#now that i am seeing them all together they all look so serious and dramatic lmao

[night-night-stories-before-bed]

Shameless

Warning ⚠️; internalized homophobia, Homelander is his own warning, toxic relationship, abusive relationship, fluff. 🔞

Pairing; Bottom!Homelander/Top!Male!Reader

Summary; John and you are two opposites. He is a comedian and a liar, you are bluntly honest and direct. He cares about his image, you don't. He is ashamed of your relationship while you are shameless.

~~~~~~~~~~~

You sat on the sofa sipping at your drink, eyes staring at John with amusement. Still in his costume, your lover walked in circle while biting his nail. He looked ridiculous in your eyes. All those fake muscles and the cape were too much. He looked always better naked, natural, and not so fake.

- “You are going to get yourself dizzy, my love. Just get out of those ridiculous clothes and come sit with me.” You said, waving your hand to show his costume. “We have so little time together, I would prefer having you by my side than whatever you are doing right now.”

John stared at you, eyes glowing red and you just laughed at him. You weren't scared, never was, because John couldn't kill you. No one could. It was part of your power, your curse, but in a moment like this, it was a blessing. Watching your lover get worked up for nothing was funny.

- “How can you laugh in such a situation?” John asked, voice hissing at you as you rolled your eyes. “Its a disaster! I cannot be seen like… like…”

- “Like the man you truly are?” You finished his sentence, sighing. “John, no one cares about that picture. Everyone will call it fake and those who don't, well who cares? Just discredit them and forget about it.”

John said nothing and looked away, his eyes back to normal. You shook your head as he kept walking around the room, trying to find a solution. You didn't understand him. Why come to you when you couldn't help when you were the source of this situation? Well, you weren't fully responsible. It wasn't you who had decided to kiss on a rooftop where anyone could see, that had been John.

And now there was a picture of you two kissing, your hands squeezing Homelander’s ass, circulating around the internet. It was, for you, hilarious. For John? The end of the world was happening.

- “Can't you stop being overly dramatic for five minutes?” You asked, harsher than you wanted.

You gasped in surprise as the back of your head hit the floor, hard, making you see stars. John had pined you down after knocking over the sofa and sat on you. You shivered, licking your lips as you plunged your gaze into his glowing one.

- “And can't you take it seriously for once? Don't you realize how serious the situation is for me? I am supposed to be perfect with no weaknesses and I can not be seen like that with another man.” John spat, his hand grabbing your chin painfully tight.

- “But you are not perfect John and you'll never be!” You replied with a sneer.

It was the wrong answer because next thing you knew John punched you and pain exploded in your jaw. Blood splashed all over your lover and you as your jaw hit the wall and fell onto the ground. From anger, John expression turned to horror as he realized what he had done. From amused, you became enraged.

You didn't gave John any chance and kicked him in the chest, sending the sup flying against the ceiling. You watched your lover fall loudly on the ground as you got up, spilling blood all over the place. You closed your eyes, pain swallowing you up as nerves, bones and everything else slowly regrew. Tears slowly rolled down your cheeks as you felt like your lower jaw was burning in the fiery pits of Hell.

You heard John begging, swearing he didn't mean to hurt you like that and you didn't care. What mattered was how he still did it.

You opened your eyes staring angrily at the hero still lying on the ground. You walked up to him and saw John tensing and closing on himself before you grabbed the man by the collar. Without a word, you back-slapped like he was a bitch, splitting open his lip before grabbing his jaw like he did to you. You leaned down until your nose brushed his.

- “Listen here you pathetic excuse of a man; you are nothing. You are not a hero, you are not perfect and you are not an inspiration. The only thing you are is a childish man who can't take no for an answer and can't live without the approval of the world.” Your words hit home as you saw tears building up in John’s eyes and you sneered again. “You are pathetic. Truly pathetic. The world loves the fake image of you and would turn on you at the first opportunity. Their love is conditional unlike mine and yet you chose those worms over me. I who had always been here for you no matter what. I who helped you bond with your bastard son and helped you when no one wanted to. I bloodied my hands for you! And after everything that how you thank me?”

Venom filled your words as you stared at your lover. John was silently crying and looked away, not daring to look at you. You felt betrayed, and humiliated. You did so much for that man child and he turned against you so easily. You didn't want to see him anymore, wanted him gone from your sight.

