one away with your foot. she bites her tongue. it's so cute. everything about you is endearing, but she can't say it. oh, archons, what a struggle this is. "can you really handle everything else, though?" she prods at you, nudging a rather insistent gray cat away with her boot.

you look at her with furrowed brows, stepping forward as the cats in your path clear away. "lumine, do you hate me?" you ask her, so sincerely, so nonchalantly, almost as if you don't care what her answer will be either way.

she starts, then stops. she looks at your cheekbone, your right eyebrow, your lips. she glances down at your hands, at her feet, anywhere but your eyes. "yes," she says to the ground.

"huh," you respond, squinting at her. she finally drags her gaze upwards, and your eyes sparkle with amusement. "because it doesn't seem like you do. in fact, it sort of seems like the opposite." and you walk down the pathway towards the gates of mondstadt with a newly acquired pep in your step, leaving her absolutely blindsided and spluttering.

kunikuzushi |

kuni goes explicitly out of his way to avoid bumping into you, so really, he doesn't know why he stops when he sees you almost in tears at a food stall. he hovers behind you for what seems like an eternity, debating tapping you on the shoulder and asking what's wrong. he studies the back of your head and your neck, the slump of your shoulders wonders if he's acting like a creep. the vendor behind the stall has his back to the both of you, busily prepping something that smells absolutely exquisite.

you step back a bit while he's lost in his thoughts and step on his foot--and jump about a foot in the air. "oh, archons!" you exclaim, turning around. "i'm so sorry, kuni. i didn't realize you were there."

his face feels absurdly hot under your direct gaze, and he stutters out something along the lines of oh, it's okay. archons, it's like he's stupid when you're standing in front of him. why did he stop? why didn't he just keep walking? now he's going to be late, and you're still smiling at him, looking insufferably beautiful despite crying your eyes out a moment earlier.

he realizes he'd looked down at your feet, almost instinctively, and slowly drags his gaze upwards to meet your eyes. your eyes, which are perfectly ordinary, perhaps, but they send something through his veins, and they're so arresting, maybe he could drown in them? could he? your eyes, which reflect the stars, but there aren't any, because it's the middle of the day? maybe he's hallucinating, he tells himself.

you smile at him, and he's prepared to do anything you ask him to--honestly, why is he still here? you seem fine, he could probably move on, he thinks, but before he can, the vendor places something down in front of you.

"160 mora," the man tells you, and your brows draw together anxiously as you rummage through your purse. you pull out a handful of coins that jingle against each other in the palm of your hand, and the whole while, kuni watches your face. he watches the way your shoulders tense and the cords on your neck stand out as you swallow, and the way you blink rapidly but a tear slips out anyway. your eyebrows stay scrunched, and he can't resist the urge to pull out his own coin purse and wordlessly set down 160 mora.

you whip your head around to look at him, protesting wildly, but he flashes you a pained smile and tries not to look at your eyes as he steps back. "consider it my treat," he tells you, forcing the words out from his throat, wondering why you have such an impossible hold on him.

as he walks away, he replays the entire exchange in his head and vows to never stop for you again.

yelan |

yelan regrets telling you that you can call her for help whenever, because now your cat's stuck in a tree and she's standing at the base, looking up at it, feeling immensely foolish. you're looking at her, though, and whenever you do that, her heart pounds so hard she's worried it'll leap out of her chest. she's seized by the undeniable urge to leap into the tree and fish your wretched cat out, if only you'll keep looking at her like that.

"please, yelan," you beg her, your face the epitome of pleading. she stares at you for a few seconds longer; in her mind, she's tracing your eyebrows and cheekbones and also your lips, oh archons, your lips. she can feel the heat rising to her cheeks and neck, and she's positive she's red, so she clears her throat and steps towards the tree.

she doesn't do romance, she doesn't do daydreaming about you, and she certainly should not be helping you wrangle your beast of a cat out of this tree, but unfortunately, here she is. you cheer her on as she turns a deeper shade of beet red, climbing up the tree in a way that she never had imagined she would ever do; climbing as though her life depends on it.

she finally reaches a branch that she can comfortably sit on, and realizes, to her horror, that she's out of breath. she leans over and rests her forehead against her knees and wills her breath to slow down so that she doesn't seem so desperately out of shape that you regret having asked her for help. when she looks down at you, you're staring back at her with an intensity in your eyes that makes her blush. "are you okay?" you call, voice threaded with concern. "do you want me to come up there?"

does she want you to come up here indeed. archons, she would kill for you up here. unfortunately, who knows what would happen if you came up here. so she shakes her head and continues upwards, craning her neck to impossible angles to search for your fool of a feline.

zhongli |

zhongli doesn't pine after strangers (albeit a stranger with whom he's gotten rather close over the past few months) and he certainly doesn't stop to help many others. but for some reason, he's spent the evening chasing your dog around your house because you had cornered him earlier when he had been on his ritual walk. your closeness, combined with your hand on his (why did you always feel the urge to touch people in some way or another when you were talking to them?) had dried up all of the words on his tongue, but you had looked at him expectantly and he had nodded. nodded. he doesn't even like dogs.

now, he sits on the ground and tries in vain to coax the dog over (mora, its name was; what a stupid name) but it's set on ignoring him. "come here," he tries. "here! come here!" and then he realizes he's switched to the baby voice you often use on mora and has to glance over his shoulder to make sure no one's watching.

he inhales and leans back against the couch he's sitting in front of, staring at the darkening sky outside and wondering what it is you're up to. perhaps a dinner? when you'd let him in earlier, you'd been all dressed up; hair pinned up and your face bright and glowy. you'd smelled like glazelilies, and he had sputtered out agreements while trying not to look you directly in the eyes. briefly, he wonders who you would go to dinner with--and then banishes the thought from his mind.

mora ambles over to him and settles in his lap, but for once, he finds he doesn't mind. he strokes the dog's head and sighs, finally feeling at ease. "oh, aren't you a little nugget of gold? oh, yes you are. yes you are. yes you are." he's so wrapped up in the dog that he doesn't hear the door open and you come in until you're standing directly in front of him, your shoes dangling from your hand. "enjoying ourselves, are we, zhongli?"

lyney |

lyney has taken a liking to you, as much as he tries to pretend it's just platonic. he follows you around, brushing off your complaints of lyney, please! i need to work! instead choosing to focus on the fact that him being around distracts you from your work. so when he stumbles upon you in tears on the ground, of course he sits down beside you.

you scrub your face with your fists, burying your head in your knees as lyney pats your back awkwardly, unsure of what to do. "yn...?" he finally asks. "are you... are you okay?"

"yeah," you squeeze out. "yeah, i'm fine." you blink up at the sky, trying to stop the pressure of tears from making their way out. "i had been working on these documents for a week, and i tripped over the bridge." you gesture weakly in the general direction of the bridge. "and now they're all... gone. down there. in the water."

he digs around in his pocket, searching desperately for a handkerchief. he had one yesterday, when he was practicing his magic tricks... where is it? where is anything when he needs it? blowing out a frustrated breath that rustles the hair on his forehead, he hands you some fake flowers. "do you want me to go get them?"

you laugh, the sound shaky and tear-filled. "thanks, lyney." you set the flowers by your feet and lean against him. "no, no, please don't. seriously, i don't want you--"

he leaps up, his cape flying out behind him. crossing one foot behind the other, he bows, tearing off his hat. a stray dove soars free, flapping erratically. "anything for you, ma cherie," he says, flashing you a wink. he trots off towards the bridge, his heels clacking against the pavement, heart racing.

you stare after him, unable to stop the laugh from bubbling up in your chest. you wipe your eyes and make your way down after him, calling his name. "no, yn!" he shouts valiantly, looking over his shoulder. "you sit down! and rest! i'll get them for you! i'll get--" and he trips over the bridge, splashing into the water below.

you lunge for the railing, scanning the bubbles worriedly. "lyney!" you yell, debating leaping in after him. "lyney, can you hear me? lyney, if you can hear me, come back! lyney, come back!"

he pops up with a sputter, his hat sodden and filled with--are those your documents? his hair sticks to your forehead, giving him a look akin to a rat, but he flashes you a smile so brilliant it sends your heart galloping again. "for you, ma cherie! for you!"

lynette |

lynette ignores all of your attempts to woo her, despite the fact that they get her heart fluttering. you bring her romaritime flowers every tuesday, garlic baguette on thursdays. she thanks you cordially for these gifts, and then spends an hour writing thank-you letters that she never sends.

lynette tries to avoid you, even adding five minutes to her journeys across the city when she sees you. not because she hates you, but because simply being around you sends her into hysterics. (in her head.) she's flustered, she's red, and you're standing in front of her right now, offering a handful of berries. why, oh why, oh why hadn't she just cut behind the houses? now she's cornered, trying hard not to lose her composure. she closes her eyes and opens them, and you're still there, smiling at her, holding those berries.

"thanks," she mutters, reaching for them. you yank them out of reach and tsk. "you can't have them until you help me with this one thing! just this one, i promise."

she crosses her arms firmly over her chest, because oh my archons, your smile has her fully disarmed. "what is it?"

you clap, beaming. "i knew you'd say yes! i knew it!"

she interrupts you. "no, no, i haven't said yes yet. just tell me what it is."

"okay, okay! okay, you need to help me put up these posters." from seemingly nowhere, you wrench out a stack of crisp thick sheets--all with "REWARD: 5000 MORA. LOST CAT!" printed on them in big, alarming letters. she takes one, her brow furrowing.

"is your cat... lost?" she asks, glancing up at you.

you nod, sighing. "he's been gone since this morning. he's not an outdoor cat, you see. he's just so clingy, and it's not like him to be like this...." you trail off, clearing your throat. "you don't have to help me look for him, but could you please help me put up these posters?"

lynette shifts from foot to foot. she's got loads of work to do with lyney, but also... you're looking at her so plaintively, concern written so clearly in your eyes, that, she feels, to say no would be similar to murdering an animal. a baby animal.

"fine," she huffs, and you grab her hand. "thank you, lynette! thank you, thank you. i'll make it worthwhile, i promise!"

you let go and spin around, heading down the path, but she's frozen, her hand ice-cold and red-hot all at once. "lynette," you call over your shoulder. "are you coming?"

she shakes her head, trying to clear her feelings like cobwebs, and dashes after you.

four hours later, the sun's setting and everything is bathed in a golden glow, almost as though you're a statue. you're spent; exhaustion pools in dark circles under your normally-alight eyes. her legs ache and her fingers hurt from plastering posters on walls. "oh, my poor baguette," you complain, sitting down against a tree.

she can't stifle a chuckle. "you named your cat baguette?"

you look at her indignantly. "she's very long and very brown. it seemed fitting!"

this strikes lynette as the funniest thing she's ever heard, and she laughs until tears run down her face. her ribs ache and her stomach aches, but it's worth it for the look of bemused adoration on your face.

something brushes against her leg and she jumps, shrieking. your grin stretches ear-to-ear, literally, and you dive for the barrel she's sitting on. "baguette!" you yelp, cradling the cat in your arms. "oh, my gosh, baguette!"

the sun vanishes behind the clouds, and they glow from the inside. almost like you, she thinks. it's a picture-perfect scene, an indignant baguette pinned between you and her, one of your arms wrapped around her shoulders as you kiss her cheek. she never wants to leave.