- “Think about it John. Who will take care of you when you are old and your body is betraying you? Who will be there for you when the world cheer for a younger and more attractive hero? Them? Your so-called fans? No. They won't, but I would have.” You said, turning your back to him as you walked away. “Now get out.”

- “I’m sorry! I didn't…” John tried but stopped as you turned your head, eyes filled with anger.

- “GET OUT.” You snarled.

And just like that John was gone. A soft breeze caressed your face after he flew away. Sighing, you cleaned the room and threw away your jaw. The pain still lingered and you massaged your chin before sighing. You hated fighting with John like that, but recently it was every other day. The more time passed the more he became unhinged and impulsive. You could barely recognize the man who sought love and attention, the man who melted under your hands at night seemed gone.

It was late that night when John came back. He didn't call, didn't text. He just showed up. You were in bed reading a book in the light of a candle when you heard your front door opening. Only John had a spare so you knew it was him.

He didn't come up directly and you ignored him. You were still angry at his stunt and, frankly, didn't wish to see him. Not right now, not tomorrow. But there he was, walking into your home as if it was his.

After a few minutes, you heard John walking up the stairs and coming toward your room. You didn't look up when he entered nor when he called your name with a timid and soft voice. Instead you clenched your book harder.

- “I thought I told you to get the fuck out of my house, John. What are you doing here?” You asked, voice cold as you turned the page of your book.

Your lover didn't answer. Instead, John approached the bed and put down a mix of things; a gift basket filled with your favorite snacks and drinks and another full of books. Sighing, you closed your book and turned your attention on John.

There he stood in civilian clothes and his head low. His eyes were still red and puffy from crying. Had you not been angry at him you would have hugged John. But you were still pissed off.

- “I am so sorry for what I did and said.” John whispered, looking away as he sat on the edge of the mattress. “I have no excuses and you are right. You've always been there for me and you didn't deserve any of this, but I did.”

You could see tears in his eyes and the sight was almost pitiful. Of course, John couldn't live up with what he did and would regret his actions. You didn't. The brat had deserved your words and hands.

- “I don't want… I can not lose you…” John whispered so low that you barely heard it.

You sighed and leaned back against your pillows, crossing your arms and studying him. John was clearly remorseful and you knew he had his lesson, for now at least. Shaking your head you gently tapped the mattress next to you and John didn't wait to lay down. He wrapped his arms around you and nuzzled his face against your chest. You brushed his blond hair with your fingers, heart almost getting softer as you saw how happy he was now.

- “You are losing me, John. I don't know what the fuck is going on with you, but stop it. I don't have the patience to deal with your childish tantrum just because a picture of us leaked on the internet. We are celebrities, it's going to keep happening.” You said and your lover held you tighter. “Hush now. I forgive you this time, but I might not give you another chance.”

John nodded and didn't let go. You kept brushing his hair and let your fingers down his neck. He was cold, colder than normal and you could feel his heartbeat racing. He was scared and terrified which pleased you. Maybe he wouldn't go against you anymore, maybe he would stop thinking he could do as he wished.

After all, he was your pet, yours to use as you wished and you couldn't have a bad dog by your side. As much as you loved John, you didn't want him if he was to lose his mind and become a liability. But at that moment he looked so small and delicate in your arms, almost broken and you couldn't resist him.

You smiled as you felt his body relax against you as he slowly fell asleep. Maybe you could use his fear and remorse against him. Maybe you could force him to come clean about your relationship. Not now, the fight was still too fresh but soon enough he might give in. And once you were out to the world, John would truly be yours entirely.

[morebird]

Part 1 of portrait sketches

[theemporium]

congratulations on 10k, it’s so so well deserved xxx

could i possibly order a 🩵 with lando with "I don't know who you are anymore." need some angst to get the emotions running!

super super well done again x

thank you for requesting!🫶🏽

20. "I don't know who you are anymore."

.

“I don’t get what the big deal is!” 

“Lando, you’re being blind right now!” 

“Or you’re just being fucking dramatic!” 

The back and forth had been going on for the better part of the last hour. It was meant to be a casual day—a relaxing one even. Lando had been away on a triple header and you had been swamped with work projects, and it meant you hadn’t had much time together. Usually, you tried to join Lando for a race weekend or two but this had been the first time in a while you had gone so long with such limited contact with your best friend. 

The last thing you expected when you walked into his apartment for dinner and a movie night was to be standing on different sides of his living room, screaming at each other. 

“Are you serious?” You looked at him before scoffing, shaking your head. “I am trying to help you. I am trying to look out for you. She’s bad news, Lando!” 

“You don’t know her,” Lando shot back. 

“Neither do you!” 

Lando rolled his eyes but you could see the fuming look shining in them. “Is it so hard to believe that she likes me? Am I that fucking undesireable that you think a girl would just be using me for clout?” 

You let out a frustrated sigh. “No, of course not. But—”

“Are you jealous?” He shot at you, shoulders tensed and back straight. “Is that what this is? You know, she said that—”

“She said what?” You sneered, eyes narrowed at the boy. “What did she say, Lando? What did the wannabe influencer who you’ve known for all about five minutes say about me that you agree with?” 

He clenched his jaw.

“I don’t know who you are anymore,” you murmured, your voice soft and raw, giving him whiplash from the screaming match moments ago. “And frankly, I don’t think I like this new version. You’re not him.” 

He swallowed harshly. “Not who?” 

“My Lando. The Lando who would have thrown himself onto a race track before doubting his own friends and believing the words of some stranger,” you bit, seeing the exact moment your words hit home.

You grabbed your jacket, ignoring the flash of hurt in his eyes as you stormed towards the door. 

“Have fun with your girlfriend, Lando. Don’t call me when you realise I’m right.” 

The door slammed behind you was left to emphasise your point.

.

[sukunasweetheart]

Thinking of breakup angst with sukuna...

Thinking of the build up towards it, the way you have been fighting over the littlest things for months now

It leads you to think about how self centered he can be, how you always feel like you loved him more than he loved you and how crushing it felt to have that realisation fall upon you every time

He can be so career focused sometimes, with the long business trips, work parties, etc. always working vehemently to get higher, threatening to leave you behind

And one particular night, the argument gets so heated that you dont get a wink of sleep afterwards, only staring blankly at nothing as you try to calm the chaos in your head. Sukuna heads out without a word the next morning, and you make the final decision in your head, alone, by yourself.

By the time sukuna comes back home with the intent of reconciliation, he finds that youre packing the remainder of your belongings into a suitcase in the bedroom, ready to move out of his home.

"what the fuck is all this?" he asks, his tone coming out harsher than he means it to be.

"what do you think? i'm breaking up with you. i'm moving out," you can barely stop your voice from wavering. you've cried too much this week.

"oh, come on. you know you don't mean that," he reaches out to grab your arm, but you withdraw away from his hand so fiercely that it even surprises him.

"don't you talk to me like that," you speak firmly, "like i'm being dramatic. why won't you ever treat me seriously? i am leaving, sukuna."

you continue your work, neatly folding up some of your shirts. you're already almost finished. he looks around, and the house looks half empty.

oh. you really mean it. you're really trying to leave.

"no, you're not. you're not leaving. not after everything we've been through together," he tells you defensively, grabbing your wrist, stopping you from folding your last shirt, trying to get you to look at him again.

"like what? constantly yelling at each other until our throats are sore? i'm really sick of it. and i'm sure you are, too."

"don't put words in my mouth. i may have gotten sick of our fighting, but i've never gotten sick of you," sukuna hisses, refusing to let you continue packing your things. you feel yourself getting swayed by his words.

"well, i am. i've gotten sick of you," you say quietly through gritted teeth.

"oh yeah? say it to me properly then. look at me dead in the eyes," he demands, voice getting lower.

"you heard me. i don't need to say it again." you pull away from his grip and try to get this last shirt folded. he grabs you again, by the hand this time, and the piece of clothing unravels once more.

"no, i didn't hear shit. convince me that you really want to leave me - and i'll let you go."

in a fit of anger, you turn to face him completely, but your resolve crumbles away when you see his expression. not the one you'd assigned to him in your own mind, but his true features, under the bright bedroom lights.

he looks serious. he looks concerned. he's asking you to tell him it's not true. tell him that you want to stay.

"...let me go. i'm leaving..." you say, voice finally breaking. like a broken faucet, your eyes begin leaking tears relentlessly and your throat closes up in that painful way that you hate, but nothing compares to the pain in your heart at the thought of really breaking up with this man here and now.

he lets you go...

and calmly takes your things out of the suitcase to put them back. you didn't miss the relief in his eyes that showed up for that split second.