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prismuffin · 8 months ago

Text

A/n: Sorry this is a bit specific- I wanted to write smth for myself that I personally relate to and am dealing with. Made the reader gn so anyone at all can read this if they also relate!

Normal

Steven Grant x asexual(spectrum)!gn!reader

( summary: Steven and you had been together for a few months and he always wondered why you often pulled away from him whenever he tried to get explicitly touchy with you during intimate moments so he decides to ask ) warnings?: angst, pre-established relationship, talks of sex (no actual sex), reader is specifically portrayed to be both placiosexual (meaning they have no problem sexually pleasuring their partner but don't want their partner pleasing them) and cupiosexual ( meaning that the person often wants to experience a sexual relationship but can't for whatever reason) , reader being confronted about their sexual orientation, reader not being completely ok with their sexual orientation! !-!more under the cut!-!

You and Steven had been together for a few months now and everything had been perfect. You knew about Marc, accepted his flaws and quirks, were kind and loving, you were everything he'd needed.

Not too long ago he'd decided to ask you to get a little more intimate, it was clear that you were previously waiting on him to be ready which he appreciated. When the night finally came where you two were intimate it was a bit more one-sided than Steven had thought. It's not like he wasn't satisfied or anything, quite the opposite actually. You'd focused all your attention on him, making him feel good and completely disregarding your own satisfaction. He at first thought it was because it was your first time but now after being intimate with you for a while he realizes how uncomfortable you get with him when he tries to reciprocate any sort of intimate action towards you. Sure things like little love-bites are accepted by you but anything past that you shut down for the most part. It's gotten to a point where he wonders if its just him that you don't want to be intimate with, but the way you treat him, please him contradicts that entirely. So as you sat on the couch in your newly shared apartment he couldn't help but wanna ask.

"Y/n...?"

You hummed as you turned away from the random cooking show that played on the TV to focus on Steven. "Yeah?" You watched Stevens eyes fill with hesitancy as he looked at you. "Uhh, I just- I have a bit of a question.." He stated, speaking a bit quieter as he eyed you cautiously. You nodded, grabbing the remote and turning down the TV. This was obviously important if he's acting this nervous so you decided to give him your full attention. "What's up? Is something wrong?" You turned a bit so that you'd be facing him fully. "Not really, I've just been wondering about something for a while," He fidgeted with his hands before continuing. "I mean, we've been intimate for some time and I love it, I really do, but how come you never really let me..." He trailed off, gesturing between you and him a bit. "Let you...?" You questioned, you had a hunch where this was going but thought it'd be better if he clarified before you jumped to conclusions. "Let me touch you..." Your heart dropped a bit at the question, yup it was what you thought. You suppose that this was gonna come up sooner or later.

You usually only performed oral or manual sex on Steven, never really fully going all the way for your own comfort but you guess it can seem a bit weird after a while to perform only those things. "I...uh..." You hesitated, unsure of just how to go about answering this. You knew you were on the ace spectrum, placiosexual to be specific, but still there was something inside you yearning for a sexual relationship and though you technically have one you want to really feel it. But the thought of letting that happen sickens you. It's been an ongoing battle in your mind for years, you hope you'll eventually "grow out of it" but you haven't had many opportunities to try, anytime you do something in your mind just shuts the whole thing down. "I-I'm sorry, that was insensitive of me- it's ok you don't have to answer-" Steven stuttered out but you were quick to dismiss his worries. "It's fine, it just caught me a bit off guard ya know?" You chuckled dryly, nervously as you swallowed thickly and sighed. "It's uhhh, I'm sorry I'm just a bit...asexual..." Stevens eyes widened at the confession as he inhaled sharply. "Oh bloody hell- I didn't like make you do those things right?"

"No- Steven it's fine I was fine with all of that I swear." You smiled though your eyes held a bit of sadness to them.

"Are you sure? Don't asexuals not like to perform sexual acts like that?" He asked and you nodded. "Some don't sure, but asexuality is a spectrum Steven, I'm not completely uncomfortable with the idea of sex its just uhh it's a bit hard for me to receive any sexual favors." He nodded slowly as he took in your words, not entirely sure on how to respond. "So, how much are you comfortable with?" You hummed at the question, for some reason it made you want to cry though you bit back the thought before anything could show. "Well I'm Placiosexual, which means I'm completely fine with doing sexual acts on my partner, you." He smiled, grabbing your hand as you continued. "But when it comes to receiving those same acts from others I get a bit uncomfortable.." You looked down and he nodded, moving his head lower to catch your eye again. "What's wrong?" "It's nothing I-" "I accept you ya know? This isn't gonna change anything between us I swear." You were silent for a few seconds after that, you'd expect nothing less from Steven but that wasn't entirely the problem. "I know that." "Then what is it?" He rubbed the back of your hand with his thumb and you sighed, not being able to hold yourself back from tearing up a bit. "I just- Sometimes I really envy you." "Envy me?" "Yeah, you can just be ok with stuff that makes me extremely uncomfortable at times." You paused, trying to decide how you wanted to word this to get your point across. "I don't want to be this way all the time, I want to feel comfortable in those moments, to connect with someone like that but I just can't and I've always hated myself for it." You couldn't help the tear that escaped your eye, deciding to just let it fall. "I just wish I was...normal,"

"You are normal." Steven was quick to shut down your negative thoughts.

Looking at him directly you were shocked to see him tearing up a bit. "Steven..." "You're completely normal Y/n, nothings wrong with you, you just have a harder time getting comfortable with those things and that's ok, everyone's different love," "But I don't want to be different!" You choked out, more tears streaming down your face at the confession and he paused. Moving closer to you, he grabbed your face in his hands using his thumbs to wipe your tears as you shut your eyes. Leaning in he softly placed a kiss to your nose before sighing. "Who you are is completely okay love, and if you really want to we can try and take things slow for you alright? But you can't be mad at yourself for feeling the way you feel about something as futile as this." You sniffled, slowly opening your eyes though not looking at him directly. "What you do for me is enough already, I don't need to have sex with you to love you." That seemed to really hit you as you started crying again, moving to hug Steven. He stroked your back as you cried, whispering comforting words to calm your ragged breathing as you held back sobs. "I just don't wanna feel this way forever." You mumbled and Steven hummed, pulling back from the hug to look at you. You tried to wipe your tears but Steven had beat you to it. The small amount of affection making you smile briefly before you sighed. "Like I said before if you really want to try and change it we can take it slow," "I-I don't really know, I mean I want to try but I don't because I know I'll just feel disappointed." Steven offered you a smile as he continued to caress your face, ready to wipe away any stray tears that still fell. "Then we won't. Not unless you're 100% sure you want to try. And even if that day never comes it'll be alright." You were quiet as you took in his words.

Part of you hoped that one day randomly you'd just start to feel ok with it all but you know that's most likely never going to happen. But with Stevens words on your mind you feel a little less bad for feeling this way. Maybe you're not some weirdo after all, maybe you are just a normal person. Even if you never change the way you feel, Steven will still love you and at the end of the day isn't that all you really need?

----!----

( This was once again quite personal to me so I'm sorry that it's like so specific but I needed some comfort so I decided to make my own comfort fic LMFAO )

Thanks for reading! Have a great day/night!!

My requests are CLOSED !!

See my DIRECTORY for upcoming fics!

Masterlist

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valyrfia · 8 months ago

Note

RE: this ask

Sorry about to go off on one, gender studies and online fan culture from an academic standpoint is a special interest of mine because being film and literature student wasn't annoying enough (participatory culture studies my beloved)

From a general standpoint, I think the reason M/M ships in fiction have always been more popular is because male characters are historically more developed and complex. I think it’s only in recent years have their been an influx of popular F/F ships, with the added development of women on screen (e.g Clarke and Lexa, Kara and Lena, Regina and Emma, Nancy and Robin) - I think there is also a point to be made this has coincided with gender expression, genderqueerness and more general knowledge of being outside the typical gender spectrum.

I can’t explicitly say that being in M/M fandom spaces encouraged my personal discovery of being transmasc but it certainly helped to have an avenue where I could project onto these “male” characters and see myself in them. I was so uncomfortable in my own body and what I didn’t know at the time as dysphoria, I can see why I didn’t go for F/F ships.

There are of course a lot of “fandom elders” but young (early to late teens) afab people do make up a large bulk of it and I get why it may be easier for them to fixate on M/M ships as a, sort of method of exploring their own sexuality and gender expression. F/F ships may hit too close to home and F/M ships are what they are trying to escape from so it leaves M/M ships to project onto. Which, unfortunately then can become warped by the persons own comphet and/or binary ideas about gender.

A male character may have more stereotypically “feminine” traits (in terms of interests or emotional reactions) and I can see why people who also have those traits would project there own insecurities onto them, reinforcing the feminisation of the male character but not being comfortable enough in your own gender expression to genderbend the character or write them as trans.

It’s the same reason I think mafia romance, dark romance etc etc is so popular with cishet women because they can read about a fantasy where instead of the very real every day misogyny and violence they face leading to abuse, assault and death, it brings “positives” ; protected, loved, a happy relationship.

Which, side note. I think this has A Lot to do with y/n, self insert fics becoming “cringe”. Because, I think a lot of people just want to fuck/date a character and feel like they can’t write a self insert anymore, so just project massively onto one character, leading to a lot of these issues. I don’t think Tony Stark/Peter Parker would be as popular as it is if people just let young women write their self insert fic about being Tony Stark’s sugar baby and then we wouldn’t have the wildly mischaracterised version of Peter Parker that we do!

But, all this being said. I’m talking about fiction. Dean Winchester isn’t actually affected if people online only talk about him in a stereotypically “female” way.

RPF is a different kettle of fish (and I’m not going in RPF ethics that’s different - I have no issues with rpf creators/consumers to be clear, I am one) because a real person does become affected. Even if you are keeping your fan works and discussions to private spaces, it can leach over into how you speak about the actual person. That’s where it becomes so incredibly important to remember that your RPF version of celebrities are just as fictional as Dean Winchester is.

sorry I used mr. supernatural as an example, 13 year old me is still alive and kicking in my head somewhere.

I love to hear your perspective on it with a trans worldview (and academic credentials), and I do agree that that might be a big driver of some young people only wanting to engage with MLM fic and feeling uncomfortable with WLW fic. You've brought up so many great points so I'll try and address them all.