"bring it back! i hate you," you attempt to raise your voice, but really, it's only just your ego speaking.

"you can't even say that you hate me in the correct tone. we're not breaking up," he mutters, hanging up your coats and putting them into the closet.

having been defeated, your legs give way and you sit down on the side of the bed, sobbing.

through the blur of your tears, you watch as he meticulously goes through your suitcase, putting everything where they belong. and you sob harder. he knows too much. he arranges your creams, perfumes and accessories in the perfect order on the dresser. he spends a good fifteen minutes, putting all of your belongings back where they should be.

and by the time he gets back to you, he's like a different man. the mattress dips from his weight as he sits next to you, bringing a box of tissues with him to wipe your tears away.

"we can talk tomorrow since we're both tired today," sukuna tells you as he dabs your eyes with the tissue, "i'll take the day off." you just sit still without responding. now that he mentioned it, the fatigue seems to fall upon you suddenly, like a brick. he coaxes you under the sheets.

soon, you find yourself in bed, in his arms. it's been a while since the two of you had cuddled so intimately. you feel oddly shy, the same way you did all those years ago when you first started dating him. there's a special kind of warmth that sukuna's body emits - and you're surrounded by it under these blankets.

"i'll try to do better... so don't go anywhere," he speaks with a softer tone.

because, it's true, he can't imagine living a life without you.

those are the last words you hear before you drift off to sleep.

the next morning, he's still in bed with you, and you're pleased to see he kept his word about taking the day off. checking the mirror, you're horrified and embarrassed about your swollen eyes from all the crying last night.

sukuna takes a look at you and chuckles without ill intent. but in your flustered state, you slap his arm until he's saying "my bad, my bad" in between laughs.

there's still some awkward tension between you and him, but going through breakfast together seems to melt some of that away, until you're ready to bring up yesterday's event.

it goes better than you'd expected, and after the discussion, the only thing that's left is to wait and see whether things will change for the better or not. whether his promises are empty or not.

"i didn't realise that you were so lonely. 'm sorry," he apologises as he plays with your hand, "i may work a lot, but you're always on my mind, doll."

it's like a huge weight off your shoulders.

and he begins to be more like his playful self again, after the talk.

"i'll need you to tell me that you love me today. since you told me you hated me yesterday," sukuna says with a smirk, hugging you from behind.

"well, you need to earn it," you shoot back, rolling your eyes.

"alright. will you say it back if i say it first?"

"sure."

"i love you."

"..."

"now that's not fair, is it?" he tickles you without mercy.

you burst out in laughter, thrashing around uncontrollably, trying to push him away.

"okay, okay! i love you!" you tell him in between breaths.

seemingly satisfied, he lets you go and pushes his face into the crook of your neck. he'll never let you go.

the following day after work, sukuna comes home earlier than usual, and he doesn't wear a grumpy expression in front of you. he greets you with a hug and kiss. it's a small gesture, but it makes you happy.

and slowly, the relationship begins to rekindle itself.

[dotster001]

Those are the Eyes...

Summary: Jack Howl x gn! Reader. Jack discovers a new magic that will finally free you from those who wish to use you. (It's not that serious. He's just being Jack)

CW: Crowley is an ass, but what else is new, silly fic, nothing serious

This fic was sponsored, for the Fics for Gaza Project! Find out how you can sponsor a fic here.

Jack was sick of you getting pulled into terrible situations by your other friends. When the two of you had started dating, he had hoped he would have a little more sway when it came to your decisions of whether to listen to an ADeuce idea or not, but he had had no such luck so far. 

And it wasn't just them. You were too kind to everyone in this school often at the expense of your own well being.

"Y/N! We haaaave to add more money to the tuna budget."

You looked exasperated. "Grim, I've already told you, we've put all the money we can into the tuna budget."

Grim pouted and crossed his arms. "Do we really need to fix the stairwell this month? I think it's fine the way it is."

It wasn't. Honestly, Ramshackle should have been condemned in the shape it was in.

"Yes, Grim, we really do," you sighed.

Grim suddenly held a paw to his forehead. "Oh! The Great Grim feels faint!" He fell backwards and whimpered. "I'm starving because of my cruel Hench human. I may die right here."

"You're not starving Grim, your tuna budget is fine," Jack finally cut in. But when he looked over at you, he could see that you were going to cave.