I can add the perspective of a lesbian who was closeted for the first two decades of my life, came out less than five years ago, and still struggles on and off with comphet now. MLM fics in my teens were a way to consume queer content and relationships without having to think about the implications of enjoying consuming WLW content, and I think that's true for a lot of young closeted teens so it's no surprise that some comphet/hetnorm/cisnorm stuff bleeds through there because it's a framework the authors haven't managed to detach themselves from yet.

But yeah, I agree the issue lies with people wanting characters to be self-inserts partially so that they can experience sex, sexuality, and romance without any of the hang ups of thinking about patriarchy. And I agree with your solution: make y/n fics cool again! The ability we have to hallucinate while we read is magic! You can put YOURSELF in as a character's love interest, how cool is that?

Ultimately, yeah. There's nothing wrong with RPF as long as it isn't actually affecting the person that the RPF is based off, but I've seen a lot of takes escaping containment so to say (ie. leaving this website) with takes about the actual racers so obviously picked up through RPF. The main culprits are Charles, Lando, Max in my experience.

#You always send the longest and most thought out asks and I really don't know how to answer them because you're so eloquent #thank you for your POV!#enigmabird #asks #charles in makeup and lace discourse #hate it slightly too late to change it now

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spacemagicandlaserswords · 2 years ago

Text

Open and Waiting (Chapter 3)

Summary: Tech is an Intelligent Dom in more ways than one, Hunter decides he’s had enough casual voyeurism for one day, and you continue to be a good little cockwarmer while remembering that time Crosshair spanked you.

Relationship: Tech x f!reader, a little bit of Hunter x f!reader, mentions of Crosshair x f!reader, Echo x f!reader and Wrecker x f!reader

Warnings: NSFW, cock warming, voyeurism, domination, submission, Dominant Tech, submissive reader, restraints, collar, wrist cuffs, sexual inexperience, inexperienced reader, naked reader, voyeurism, poor self-worth, spiralling thoughts, feelings, smut with feelings, polyamory, little bit of verbal degradation, praise kink, pretend sci-fi technology/science, pretend Star Wars planets and locations, not beta read, no use of y/n. Mentions of: Oral training, dildos, soft domination, finger sucking, fingers in mouth, spanking, impact play, humiliation, degradation, boot licking, penetration, after care, bruises, vaginal fingering, bacta as lube, video recording of sexual acts.

Word Count: 1714 (Chapter 3)

Author’s Notes: Please read the warnings! And please let me know if you enjoyed it. Behold, more filth.

I also wanted to make it clear that everything depicted in this fic is consensual and has been enthusiastically consented to by everyone involved. A lot of what is in this fic could be seen as quite intense, depending on your levels or limits *looks at the giant wall of warnings*. Please know that everyone involved is actively participating in safe kink practices and many open, honest and clear conversations are had between everyone, even if it is not explicitly described in the fic. If it helps, I have a background context detail for this AU that Tech maintains an up to date list of everyone's hard limits, interests and requests, and makes sure everyone's kink contracts are revisited every month and updated if required. None of the Batch tease him for it because they all take safe kink practices very seriously. I hope this comes across in the writing, both in previous and future chapters, but I also wanted to be clear about it here as well.

Chapters: One, Two, Four, Five, Six | Ao3

Open and Waiting (Chapter 3)

A hand immediately descends on my head, preventing any hint of movement and halting any further thoughts of trying to take more of Tech’s cock deeper into my mouth. There’s a weight to his hand, a solid presence and a warning. He knew exactly what I’d been trying to do. Sir had been unequivocally clear that I was not allowed to move and I’d just skirted very close to breaking that rule.

Oh kark, I’ve displeased him. I can’t bear disappointing him and the punishment that follows is always Tech’s own special combination of humiliation, control and mental domination. He knows exactly how to slowly and painstakingly unravel me, all while ensuring that I’m the one begging for my descent into delirium. It always leaves me ruinously shattered and I really just wanted to be a good girl and warm his cock for him. I was doing so well. Why do I always try to bite off more than I can chew? Both metaphorically and literally, in this case. Though I am absolutely not moving anything now, especially not my jaw or mouth. Why did I have to try and push it further and do more? Tech explicitly told me not to move. I’m already pleasing him, why did I have to try and go further? It’s not like I—

Tech’s precise voice cuts through my spiralling thoughts.

“Our submissive has been doing exceptionally well with their oral training and has been diligent and dedicated in their practice. She has shown consistent and admirable improvement in the length and depth that she is able to be orally penetrated. I am quite pleased with her progress and have no doubt she will turn into an excellent cock slut in time and with continued guidance."

The praise hits me deep in the chest, flaring out to run down my arms and I can’t stop myself from preening at his words. Tech knew. Of course he knew. He’s far too intelligent not to notice when my brain starts running away from me.

“Hmmm, she’s pretty good already.” Hunter adds. “And watching her suck away at those training dildos that can be mounted to the walls is always a good watch.”

“Yes. Those were an excellent invention of mine.” Tech confidently replies.

“Do you think you’d be able to install a hidden or quick release one on the side of a chair in the cockpit?” asks Hunter. “I prefer to keep her at my knee and it’s easier to control her movement when she’s close by.”

Another shiver runs over my naked skin at the thought. I do enjoy serving at Hunter’s knee. It’s a remarkably peaceful and calming experience. One that has nearly caused me to fall asleep on more than a few occasions. We usually do it when he takes watch. Sitting at his feet, my body leaning against his leg and my head resting against the side of his knee, the blue lights of hyperspace dancing behind my eyelids. Hunter usually keeps me in place with a single hand on my head or wrapped around the nape of my neck. Sometimes I’ll end up sucking on his fingers. Other times he’ll gently run the pad of his thumb or fingers up and down my tongue and I end up drooling on his armour or the floor. I often worry about making a mess but he always reassures me that it doesn’t bother him at all. If anything, it’s actually a good thing. Apparently, all the sensations help to ground him. Having one particular impression to focus on helps to reduce the rest of his senses to background noise. If that’s what it takes to lessen the constant barrage of feedback on his enhanced senses and afford him a moment of relative peace then I will happily have my tongue used as a resting pad for his thumb or fingers.

Just like it’s currently being used as a resting place for Tech’s cock.

The owner of said cock provides a clipped response to Hunter’s question.

“Of course I can. I already have plans for such a modification. Would you prefer the pilot’s or co-pilot's chair?”

“Pilot’s.” answers Hunter. “It’s your invention. Besides, Echo might be a bit peeved if he walks into the cockpit one day to find a dildo attached to the armrest of his chair.”

“An amusing discovery, I’m sure.” Tech replies, his dry wit in full force.

The conversation continues on above me, both of them completely ignoring my bound and open position on the floor. It’s like I’m not even here. They could be having the same conversation over caf or while Tech is torso deep in the guts of the Marauder fixing the latest thing to go wrong with the ship. His legs always end up splayed wide apart when he’s working like that. If I wasn’t so desperate to please and had just a little bit of brat in me, I’d probably eventually snap and go down on him then and there.

“Nah it’s a fair way off. The towns here are fairly isolated and spread out.”

Hunter’s smokey voice interrupts my rapidly degenerating fantasies about blowing Tech in all sorts of compromising positions. I guess they’ve moved on from talking about me like I’m not even there, despite the fact that I’m right here on my knees under the workbench.

“The others are going to be on their supply run for a while.” Hunter adds.

“Yes. I estimate that they will be away for another 3 hours and 16 minutes.” Tech responds.

“Do you need anything from me before I go back to arguing with this schematic of that Seppie base?” asks Hunter.

“Some peace and quiet would be appreciated. Unless you wish to watch?” Tech’s suggestion hanging in the air.

“Nah, she’s all yours. I’ve got my own ideas for when I get her next. Besides, her arousal’s so strong I can basically taste it.” Hunter comments.

The verbal debasement makes my pussy drip and my mouth somehow even wetter.

“Do not let me keep you from your work.” Tech replies, a clear dismissal and indication that this conversation is over.

Hunter just snorts in response and turns on his heel before heading back to the bow of the ship. The cockpit door closes and then it’s just Tech and I again in the still silence. The only interruption is the movement and scraping of tools above me as Tech dedicates his full focus to the project in front of him.

Well, maybe not his full, complete focus.

Tech’s other leg has started bouncing. I can feel the small movements through his thigh where my cheek is currently resting. He always does this when there’s something competing for the attention of his prodigious intellect. The warm, wet presence of my mouth wrapping around his cock must be doing a fairly decent job of distracting him. I wonder how much longer this is going to last? Probably not 3 hours and 16 minutes, unless Tech feels like adding more voyeurism to today's antics. Crosshair always enjoys getting a good eyeful when he can. An amusing attribute for someone who can be a tad possessive when he gets me to himself. I would rib him about it but teasing Crosshair is like playing with fire while doused in petrol and carrying lit matches. That man knows exactly how to cause and wield pain. His sadistic streak is as glaringly obvious as his facial tattoo. Our sessions together are often fairly intense and are a clear reminder of his predilection towards inflicting pain and the satisfaction he gains from watching me disintegrate under his hands. I’d rather not give him even more ammunition, especially after overhearing a brief snippet of a conversation he had with Tech about an idea for an implement that involved spikes.

A shudder runs through me at the thought and I can almost feel the phantom stings across my hide from when our sniper flayed my ass last time. It had been a phenomenal experience, pain and pleasure intertwining into a heady mix of sensation that was impossible to discern where one finished and the other began. Hunter and Echo had watched as Crosshair completely broke me apart, fierce slaps followed by biting strokes of his cane striking again and again over my ass. There is nothing quite so exquisitely humiliating as being reduced to a sobbing and quaking puddle on the floor and then being forced to lick the boot of your current dominant. Of course, he had to take it up a notch by pulling my head up by my hair so I was forced to look straight at the leadership team of my own squad as they observed my pathetic attempts at following Crosshair’s commands.

It’s a little hard to clean leather with your tongue when you keep crying on it.

By the time Crosshair was fucking me into the floor, I don’t think I was cogent or present enough to do anything other than lie there and just take it. I hadn’t been quite so physically, mentally and emotionally broken by a scene like that for a while. Thank the Maker they all know exactly what they’re doing when it comes to after care. It had taken me a long time to come back to the world after that, those long limbs wrapped around me like a shield, quiet affirmations murmured in my ear. For someone so outwardly caustic, Crosshair can be remarkably soft when he is so inclined. The bruises he left were an astounding array of blues, purples and blacks. I could barely move properly afterwards and sitting was an exceptionally slow and ginger process. A later application of bacta gel helped but that had quickly devolved into being fingered with bacta gel while bent over the medbay bed. Tech had made some comment about this not being it’s intended use when he walked in halfway through but by that stage Crosshair had two long fingers deep inside me and was running rings around my clit and I did not care. At least it gave Tech another recording of me climaxing to add to his collection. Apparently, I am a “most cooperative subject”.

Crosshair had actually laughed at that.

–––

Author’s Note: Please let me know if you enjoyed it!

I’ve realised that I appear to be writing this mainly in first person from the perspective of the reader, and in present tense, apart from the memories sections (not sure they really count as proper flashbacks). I know the summaries make use of ‘you’ and so appears to be in second person but I think the majority of this is in first person, or at least I’m trying to keep it as consistent as possible. It’s probably all over the shop though so the ‘not beta read’ warning definitely applies here.

Reader is not named and is referred to as she/they, you/you’re (when spoken to), submissive or their (the Batch’s) submissive, various derogatory terms (slut, whore etc.), and other more general affectionate terms (darling, dear etc.) and Mando’a endearments (mesh’la, cyar'ika etc.). The latter of these mainly appear in the aftercare scene, which is still so far away at this point. Why have I done this to myself? Write fanfic, they said. It’ll be fun, they said. *sobs* The reader is referred to in a generally objectifying manner, like something that the Batch owns without being explicitly possessive about it, and there is absolutely no use of y/n (guess which fanfic writing trope I can’t stand).

Tech finally starts to play with you in Chapter 4 and the filthiness factor ratchets up again (somehow).

Taglist: @queenariesofnarnia @skywlker-sluvtt @techs-assistant @dangraccoon @iamburdened @pheesupremacy @blondie-bluue @motte-the-goblin

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distant-velleity · 10 months ago

Text

Two Is Just As Good As One

Summary: Even when the Mostro Lounge is empty, people like Yu and Chrysos can experience companionship there. Word count: ~900 A/N: A short little unbeta'd thing, since I wanted a little bit of Yu from a POV that isn't his. These two were always meant to be similar, and I took it a step further bc Chrysos is always interested in people who aren't what they appear to be. Like Yu "I can and will pretend to be someone I'm not" Wei. Two people who want to be free but can't handle negative perception... wow. Let them be friends !!! (bonus note: this takes place on Day 3 of A Fair Price. Just so you know :> )

For a Saturday evening, the crowds have cleared out rather quickly.

By the time Chrysos emerges from his room with a thermos of soothing tea for his strained previously-singing voice, the Lounge is empty. Everyone else who was on shift earlier must be in the kitchen washing dishes. Well, save for a certain otherworldly boy wearing a borrowed Octavinelle uniform, sleeves rolled up as he uses a rag to wipe down the tables.

Yu hums quietly to himself, looking rather serene and satisfied for someone on solo cleaning duty. He doesn’t seem aware that Chrysos is watching him from the shadows of the hallway, as he even chaînés turns from the now-clean table to another one.

For someone so frequently swapping personas to appeal to others, his true self has some rather simple desires. Like dancing and humming to his heart’s content.

Another similarity between the two of us, it would seem.

Chrysos recognizes the tune after listening and watching Yu dance between cleaning for a bit, finding himself singing along without realizing—

“Seeking thrills makes me me, it’s an essential piece / In the darkness, I’ll enchant you, so take my hand,” he sings, soft as to not irritate his throat. “Witness this wondrous, twisted land~”

It’s almost comical, how Yu snaps out of his solitary reverie as soon as he realizes that it’s not just a figment of his imagination singing. “Chrysos?!” he yelps, almost shouting as he clutches the rag to his chest.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude.” Chrysos dips his head apologetically. “I heard you humming Piece of My World and couldn’t help myself.”

“Ah…” Yu relaxes, hands falling back to his sides. He puts on a sheepish, small smile. “I guess it is kind of my fault for thinking I could just do whatever while I was cleaning. That song’s been stuck in my head lately.”

“It was the audition song for the SDC team, right?”

Yu nods. “And it’s really catchy, too. I can see why it was so popular.” He leans over to continue wiping a table. “Have you considered performing it here?”

“It was one of my first songs here, back when the trend was still dying down,” recalls Chrysos.

“Oh, makes sense.”

Inevitably, because it’s not in either of their natures to make small talk, they both fall silent. Yu tightens the hairtie on his ponytail and continues his work.

However, it’s starting to occur to Chrysos that there’s still quite a few tables left and only one magicless human on the task. If he hadn’t walked in then he probably wouldn’t have paid it any mind, but now that he’s here, it’s a little difficult to shrug and walk away.

“Do you…” Chrysos starts, and then stops himself out of embarrassment when Yu turns to look at him. The TA offers him an encouraging tilt of the head, though, so he continues. “Do you want any help with cleaning the tables?”

(He’s really starting to get why Santiago curses out his conscience so much. Remembering how he’d treated certain students with disdain and disregard back in early December… it makes him want to make up for that, and it’s awful.)

Yu’s eyes widen. “Oh! No, no, it’s fine. I know it looks bad because it’s just me working, but there was another guy helping me out earlier. You just performed, so you should rest.” He pauses. “Also, didn’t Azul explicitly tell you to use less magic outside of classes?”

Chrysos grimaces internally when he remembers the stern talking-to he’d gotten from his upperclassmen. It’s already been a few weeks since winter break, but he’s probably still not off the hook. “I can grab another rag and clean manually. It’d still be faster.”

Yu visibly hesitates. “If you want…”

He has that look in his eyes when he glances at Chrysos. A look where it seems as if he’s not looking at the person themselves, but through their facade and into them. People like Leona, Azul, and Jamil have been on the receiving end of it more times than Chrysos can count.

The TA doesn’t consider himself perceptive, but at least to others, he is in some way. Consequently, that perceptiveness leads to concern for what he sees in others. Concern that is… a little more than partially warranted, but—

“It won’t be a problem,” Chrysos assures him, because he does want to offer his help. It’s easy, if mundane, work.

(And, he can think to himself with the second-hand humiliation of a child watching his older sibling fall in love, the housewarden is in the VIP office with Jayme right now, so he isn’t around to tell me no.)

There’s a moment in which Yu continues to hesitate, battling with himself on the inside, before finally opening himself up to accept help. “Okay,” he concedes. “I haven’t gotten to the tables by the bar yet.”

“Got it. I’ll take care of those.”

He makes a quick trip to the storage closet and gets to work as soon as he comes back, offering Yu the mop for the floor once the tables are nice and clean. With two people on the job, the work may not be as quiet—even with two introverts—but it’s easier.

And if Chrysos accidentally makes eye contact with Yu only for them to share a little companionable smile, that’s something that doesn’t need to be discussed.

#kai's writing #twst oc #chrysos pendentif #yuusona #yu's silly dancing soul makes an appearance #bc im ngl if i was all alone in the lounge i would be dancing to my heart's content too HSKDFJKSFDHSDf #but it's not so bad to share a moment with a friend ...#i feel like i want to put more emphasis on these two's platonic relationships so this is a good start for that

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princemick · 1 year ago

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I'm sorry you got attacked by some fans some of them are normal people I swear. I have no problem with people throwing hate at Max and yes I also like Lewis because I focus on what I feel and do as a fan. I think everyone should know what to do to make the community less toxic and I see rude fans on both sides.

You are an amazing content creator and seem a nice person. The only criticism I have is that sometimes you put yourself in the position of "owner of the fanbase"? Sometimes it sounds like you speak for us all when it's not the case.

I'm sure a lot of people on social media act in certain ways to feel welcomed and make friends but in the end we are different individuals that shouldn't be judged as one. This can go for the situation with the Max fans on your post too.

Again I'm sorry you got attacked no one deserves this.

hiya, I'm gonna, try and be nice but this genuinely confused me. but first absolutely now worries i wasn't really attacked or if I was I haven't cared, the post is muted so I'm not seeing anything yk.

but okay, everyone reads posts differently and mb a joke was misread idk but I've always tried to make it very clear that I can only speak for myself? I have in the last few asks made that clear and I try to explicitly state that every time. the only thing I'm like 'lol ur all wrong im right' about is like omegaverse alignment as a joke so I genuinely dont know where that comes from.

I am pretty sure ive never seriously spoken for more people then myself and maybe fran and niamh and I never will bc I obviously clearly cant. and if I ever have spoken for the whole community (outside of that one welcome to tumblr from twitter post) then?? that was dumb of me sorry abt that.

n yea for the last part I have let half the max fans just reblog it like I said before most just hijacked it as max positive n were normal abt it in the tags n then I dont mind I mind the people that start saying dumb shit abt me in the tags bc that urks me for obvious reasons. everyones free to read my posts however they want just dont be a dick n a good few people were dicks. so those I blocked.

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wrciteoff · 4 years ago

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i know what u are thinking !! Jamie !! u said u were going into the woods for a week !! that was May 2nd !! it is the 24th !! it has been 3 WEEKS !!

n u are right. correct. the woods were v convincing what can i say

#!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#i am back n about to do some drafts #god all of u ! ur writing ?! beautiful #did any of u watch eurovision #bc this year was a good year #n let me just make myself explicitly clear #nil points to the uk?? valid. we deserved it. got nothing but respect for that choice #;;jammiechats

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morallygay · 2 years ago

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🟩⬜️⬛️ Animes for aro/ace people - Part 1 ⬛️⬜️🟪

part 2 here

Including:

-shows in which (a) character(s) has/have shown lack of interest or disinterest in romance and/or sex🔻

-shows that as a whole have little to no romance and/or sex in them or are not romance focused🔹

I encourage anyone to reply/reblog with ideas/suggestions of animes that could qualify (especially aroallo people since you are the least represented and, basically being the opposite myself, I will not necessarily notice it). This is an ever expanding list (in theory. when i remember to come back to it) :)

This is a completely personal list based on what animes made me consciously think “aspec vibes”; it’s not guaranteed that you vibe with my taste, but surely a few people will, and this is for them. Since I’ve seen a lot of animes while aroace, I’m one of the few people who could make this post, so here, finally I made it.

To me canon and the intentions of the author are very important and obviously change completely the context of the ‘representation’. The worst feeling is expecting representation and being disappointed and invalidated, so I will make clear what kind and level of representation it is and if intended (to my understanding/intuition) or not. Let’s start by saying that, in case you were born yesterday, we don’t exist according to media and anime is no exception so expect most of those to not canonically be aromantic or asexual, and that even if the author intended in some cases to make them in practice aro/ace, it is most likely in a way that is oblivious to the actual existence of these orientations (the words are never used for sure), ex. it’s supposed to be a quirk / personality trait and not an actual sexuality. Also I have a taste for seinen so there will be an overrepresentation of that. With that said, let’s go.