And then it happened. It came from deep down inside of him, like a second unique magic. His pupils expanded, his eyebrows rose ever so slightly, and his bottom lip stuck out in a little pout.

Suddenly, the look on your face changed. You looked at him with concern.

"Aw, c'mon Jack, don't give me those puppy dog eyes!"

But his face held his expression, and now his tail was drooping for good measure. "It would just tear me up inside if you weren't able to live in a safe environment, Y/N."

That did it for you. You placed your hands on his cheeks and hastily exclaimed, "If it means that much to you, I won't change the tuna budget." You hugged him and nuzzled into his chest whispering a "sorry". Which was fine, because it meant you didn't see his tail wagging up a storm.

He had thought maybe it was a fluke. But after running a few experiments, he realized you were weak for what you called his "puppy dog eyes". No longer could Ace get you to paint the roses for him. No longer could Ruggie get you to give him some of your lunch for nothing. No longer could Grim guilt you into buying more tuna than you needed. Finally, the two of you didn't have to play parents to everyone and you could spend time together.

But with great power comes great responsibility.

He was sitting in Azul's office, sizing him up across the desk.

"What did you want from me?" He asked finally.

Azul gestured dramatically. "There's a rumor going around that you can make a certain prefect do whatever you want."

He snapped his fingers and Jade pulled out a contract.

"I am prepared to offer you…."

But before he could even finish the offer, Jack was leaving the room.

It wasn't a one off thing.

"Ay, Jack!" Ruggie sidled up next to him on the way to class. "You think you can do me a solid? See, I have a lot of chores to do for Leona, and I was hoping you could ask Y/N to…"

And Jack was gone again.

The headmage had summoned Jack to his office. He placed a plate of delicious food in front of him, and was staring at him with a serene smile on his face.

Jack did not trust that one bit.

The headmage leaned back in his chair, simply watching Jack. Jack stared back, not touching his plate.

“Mr. Howl, I was hoping you could help me with a situation. I, and the entirety of the student body, will be eternally grateful.”

Jack said nothing, continuing to stare. Normally, he would assist the headmage in any way, his sense of honor always looking for a way to help the school. But, with the recent attempts to use his new ability for selfish ends, he was extremely suspicious.

“I have called the prefect in for a meeting. You see, it's the time of year where the dark mirror provides us a list of names for potential incoming students. I need a secretary, who will write down the list of names, compile the addresses, send out the acceptance letters, etc. etc. You understand, surely.”

Crowley leaned in conspiratorially, a sly grin on his face.

“You will help me convince them to take on this task, for the sake of our esteemed university, won't you?”

Jack stood angrily, slamming his hands on the table as he leaned into Crowley's face.

“This power I have been given is strong. And if I waste it on things that are to the detriment of my partner, then I do not deserve to even be with them.”

Crowley's smirk turned down right sinister.

“A shame, truly. Too bad. Because they are already here.”

A knock rang from the door, and Jack's head whipped over in time to see you walk in. Your eyes lit up when you saw him, and Jack had to fight off the embarrassment of not having anywhere to hide his wagging tail.

“Perfect, welcome! Have a seat!” Crowley said, and Jack felt a guilty sense of pride as the light left your eyes upon hearing his voice.

You walked to the empty seat next to where Jack was standing, taking it. You raised a brow expectantly.

“What do you want, headmage?” You asked tiredly.

And Jack knew he couldn't simply be a witness. If he couldn't protect you from one crow, then what was his new magic ability for?

“I need you to be my full time secretary until the end of the school year-”

“Am I getting paid?” You asked, bluntly.

“No, but-”

“Then no.”

At that moment, Jack realized he was not the only one with a secondary unique magic that was capable of manipulating you. Crowley's expression shifted into one of a cruel, terrifying, debt collector.

“Night Raven College is an esteemed university, one that is exclusive to only the best mages. And yet we have provided you with a home, and an invaluable education. All for free. The least repayment you can give is selflessly serving our university.”

He watched as you deflated. The truth was, you'd become invaluable to NRC. There was no reason Crowley would logically kick you out, especially for a job he had done alone for years before you had popped into this world. He was bluffing.

But the move was working. You were opening your mouth to accept the job, when Jack knelt before you, placing his hands on your leg to get your attention. Then he activated his power.