"Saiki Kusuo No Psi Nan" / "The Disastrous Life Of Saiki K" (like 50 episodes but you will not see the time pass)🔻

Definitely the n.1 aroace anime. It’s a comedy. The protagonist is an absolute aroace icon. He explicitly expressed multiple times that he doesn't get and is disinterested in romance/sex and those facts are pillars of the show and the comedy. He loves sweets. You can also see him as demi. However the (aro/ace) label is obviously never used since the author is probably unaware of this sexuality's existence. It's the kind of representation that is not intended as representation. He is ‘nonhuman’ aroace rep; the fact that he is a psychic and basically a god is intended as the reason for his lack of interest/attraction.

warning: in season 3 he loses his powers and it is implied that because of that he is now a Normal boy and therefore allo. and he shows attraction for the first and only time in the commercial breaks animations lmao. traumatizing 😔. that didn’t happen in the manga anyway so just bear with it and ignore it.

Otherwise there is a lot of romance in this show and instances of sexual attraction, and it has a lot of other problems. It probably doesn’t pass the bechdel test for like the first and a half season. But it really is funny— hilarious even. It’s also very problematic. Still definitely recommend and it is very empowering to watch as an aroace, but keeping all that in mind.

“Barakamon” (12 episodes)🔻

The protagonist is canonically asexual in the manga apparently. I haven’t read it but in the anime at least he did in fact show disinterest and confusion over sexual attraction. No info romantic orientation-wise. It isn’t perfect (there was a whole thing about a character that is a homophobic fujoshi and other instances of unfunny humor like that) but it’s an cute slice of life I suppose.

“Dr Stone” (35 episodes + 3rd season coming soon)🔻

The protagonist never showed romantic or sexual attraction and explicitly showed disinterest to both at times. He literally got married for practical reasons and divorced hours later. Aroace king. Here too his lack of interest may be intended as a joke to show that he is Logical and too busy with Science to have time for bullshit like “love”, but it’s not like he can’t be both so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The show itself is about science and is overflowing with love for the world in general! I have some (unrelated to aspecness) problems with it but overall it’s really good + there’s other types of queer rep in the manga apparently but I haven’t read it yet.

“Ore Monogatari” / “My Love Story” (24 episodes)🔻

A very sweet and good romance anime. In this one the side character (on the right) is heavily implied to be on both the aromantic and asexual spectrums, and there was a whole mini-arc about him and that near the end of the anime. Very wholesome.

“Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun” / “Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun” (12 episodes + 1 OVA)🔻

A hilarious romantic comedy that I highly recommend in general. The protagonist’s crush is super aroace in the anime and it’s very funny and validating/empowering. It’s supposed to be read as him being oblivious for the sake of comedy, and he still is her love interest so in the manga — which goes much further — he slowly starts to develop feelings too. I see him as demiromantic. There are 2 other characters that have shown confusion / lack of interest about sexual attraction (one only appears in the manga) that I see as alloace. Also everyone (yes the aroace guy included) is bi. Not canonically of course but yeah. Watch it (unless you’re the type that doesn’t do ships, then you can pass on this one).

“Shingeki No Kyojin” / “Attack On Titan” (87 episodes + the last season coming soon)🔹

Romance exists in the show in the way that: it exists in real life so it would be unrealistic to not have it. The show itself is not focused on romance at all, and there is no unnecessary forced romance either. The female characters are not sexualized at all and there are virtually no comment/scene that show sexual attraction, to the point where I wonder if isayama (the author) is not asexual as well. This is a show where it’s hard to find any characters who you can prove are allo; this is how irrelevant both romance and sexual attraction are.

“Beelzebub” (60 episodes)🔻

This one is a mostly episodic comedy. The protagonist has big aroace vibes. He is supposed to be read as oblivious (which he also definitely is, but I see him as both) and too dumb to be horny or something. There is a lot of fanservice (respectful one though (well, as respectful as fanservice can be??)) and his best friend’s entire personality is being a pervert and that’s really annoying. Plus one of the main recurring characters is a ‘predatory gay’ walking joke. Despite my very low tolerance for stuff like that I still personally somehow love this anime and find it very funny in the end. I haven’t read the manga.

“Yagate Kimi Ni Naru” / “Bloom Into You” (13 episodes)🔻

A wlw romance in which the protagonist is aspec, and this is obviously relevant and touched upon. Definitely arospec and most likely acespec too (can’t remember exactly). There is also an aromantic side character that enjoys consuming romance but has zero interest in personally participating in it.

“Banana Fish” (24 episodes)🔹(🔻)

The 2 main characters are mlm love interests, and their relationship isn’t sexual at all. The show itself does deal with the theme of sexual abuse, and it’s a recurring relevant topic so trigger warning for that (but not in a romanticized/fetishized way at all). Their relationship being romantic is technically not canon either but it’s subtext (the kind that if it was straight no one would question it). They’re called “best friends 😊” to the end lol so. yeah. It can be frustrating from a gay rep standpoint but at the same time also right up your alley if you want queerplatonic greyromantic (asexual) stuff.

This one is a bit of a tangent but mlm rep in anime that isn’t sexual is so rare so I wanted to include it since I’m an mlm aspec and this is just like me fr. Also it’s a must watch in general.

“Paripi Koumei” / “Ya Boy Kongming” (12 episodes)🔹

This anime is wild (complimentary). The main theme is music, but this description can’t do it justice. Anyway the show is completely devoid of romance (at least as of now with 1 season. I haven’t read the manga) but full of sweet friendships and heartwarming interactions. The kind of thing to show to someone who says that romance is a necessary part of humanity and that life is less meaningful without it.

“Acca 13” (12 episodes)🔹

A seriously underrated show. This one is on this list because it was very satisfying to watch as an aroace person. There is no focus on romance. There are characters who are attracted to other characters but it’s not relevant or used for frustrating unnecessary drama or anything, it’s actually in a very refreshingly chill, matter-of-fact way, and it never goes farther than that. It’s so unique in this way I can’t really explain it well, but it’s pretty cool.

#and if you wanna know where you can watch/read one you can dm me anytime #aro ace anime #animanga #aroace #aromance #asexuality #anime recs #anime recommendation #saiki k #barakamon #dr stone #ore monogatari #gsnk #attack on titan #beeelzebub #bloom into you #banana fish #ya boy kongming #acca 13

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sor-vette · 3 years ago

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#2 Tenebrous Thursday

“It’s a refurbished student housing,” you explain as they trail after you like ducks in a row. Even if they don’t understand what you’re saying, they seem to be clinging to every word. Wherever you look there’s always at least one pair of doe eyes staring expectantly back at you a.k.a. what do you do when you open your doors and find a certain retired boyband for some reason wants to move in

• type: ot7 x fem! reader (poly) • w/c: 2.5k • rating: mature

• series’ masterlist • other works

• a/n: the whole lease/deposit and other daily things I wrote based on my own experiences. If you read and think "wait this is not how it works" sorry, we most likely just live in different countries. Also let me just make this explicitly clear, from the way I portray the boys struggling to speak in a foreign language is in no way demeaning or mocking, it's just a simple situation that naturally occurs when one moves to a different place, nothing more.

“Now I know you and I are not exactly friends, but if sending me seven handsome strangers to my door is some kind of a bribe, I promise to do anything, literally anything,” Rebecca titters in your phone as you sit on the floor, examining the vacant apartment.

“They’re not a bribe,” you argue, passively, “they want to sign the lease. Did you give it to them?”

“Yes, they’re in my living room, reading it right now. Are they some kind of friends of yours? They seem… familiar.”

And frankly who doesn’t know the largest boyband in the world, South Korea’s very own national pride and cultural ambassadors for future generations. Your particular resume of a human being with the side of a measly interior designer comes a few hundred titles short in achievement measurement contest.

“They’re not my friends and you probably saw them in a dream.”

“So you’re moving in with seven strangers? That seems… slightly, nay, largely out of character. Like a meteorite crater large.”

“I don’t know if I want to move in with them,” you sigh.

You’re curious but the potential feeling of dread of just having seven strangers waltzing around your apartment for god knows what reason is so damning it pulls you back from diving headlong into the curious happenstance of BTS’ sudden and illogical uproot.

“They’re signing the lease, Dumbo, it’s a bit too late to say you don’t want them.”

“Well, I can always quit, right. You left that loophole in my contract.”

Rebecca hums in agreement. She hadn’t done it out of any human kindness, of course, she just happened to be digesting three litres of tequila when you met and so word by word fine pen additions were made to your lease contract that leveraged more for your sake, than hers. A fact she was enormously bitter about.

“But wasn’t this like your dream apartment, though. I thought you’d do anything to actually live there.”

And it was. Still is. You sat there, on the light wooden floors and looked over the white walls. It’s empty now, like a blank canvas and you had been itching to paint them with colours of your aesthetic for so long, it had practically become a part of your personality, but that you did when you still had your “friends” and had been naive enough to hope that they’d like to be your makeshift family.

Boy, how wrong could one person be.

“I guess. But I won’t sacrifice myself for just some walls and windows, you know.”

“Is it _________?” a voice asks in the background. Only when their bright laughter rings through the phone, you recognize it to be Hoseok. “Hello, ________! We going - we are going to you!”

There’s some rustling on the other line and a high-pitched yelp before a very calm and not at all out of breath Namjoon steps in to negate the damage.

“Hello, __________, this is me. We signed the lease and paid our deposit, so could we come up to see the apartment? That is if you still want us, of course. I mean not want want us but if you'll have us... you know what I'm just going to stop speaking."

You thank the Lord that this is a phone conversation so Namjoon can't see how you soundlessly shake with laughter.

"Yes, you can come up."

And if there is a loud relieved sigh escaping his lips, you don't remark on it.

"It's a refurbished student housing," you explain as they trail after you like ducks in a row. Even if they don't understand what you're saying, they seem to be clinging to every word. Whenever you look there's always at least one pair of doe eyes staring back at you.

It's unbearable.

"That's why there are so many rooms and since they didn't bring in the furniture it knocked down the cost."

Not that they need it, you snort to yourself. There's a dainty silver bracelet wrapped around Jimin's wrist that could probably buy at least half of the whole place with no problem.

"How much can they understand me?" you whisper to Namjoon as the weight of humiliation of speaking with no answers becomes too much to bear.

"We understand," Jungkook insists energetically, even pulling out a book from Taehyung’s hands. "Conversation made Easy" for Korean speakers. Intermediate.

"Studying."

Hoseok nods along. It's so very sweet that they go to put in that extra mile. The completely unneeded, unnecessary extra mile that had no logical explanation why they were even driving there in the first place-!

You were getting worked up again.

"What is "refurbished"?" Taehyung inquires, head cocked to the side, towering over you with a smouldering look underneath the messy curls. You almost are convinced that he's asking some deep, intimate questions and not a dictionary entry.

"Oh, um, that's when the apartment is changed and built again," you supply lamely, stepping back and turning to reveal the five bedrooms. What you don't notice is the slap that Namjoon smacks lightly against Taehyung’s back. He gestures wildly back but abruptly straightens with an innocent smile when you turn again.

"As you know there are five rooms in total, we're eight so most have to room together."