Your mouth instantly closed, your expression shifting to one of distracted adoration at his “puppy dog eyes”. 

“The budget we would need to hire a secretary will, unfortunately, have to come out of the renovation budget for Ramshackle.”

Your face immediately flicked back up to Crowley. Jack had underestimated how strong Crowley's powers were. The crow had had years to grow his abilities, while Jack had only had a few months.

Jack pawed at your leg, forcing his ears to droop as he intensified his “magic”.  Your look of dejection melted, your lips parting in a silent “aw”. 

“We may even have to get rid of an extra student. Providing for two of you is an unnecessary expense, to the board.”

You whipped back to Crowley, but Jack knew that was his last card. But if he smiled smugly now, he would lose. So he dug deep within himself, pulling at an inner supply of strength.

His pupils expanded even further, glitter and hearts filled the air, and he watched your face split into a dopey grin, your hand moving on it's own to scratch behind his ears.

“Sorry headmage, I don't think I can,” you said, your voice sounding loopy and lovesick.

The headmage scowled, but Jack held firm, the sparkles and hearts floating in the air twirling for good measure.

“Fine. You win this round Howl. But, next time, I'll be prepared for you! Mark my words!” Crowley shouted.

Luckily, you were too caught in Jack's spell to even hear his words, as he escorted you from the room.

You were halfway to the mirror chamber to return to Ramshackle, when you turned to him, cupping his cheeks, and exclaiming,

“Sevens! You just look so cute!” Then you kissed the tip of his nose.

His embarrassment caused him to drop the puppy eyes spell. He looked away, rubbing his neck for something to distract himself. When he looked up, you were blinking in confusion.

“Where am I? I thought I was in Crowley's office. How did I get out here?”

Now he was more embarrassed. He'd gone too hard, too quickly, with his magic.

He was about to apologize, when you smiled at him sweetly.

“Wait, it was my perfect, handsome wolf who protected me, right?”

Oh.

Oh no.

He wasn't the only one with magic to make someone lovesick.

....

Tag list- @eccedentesiast-sapphic @leoll @strawberrystepmom

Lemme know if you want to be added to my regular tag list. I lost my original list, so this is just the one I could find.

[calypsocolada]

how bsd boys react to thinking you're dead... ft. tecchou, akutagawa, dazai, kunikida

cw: blood, gore, death, sewerslide mentions/attempt in dazai's, angst, fem reader

wc: 2.2k

Tecchou dropped to his knees, your weapon clutched tightly in his hands. The blade was shattered, he held the pieces between his fingers. You were always ahead in a fight, always. You had the upperhand last time he saw you and now he couldn’t find you at all. Not to mention he knew you’d die before losing your sword, it was practically an extension of yourself. Tecchou couldn’t move, something wet slid down his cheeks as he stared at your sword. His one hand came up to swipe over his cheeks, his breathing ragged. 

You two weren’t meant to be. He followed justice, obeyed the law, and put it above everything else. You were a criminal, working for some lowly mafia group in Yokohama. The first time you two met you bested him in a fight. He dropped to his knees in front of you and told you to take his life. You had laughed and placed the tip of your sword under his chin, tilting it up so he was looking you in the eyes.

“You're very dramatic.” You had said, amusement on your features. He looked at you, really looked at you. “You better beat next time you see me or I just might kill you.” You say, pulling your sword back away from him. He watched until you were gone and still sat there minutes after. 

After that Tecchou saw you a few more times, but you two didn’t fight. Something threw you together and you had to work side by side. Tecchou couldn’t stop thinking of you. Treatise, traitorous thoughts of you. Haunting his dreams, your eyes in the middle of the night. You hair and the complex way you braided it, the way you talked and laughed and just every damned thing about you. It was exhausting how much his mind wandered to you. You weren’t a good person, to think of you this way was against everything Tecchou believed in. But he couldn’t stop. He found himself looking for you around every corner, searching you in every shop and watching the door at various cafes wondering if there was any conventional way he could meet you.  

But now, with your broken sword in his hands and you nowhere in sight Tecchou felt something deep and guttural in his chest. It ached like nothing before. His fingers flexed hard around the sword, cutting them sharply against the blade, blood dripping from his hand. 