"Oh, we'll divide it amongst ourselves. Which one’s yours?" Namjoon softly asks, shaking his palm out.

"Originally, I had my eye for the first to the left, it has a view of the square but if you want it -"

"No, please," Yoongi interrupts, scratching at his nape, escaping your curious glance, "you were here first. It's yours."

"I guess that's it," you conclude, awkwardly swaying on your feet as everyone's attention is on you. It's like they're waiting for something but you can't even remotely imagine what would they want from you. "When are you going to move your stuff in?"

"Tomorrow. We left most of it at the hot- I mean, the previous residence,” Namjoon blushes bright red, donning that devastating smile that puts millions into excessive heart palpitations.

You narrow your eyes at him.

“Uh, huh.”

Cold sweat breaks out on his forehead so hastily he turns your attention somewhere else.

“Where are your things?”

“You’re looking at them,” you answer with a frown, gesturing to the small, red suitcase, shoved to the side of the hallway.

“Only that?” Jungkook questions sweetly, you’d go so far as to say - concerned but you don’t let it go to your heart too much.

You were playing a dangerous game. These seven men once made it their entire side job of compelling people to fall in love with them. If you had any hope of making it out of this situation with a working head and heart you had to pluck any stray wonderings right at the root.

“I… I don’t like to have much stuff,” you reply casually.

It’s a lie, of course, having stuff was nice. But most of it you had to sell to put down your own fixed deposit, which left you with three jumpers, two pairs of pants and some underwear. Your phone you had re-sold to your cousin’s friend in exchange to a gracious handout of her old, broken one. It could make texts, phone calls and occasionally the alarm even worked. At the moment it was enough to work with.

You couldn’t explain what about this particular apartment had you hypnotized so much you were willing to do anything for it. You could have just gotten a nice studio apartment for one and lived alone like you always wanted but none of them felt right. In all honesty, thinking of living in them felt as pleasant as walking with someone else’s bones if that made any sense.

Back in the day, before lockdown, when you had a running group of friends, it had seemed so easy then. The collective paychecks allowed you more than enough freedom to indulge in this ridiculous fantasy. Only then the lockdown ended and there was solely yourself working to get in here. Peculiarly, it was mere minutes after you abandoned all hope, ready to fight with Rebecca of annulling your contract that a certain boy band appeared in your doors, guided by either some case of shared insanity or divine intervention. There could be some overlap.

You all fall silent. The hallway is teeming with mutual embarrassment so you very courageously dip as fast as any human being physically could.

“Gentlemen, this has to be the dumbest idea we’ve ever had,” Jin speaks up from the corner of the empty living room, eyes dead to the world.

“This was your idea,” Jungkook states from where he is spread out on the herringbone floor, not accusingly just as a matter of fact.

“Exactly. I was wallowing, this is me - wallowing.”

They all shuffle around, a bit dazed, a bit mindless. Only now had it hit them what the hell they were doing. In fact, it hit them so hard they were left abhorrently stupefied, not daring to go talk to you or reach some sort of an invitation for dinner, even though that was the entire goal.

“We can’t just sit here,” Jimin complains and then makes no indication of movement, curling into Jungkook for warmth. The heating wasn’t on. It was central as you had explained and would only be turned on when the heating company deemed it cold enough. What horrible conditions. Though there’s no place Jimin would rather be, except for your arms or thighs but you were not ready for that conversation quite yet.

“Rock, paper, scissors - the traditional way,” Hobi offers, the harbinger of peace that he was.

“Loser asks _______ to come eat with us but gets the furthest room,” Jin conditions, also a harbinger, just of chaos.

“Why are you like this?” Hobi grumbles and the room stirs with some heart at the offered prospect. Taehyung wins with Jungkook in tow.

“Hi, would you like to eat with us, hi, would you like to eat with us, hi, would you like to eat with us,” Taehyung repeats as though he had to hypnotize you.

They all still when they hear the doors to your room close, frozen in terror like bunnies facing a starving wolf. Except bunnies actually ran and were not launching themselves between its jaws.

Taehyung opens his mouth, making sure that his voice is sexy and low and lets it fall out with pure, unadulterated confidence -

“Hi, would you like us?”

Namjoon doesn’t even bother to hide the fact that he’s facepalming.

“Hi,” you return only 20% confused at this point, “it’s a little early to tell. I’m going to work for a little while. Here are the spare keys.”

You reach over to the closest Jungkook who squeaks like a chew toy when your hand brushes against his.

If possible, Namjoon sags even lower.

Work had never been so pleasant as it was now. You melt into the chair, relieved about being given a saving grace of not rocking back and forth on the floor of your new apartment with a grating whathefuckwhathefuckwhathefuckwhathefuckwhathefuckwhathefuckwhathefuck looping in the foreground of your mind. You’d much rather stare at the different shades of beige than attempt to approach the painful conversation with Vutton's global ambassadors. Although, they were presumably out of that job, considering they were supposed to be in the army.

The office is quiet, most of your colleagues choosing to remain WFH even as the ban was lifted. You’d do too had you not needed to sell your computer along with the necessary programs in it. It didn’t pay to be a beginner. Not socially, not emotionally and most definitely not monetarily.

You physically grunt at the appalling tint of egg beige with an undertone of pink. Nothing said dining room like a stock picture of a white infant. When you’re done the sun is already going down. It’s the cusp of August transforming into September, relatively warm during the day but increasingly cold during evenings. Namjoon and Jungkook will have their birthdays soon. With a sigh, you turn off your computer. It was a faint hope that they all would be miraculously asleep by 8 p.m. but then you recall the tiny fact that your apartment had no furniture and the spring in your step returns as if it never left.

They won't sleep on the floor, you reason, they will most likely return to their hotel and you would be granted Heaven’s mercy of one final lonesome night. But God hates you, maybe because of the small fire incident at church, maybe for some other reason and as such the first thing you hear after stepping a foot over the threshold is a sound of loud conversation drowning out the mellow jazz music playing through the empty halls.

You don’t even have the time to recuperate when a flushed Jimin pokes his head through the entry of the living room, complains something indecipherable and retreats back, gasping on a row of goofy giggles. He’s drunk. In fact, from the sound alone you can tell they’re all quite inebriated. Taehyung follows suit with a slowly blinking Jungkook peeking over his shoulder.

“Welcome home, __________,” he greets smoothly, either having been practising or unlocking multilingualism via alcohol. “Do you want to eat with us?”

What you want is to say no. How are you just supposed to sit among them like it’s not mind-bogglingly strange they’re even here but the smell reaches you before the cowardice can. It smells divine. When was the last time you had a decent meal? Neither your brain nor your stomach can remember and in the moment of profound human weakness you agree and let yourself be dragged by the elbows to their merry group.

The floor is covered with takeout cartons, plastic cups and bottles. From the pizza box, shoved decidedly to the side, you can gather they found Pazzi - the cheapest bistro joint on your street. Yes, a shortcut to one's expiry date but the emotional value from their cheesy pizzas was invaluable.

“Oh, ________, is here, helloooo,” Yoongi greets you enthusiastically. You can barely withhold your gape at his outward attitude. From the expression on his face, you doubt he understands much of what is right in front of him.

The moment you sit down you are positively swarmed with attention. Amidst the jokes you don’t understand, happy chuckles and friendly wrestling to get you to eat more, you’ve never been so mortified in your life. Or so much cared for but once again it’s dangerous to think that.

As the night stretches on, they become more daring and less coherent. You struggle to push Jimin off your lap while barking at Jungkook to stop smelling your hair. By this point you are certain they won’t remember anything tomorrow. Hobi was squatting in the corner, face bright red, soullessly gazing at the ceiling, Namjoon and Yoongi were wailing like cats, swaying together in a loose hug, Taehyung was embroiled in a deeply personal battle to unbutton his shirt and Jin had already long ago passed out on the floor, surrounded by the sprawling anarchy.

BTS, you think, the myths, the legends, the biggest weirdos you've ever met.

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Tag list (open/if you want to join let me know in the replies):

@xyahrinx; @alpacaparkaseok; @yessii-i; @crewzie-chan; @savage-aespa; @mayla548; @wordsaremyswords; @loveyoongles;

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imtheiliad · 3 years ago

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there'll be a day when you can say you're okay and mean it [1k | Maddie and Eddie bonding] {ao3} characters: Maddie Buckley, Eddie Diaz, Evan Buckley a/n: literally just 1k of Maddie and Eddie quietly bonding one night when they both end up at Buck's apartment. Okay so this really barely scratches the surface of maddie and eddie's potential, but i started and this is what came out because i caouldn't fully tackle writing something super heavy after last night, but i hope to write more in the future! title from burned out by dodie. nothing is explicitly mentioned but there are allusions to a suicide attempt and panic attacks, like very very vague but take care of yourselves babes <3.

Maddie turns her key in the lock and reminds herself the Buck had said anytime. And she knows he meant it. And she figures it would be empty, he’s on shift, Taylor’s gone.

So when she opens the door with shaky hands to find Eddie looking up from where he sits at the dining table, startled but holding a concern that softens when his eyes land on her, she’s surprised.

She hasn’t really seen him since before. Before the pandemic, before she even knew she was pregnant, before he got shot.

His hair is shorter and sticking up as though he had run his hand through it one too many times. He looks tired and worn in a way he didn’t before. In a way she recognized from the mirror 6 months ago.

He might as well be a shadow of the man she last saw, smiling, beads hanging around his neck, laughing with her brother as the camera flashed and caught their joy.

“I-“ he starts and even his voice is shattered,

“He lets you come here too,” she says a small smile playing on her lips at the thought,

“Yeah,” is all Eddie croaks out his fingers running over his scraped knuckles.

“Eddie,” she starts

“If you ask me if I’m okay I might actually have a conniption,” he says lightly, biting his lip looking at her knowingly,

“Gotcha, I was just going to make myself some tea, do you want a cup?”

“Yes?” He replies

“Buck keeps this blend I really like, it helps calm me down, honestly I don’t know if it is actually the tea or just a placebo but regardless it works,” she rambles as she fills the water boiler and finds two clean mugs in the dishwasher.

Once the tea is made, they sit across from each other in a weird mix of awkward comfortable silence, the sound of mugs hitting the table the only sound filling the air.

“So, do you have this shift off or?” Maddie finally asks,

Eddie shakes his head and clears his throat,

“I uh, actually left. Transferred to working at dispatch as a public liaison,”

Maddie thinks for a moment, a smile cracking across her face “you run the lafd social media? Eddie Diaz is being paid to run a twitter, well then,”

“Yeah, I kinda hate it. But Christopher was worried.”

She tilts her head thoughtfully but doesn’t respond, instead sipping her tea.

And a silence falls over them again.

“Do you wanna maybe?” He points at the couch, “Just cause I’ve been sitting in this chair so long I think my legs are about to go numb.”

She nods and so they gather their mugs and settle on the couch, Maddie tucks her legs under her and Eddie grabs one of the throw pillows to hold onto.

“So… what brought you here tonight?” Maddie asks over her cup,

Eddie pauses for a moment, considering his words, “Therapy was a lot today and Christopher is spending the weekend with Abuela, so the house was too big and too quiet. Cause the last time he wasn’t there I,” his eyes travel to the corner where brick meets concrete and metal and he hugs the pillow closer his fingers running over the mostly healed scabs on his knuckles, “What about you?”

“The house was too big and too quiet,” she echos, “Jee is with the Lees, and everyone is at work,” she smiles, “so much for a Friday night huh?”

Eddie smiles.

And they fall back into comfortable silence, the unspoken understanding between them resting in the air.

“You know, I ran too,” Eddie says thoughtfully, “and Christopher and I, we’re okay. He doesn’t resent me for it.”

And Maddie looks at him, eyebrows knit over watering eyes,

“I just thought you would want to hear that,” he supplies as he takes another sip of his tea,

“Will I ever forgive myself for missing so much?” She asks quietly,

“You’re here now, that’s what matters.”

A small sob cracks out of her.

Buck had told her how Eddie had the habit of just saying things exactly the way they needed to be heard,

“Yeah I am,” she nods, “God I thought I had run myself dry,” she says wiping tears with the back of her hand, “You’re too good at that you know?” “What?” “Reading people, saying what they need to hear,” “I don’t know, I think I am just well versed in Buckley,” he replies,

“Maybe,” she sighs, “You know, one of the first things Buck ever told me about you was just how wonderful of a father you are. And choosing to heal only builds that,” she says,

“I know. I just wish feeling like shit over it all again wasn’t a part of healing,”

“That’s the part they never tell you. And I know it’s cliche, but it does get better,” she smiles,

He nods.

And it’s quiet again.

They don’t talk much after that. Putting on the tv for a little company and eventually each drifting off to the hushed tones of houses being redecorated.

Maddie opens her eyes slowly, the morning light cascading over the apartment, the sound of the sink running, and their mugs gone from the coffee table and the tv silenced. A throw tucked around her lap and a pillow carefully wedged under her head.

Buck turns around as she sits up and yawns, making his way over,

“Good morning,” he says quietly, “you two okay?”

Maddie glances over to Eddie, his face slightly scrunched as he sleeps, “We will be. We bonded,” she replies,

“I always thought you might, given the chance,” he says just as Eddie stirs, “I texted Chimney,” he pats her leg,

“Oh, thank you,” she smiles softly.

“Buck?” Eddie says still half asleep,

“Hi there sleepyhead, coffee is already brewing,” his hand lingers on Eddie’s knee before he gets up, “he does not function well without it,” he continues for Maddie’s benefit and she smiles at him softly.

Yeah, things were okay.

#911 fic #maddie buckley #eddie diaz #aj writes stuff #tusercourty #thatbuddie #userceecee #usersharky #usercombat #useroliii #useryb #tagnic #userweres

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dialovers-translations · 2 years ago

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Diabolik Lovers LUNATIC PARADE ;; Carla Route ー Chapter 3

ー The scene starts in the guest room at Bernstein Castle

*Dingー Dongー*

Yui: ーー Aah, it’s already this late...?

*Thud*

Yui: ( I told myself to go to sleep early, but I just couldn’t seem to fall asleep and now I just feel out of iーー )

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: Eh!?

Carla-san is gone!?

( ...Where did he go!? )

ー Yui dashes out of the room before the scene shifts to the balcony

Yui: ...He’s not here...

( Don’t tell me he’s lying somewhere passed out on the floor as a result of the pretification... )

*Creaaak*

Yui: !?

Butler: Oh dear. Good morning. You have already woken up?

Yui: Excuse me! Where is Carla-san...?

Butler: Aah. If you are looking for Carla-sama, he left the castle quite some time ago.

Yui: I see...Haah...He should have just woken me up...

Butler: Actually, he explicitly told me to make sure you get a good night’s rest because you should be exhausted after everything...

Yui: I see...Did he tell you where he was headed?

Butler: I do not know the exact location...However, he got on one of the goldola’s so I assume he went towards the town

Yui: Okay. Thank you very much.

( I’ll follow suit as well. I’m sure he went to look for the ingredients for the antidote, right? )

Butler: Are you heading out?

Yui: Yes. I’ll get going!

*TIMESKIP*

ー The scene shifts to Glimmer Main Street

Yui: ( It’s incredibly crowded again today. It will be tricky to find Carla-sama amongst all these people... )

( In which case...I suppose I’ll hit up Aji-san’s store first. )

( Carla-san might be dropping by there as well. )

ー The scene shifts to Reine de Aji’s store

*Knock knock*

*Thud*

Yui: Good morning.

Reine de Aji: Oh dear, that took you long enough.

Yui: ーー Which means, could it be...?

Reine de Aji: Your companion has been gathering all of the needed ingredients and dropped some off already. I’m pretty sure he should be somewhere out on the street right now.

Seems like it’s taking him quite some time, so why don’t you go lend him a hand?

Yui: Gotcha!

( Guess I’ll head towards the main street then. )

ー The scene shifts back to Glimmer Main Street

Yui: ( He should be somewhere around here but... )

ー The crowd grows restless

Yui: Hm? ...What’s that? Why have all those people gathered...?

Carla: ーー Have I not made myself clear enough yet? I have nothing to do with this.

Yui: ...!! This voice, it’s Carla-san!

ー Yui runs up to the crowd

Yui: Carla-san!?

Carla: ーー Yui!?

Yui: ...Where did all these people come from...?

Carla: Well...

Male Vampire F: ーー Ah! Are you perhaps the wife of this Founder?

Yui: W-Wife...? N-No, I’m noーー

Male Vampire F: Then would you please put in a good word for us?

Female Vampire G: We are begging you!

Yui: N-No, like I said, I’mーー

Male Vampire G: Ooh, almighty Founder...Noble First Blood! Please guide us the way!

Yui: ...!? T-This is...

Carla: They are purists.

Yui: Eh!?

Carla: It appears that they caught on after yesterday’s happening at the Mouth of Zartan...

I found myself in a pinch, unable to continue looking for the antidote’s ingredients because these people are simply too persistent.

Carla: Yes.

Yui: And you couldn’t simply...tell them off?

Carla: Yes. Rather than chasing them away, it appears to have the opposite effect.

Yui: O-Oh dear...

Male Vampire G: Dear Founder!

Male Vampire F: Our lord and savior~!!

Female Vampire G: Oh, almighty!!

Carla: Silence.

Che...At this point, I might as well eradicate them all at once.

Yui: ( ...At this rate, he’ll...!! )

*Rustle*

Carla: Why would you suddenly grab my handーー

Yui: Carla-san, let’s run!

ー Yui drags him away

Male Vampire G: Ah! Dear Founder! Please wait!

Female Vampire G: Wait, pleaseー!!

Yui: ...!!

( ...I’m sure we could get them to understand if we simply sat down to talk but... )

( If I recall correctly, Carla-san has never been fond of Purists, has he...? )

( Anyway, right now we need to get away from here! )

ー The scene shifts to the Underground

Yui: Haah, haah...

Carla: Seems like we lost them somehow.

Yui: Where on earth are we...?

Carla: ...It appears to be an underground passage.

Yui: ...Um, Carla-san. How come you dislike those people so much?

Carla: They will treat me as some kind of diety and come to me to seek advice.

While I may a Founder, I am not their God.

There is honestly nothing more infuriating than being misunderstood like that...

Yui: W-Well...I can only assume that in their eyes, you are like a divine being...

Carla: Haah...

Yui: ( It’s honestly a little funny to try and imagine Carla-san patiently listening to those people’s struggles and stories... )

( But it’s true that we simply don’t have the time for that now. )

Um, for now, how many ingredients do we still need?

I’ll go collect them in your place and...

Carla: Do not worry. I have them all gathered.

Yui: Ah, so you were on your way back to Aji-san’s store then?

Carla: Exactly. I got surrounded by those people on the way back and found myself stuck in place.

Yui: I see...So that’s what happened.

...Anyway, we better hurry back to her shop.

Carla: Without having that lot find us.

Yui: Hmー ...What should we do...?

Selection

→ Make him wear a mask (☾)

Yui: How about you try to wear a mask of some sorts? I just happen to carryーー

*Rustle*

Yui: This nifty thing with me!

Carla: ...Why are you walking around with that?

Yui: I got it for free when I bought some snacks at one of the vendors yesterday. I hadn’t taken it out of my pocket yet so...

Why don’t you...try it on?

Carla: ...

Yui: ( Uu...He’s mad... )

I’m sorry...I thought it was a good idea...

Carla: ...

Yui: ( It wasn’t my intention, but I suppose I took my joke a little too far. )

→ Why don’t you just disguise yourself as a woman?

Yui: ーー Why not just disguise yourself as a woman? You can swap clothes with me and...

Carla: You are...making fun of the situation, aren’t you?

Yui: N-No! Not at all!

( I just kind of wanted to see what it’d look like. )

Yui: ...Which means we probably have no other choice but to take as many back alleys as we caーー

Carla: ...!

*Rustle*

Yui: Eh?

Carla: ...! Oi, come with me for a second!

*Thud*

Yui: ...!? What’s wroーー Mgh...!!

Carla: Quiet.

Yui: ( C-Could it be... )

Male Vampire G: ーー Dear Founder~~~! Oh, dear Founder!! Please show yourself!

Female Vampire G: Please show us the light! Guide us!!

ー They run past them

Carla: ーー They left?

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: Pwah...Y-You didn’t have to cover my mouth...

Carla: If not, they would have noticed us.

More importantly, this is our chance. Let us go.

Yui: Yes...!!

ー The scene shifts to Reine de Aji’s store

*Thud*

Reine de Aji: ...!? You startled me...Why the hurry?

Yui: Hahaha...

Carla: ...We have our reasons...More importantly, I gathered all missing ingredients.

*Thud*

Reine de Aji: Oh! I’ve been waiting!

*Rustle rustle*

Reine de Aji: ーー Yup, seems like you’ve got everything here. Nice work.

While they may not be rare goods, the list was quite long so I can imagine it took quite a bit of time and effort to collect everything?

Carla: No, not at all. I barely had to do anything.

Yui: Eh? Is that so?

Carla: Yes.

Yui: Could it be...Did those Purists help you out?

Carla: They stole my memo when I never even asked them anything.

Yui: I see...Which means they were asking you for advice...in return for their help?

Carla: I never asked for their aid though.

Yui: ...I mean, that’s true but...

( Now that I know the full story, I feel as if it wouldn’t have heard to listen to them at least... )

Reine de Aji: ーー Oh well, whatever. I’ll jump straight into making the medicine. First I need to get everything ready in the back.

I don’t want you guys to touch any of my goods, so you don’t need to help. Just behave and wait here, okay?

ー Aji leaves to the backroom of the store

Yui: Phew I guess that just leaves waiting, huh?

Carla: Yes.

Yui: How do you feel? The petrification...

Carla: Unfortunately, it is still progressing.

Yui: Haah...I hope the antidote is ready soon.

Carla: More importantly, how do you feel? How is the Kleinod holding up?

Yui: ...Honestly, I had completely forgotten about my own situation until you brought it up. That just proves I feel fine.

Carla: I see.

Yui: Did you perhaps head out by yourself this morning...because you were trying to look out for me?

Carla: Yes. Besides, I am the one who brought this upon myself. It is the result of my own actions.

Yui: Don’t say that...I’m your...lover, remember? Please don’t treat me like a stranger.

Carla: ...

Yui: Don’t you remember what I said yesterday? That I refuse to let you turn to stone.

I said that because...I suddenly understood very well how you have felt all this time.

Carla: What do you mean?

Yui: ーー That you might pass away before me.

Ever since this happened to you, I understood for the first time,

just how much you must have struggled with that feelings up till now.

Carla: ...

Yui: I also understand now...Why you tried to prompted me to choose a life as an immortal.

That’s why I wanted to try everything within my power. For your sake.

So please don’t talk as if you got me involved in this against my will, okay?

Carla: Yui...

ー He embraces her

*Rustle*

Carla: Please understand this. What happened this time...hurts my pride as a man.

I made you make a worried expression after all.

Yui: Carla-san...

Carla: ーー I want to be a good man for you. Is that a selfish wish?

Yui: ...

Carla: I do not want to embarrass myself in front of you. Exactly because I love you.

ーー Therefore.

*THUD*

Male Vampire G: ーー So this is where you’ve been!!

Yui: ...!?

Female Vampire G: We finally found you!

Carla: ...You lot need to learn when to stop!

*THUD*

Yui: C-Carla-san, please calm down!

ー The crowd grows restless again

Yui: ( I...I feel as if there’s even more people than before... )

Carla: Do you want me to turn you to ashes!? Quiet down!

*Woosh*

Male Vampire G: I couldn’t wish for anything more!

Female Vampire G: Please eradicate me right now!

Carla: ...!

Yui: Carla-san, um...

Carla: ...What?

Yui: These people are the ones who collected the ingredients for you, correct?

Carla: So what?

Yui: Well, in that case, while it may be somewhat bothersome...

I don’t see a problem in listening to what they have to say...?

Carla: In that case, you can listen to them.

Yui: I can’t fulfill that role. They’re Purists, so what is important to them is that you listen to their story.

Male Vampire G: Dear Founder...Please show us the light...

Male Vampire F: We are begging you!

Carla: ...

Yui: I mean, they want it so badly...

Carla: ...

Yui: Carla-san?

Carla: ...I will only listen to them. You better not believe I will actually give them advice.

ーー Are you lot fine with that?

Male Vampire G: Y-Yes! Of course...Simply having you listen to us is already more than we could ever ask for!

Carla: Good grief. Well then...I will listen to you one by one. Please try and get straight to the point, understood?

Male Vampire F: Yes!!

Yui: ( Thank god. Everyone looks so happy. )

ーー Well then, please form a line over here. There’s plenty of time for everyone, so please stay calm.

Carla: Haah...Why do I have to bother with this...?

Yui: Hang in there...!

Carla: ...This is your fault, remember? As your punishment...I will make sure you return the favor to me later.

Yui: Eh?

Carla: Isn’t that obvious? You are forcing me to listen to these random strangers against my will after all.

So it only makes sense you will comfort me afterwards, no?

Yui: ...That sounds kind of unreasonable...

Carla: ーー I am eagerly awaiting it, okay?

ー Carla walks towards the line

Yui: ( ...Geez, Carla-san...! )

( Hm? Those children... )

Hello. Are you girls also Purists?

Twin Vampire Child A: ...

Twin Vampire Child B: ...

ー They run away

Yui: Ah...

( They ran away...I wonder if they remembered something they have to do? )

*TIMESKIP*

Carla: ーー ...I wasted a lifetime’s worth of talking today.

Yui: Good job. I’ll set you some tea, okay?

Carla: Yes.

*Cling*

Yui: ( Even though he said he would only listen to them, in the end, he also gave them a bunch of advice. )

( But they all seemed genuinely happy. It feels good just to have someone listen to your worries after all. )

( There’s no way they wouldn’t be happy when on top of that, they even got advice from the King of Founders which they very much look up to. )

ーー Carla-san, would you like a snack with your tea as well?

Carla: Where did you get those?

Yui: The people you gave advice them left them here for us. Just look at how many there are.

Carla: Hmph. This is all I get for giving them advice? Oh well, give that here.

Yui: Of course, here you go. These are...doughnuts stuffed with domestically cultivated honey.

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: There’s also these tarts made with local currants and over here we haveーー

Carla: That’s enough. I cannot eat all of these at once. You can have them.

Yui: Really? I suppose I’ll try some things as well then.

*Rustle*

Yui: Nn...This is so good...!

Carla: Heh...

Yui: ...? What’s wrong?

Carla: No, it’s nothing. Just...

Yui: ...Yes?

Carla: ーー I was just thinking about how cute you are.

Yui: ...! Carla-san...!

Carla: But it’s the truth, isn’t it?

ー Aji returns to the room

Reine de Aji: ーーOh my, no wonder I thought I could smell something sweet. Are you having a tea party?

Yui: Aji-san!! Are you done with the medicine!?

Reine de Aji: Not yet. I know I said it wouldn’t take long but...

*Rustle*

Reine de Aji: ーー It’s not that easy...There. Huh? Has anyone seen the blue bottle which was on this table?

It was here earlier. I saw it with my very own eyes so I’m positive.

Yui: A lot of people came in and out so perhaps it fell over and rolled underneath somewhere...Let me check...

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: ( Hmー ...Nowhere to be seen... )

Carla-san, any luck over there?

*Rustle rustle*

Carla: ーー It doesn’t appear to be here either.

Reine de Aji: This is a problem. I can’t finish the medicine without it.

Yui: Eh!?

Reine de Aji: Hmー...

Yui: ...I’ll go get a replacement. Where can I buy it?

Reine de Aji: No, actually...The stuff inside that blue bottle was the one ingredient which is not easy to find.

Yui: Eeh!?

Reine de Aji: It’s the medicine’s main component. I can’t possibly make it without...

Yui: W...What should we do...?

Reine de Aji: I’m positive it was here earlier, you know? I checked this morning and I haven’t given it away to anyone.

ーー ...Give it away...Aah, now you mention it...

Just the other day, those kids dropped by and asked me if I could possibly give them the gemstone inside that blue bottle.

I refused because it’s a valuable good and not something a couple of children should have.

Carla: And where do these children live?

Reine de Aji: They’re twin girls living in the Underground.

I have no idea what they’d use it for though. But they were very persistent.

Yui: Twins...Now that you mention it, I believe I saw them here today.

Reine de Aji: Is that so? In which case, they might have just taken it with them without saying anything.

Yui: ...!

Carla: I see. So that’s whatーー Ugh...!

*Rustle rustle*

*CRUMBLE*

Yui: Carla-san...!?

*Thud*

Carla: Kuh...!

Yui: Hang in there...!

*Crumble crumble*

Carla: ...!

Yui: The petrification...!

*Rustle*

Yui: ...I-I’ll go ask those girls about the gem...

Carla: ーー Wait.

Yui: But at this rate...!

Carla: ...Don’t go. Stay here...with me.

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: ...!

Carla: Oi, woman...About the gemstone, please have some patience. I promise I will fix it tomorrow.

Reine de Aji: ...Gotcha.

Carla: Let us return to the castle for today...

Yui: No way...

Carla: We are talking about children, remember? We wouldn’t run into them at this hour. We would only have to come back later either way.

Yui: ...

Carla: We will be back tomorrow.

Reine de Aji: Roger. Please try and make haste.

ー They leave the store

Yui: ...

Carla: Do not look so comflicted.

Yui: I’m sorry. I can’t help but worry...And I’m also very anxious.

I know that we have no other choice but to return to the castle for now but...

Carla: ーー Trust me.

Yui: ...!

Carla: I shall not turn into stone. I promise that I will conquer this situation.

Yui: ...Carla-san.

( I shouldn’t be like this... )

( It’s obvious that Carla-san should be the most worried about this situation, even if he doesn’t directly show it. )

( Yet, I’ve been over here acting like the tragic heroine... )

...I’m sorry...

Carla: Let us head back.

Yui: Yes...!

*TIMESKIP*

ー The scene shifts to the hotel room

Carla: ーー I am tired after everything which happened today. I suppose I should head straight to bed so I am ready for tomorrow.

Yui: I promise I’ll get up early tomorrow morning...!

Carla: I shall not get my hopes up.

*Thud*

Carla: Haah, that being said...We have only focused on my issue while the case regarding your heart is far from resolved either...

Yui: You don’t have to worry about that for now. Let’s tackle these problems one by one.

Carla: Heh. You sure are carefree. However, rest assured.

...I promise that I will get your heart back. No matter what.

Yui: ...!

Carla: ーー That being said, after listening to the idiotic struggles of those Vampires...it once again made me realize...

That lot does not have it easy either.

Yui: ...Carla-san...

Carla: While it was never my intention to try and understand them, after actually listening to them, I simply had no other choice.

You take full credit for closing the gap between other species and myself.

Yui: No way...You are simply a broad-minded individual who has even shown to be capable of relating to humans.

Carla: Heh...I wonder about that?

ー He pins her down

*Thud*

Yui: Kyah...!!

*Rustle rustle*

Carla: Perhaps I am only pretending to understand you...so I can do this?

Nn...! Nn...

Yui: ...That’s not...true...

Carla: I see. It appears that you have quite a bit of faith in me. I suppose that is fine.

ーー I will simply take advantage of said trust...and pierce my fangs into your skin.

Nn...!!

Yui: ( Geez, Carla-san...You don’t have to be so embarrassed to admit your own feelings...No, I guess that’s not it. )

( I’m sure that he’s trying to...ease my nerves this way. I can tellーー )

*Rustle rustle*

Yui: ( But I’m sure I’ll get yelled at if I were to say that so for now...I’ll just keep quiet and submit to him. )

( To his large frame and his fangs... )

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

← RETURN TO CHAPTER 2

→ PROCEED WITH MAIN STORY [CHAPTER 4]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #1 [W/ SHUU]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #2 [W/ REIJI]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #3 [W/ LAITO]

→ SUB-SCENARIO #4 [W/ KOU]

#diabolik lovers #dialovers #carla tsukinami #lunatic parade #diabolik lovers translation #lpchapter3

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