“Tecchou!” A voice yelled. He didn’t look up from your sword, just stared at it as though he could will you back to life. “Tecchou!” That voice again. He blinked, a tear falling down his face. That voice. It was familiar, but he couldn’t move, he couldn’t… “My blade…” The voice said, not so far away anymore. He looked up and it was like seeing a ghost. You were pale, dried blood from a cut on your cheek. Your eyes looked at the blade, broken in his hands. “Those bastards broke my-” He was quick to his feet, quick to grab you and pull you into his chest, one hand around your back and the other tangling in your hair. You gasped at how fast he moved. He held you tightly, so tightly you could barely breathe. “Tecchou---” You managed. “Is everything alright?” You asked, he loosened up a bit but didn’t let you go. 

“I thought,” His voice broke a bit, the emotion in it dragged you to an understanding. “I thought you were dead.” He said, his fingers digging into you. You blew out a laugh, throwing your arms around him, patting his solid back. 

“Me? Dead?” You scoffed. “I didn’t know you cared this much.” He pulled back at that, looking down from his massive height. 

“I care.” He said simply and passionately. “You’re very important to me.” He says and your breath catches because Tecchou was serious. You, a lowly mafia member, important to a member or the Hunting Dogs?

“Am I?” You echoed because it seemed so out of the realm of possibility. He only nodded his head, his fingers in your hair sliding forwards to your cheek, his thumb tilted your chin up and before you could blink his lips crashed against yours. You gasped in surprise. Today seemed like a day full of surprises. 

“Tecchou!” Another voice called out from across the way. You barely had time to react before Tecchou was pulling back, cradling your face in his hands.

“Go,” He urged. “Go now. I won’t let you get caught.” He says, hands pulling away from your face towards his sword. It was another Hunting Dog that called for you, an older man. 

“You’ll get in trouble if I leave. You’d be breaking the law.” You say and he nods his head. 

“For you I’d do anything.” He says, eyes lightening up with fiery passion. “Now go.” You clench your jaw, nodding your head.

You fell to the floor, blood spilling down the front of your shirt, your weapon clattering out of your hand and across the floor. It slid until it stopped right in front of Akutagawa. Something cracked and splintered inside of him. He watched as you reached a bloody hand towards him.

“Run,” You warned weakly before the light in you snuffed out and you laid limply on the floor, blood pooling around you. Francis started to laugh at your expense. 

You and Akutagawa came here together to face him, to stop the ship from crashing into Yokohama. Akutagawa wouldn’t leave here unless Francis was split in half. He wouldn’t run because he knew if things were reversed you wouldn’t run either. 

So he fought, with everything in him, to pay you memory he’d send Francis to hell. And just like that he slashed Francis and sent him tumbling off the side of this ship towards certain death. Akutagawa stared until Francis was out of sight. And when the rain started he ran to grab your lifeless body and carry you back towards shelter. 

He didn’t win because he lost you. 

It didn’t matter that lives were saved because your life was lost. 

Nothing mattered as he laid you carefully on the floor, your skin pale. All of this meant nothing, nothing at all. Carefully he reached a hand towards you, his finger dragging your wet hair out of your face, your skin cold to the touch. He yanked off his jacket and pulled you into his arms, placing the jacket over your cold body as he held you. He held so tightly, wanting to give you just a little bit of his own warmth. And that’s when the tears started, slow at first then all at once. He couldn’t stop them. He’d wasted every moment with you. Pretending as though you didn’t matter to him. Pretending you weren’t everything he thought about every waking moment. He felt sick, sicker than ever. He ached for you. He lost. 

“Don-t- cry.” A shock to the system hearing your weak voice. He yanked his head back, his tears dropping on your cheeks. Your eyes were open as you looked up at him. You were alive. Badly injured and close to death. But alive. He let out a ragged breath he hadn’t known he was holding as he stared shocked. “Akutagawa--,” You managed, coughing up blood. 

“Don’t talk.” He choked out. “Don’t say another goddamn word.” He growled. You stared up at him, biting your lip. “I’m getting you off this god forsaken ship and to a doctor, after all that you can say something.” He says angrily. And then he did something that shocked you. His thumb swiped the blood from your lips before he pressed his own to yours. You froze, sucking in a breath. The kiss was short and left you with a panging want as he pressed his forehead against your own. “If you ever die on me I’ll kill you myself.” He hoisted you up into his arms carefully. You were in and out for the most part. Missing all the good parts. The next time you woke up was in a hospital bed inside the agency. Yosano clearly fixed you up because you felt no pain at all. But you were alone. After all, Akutagawa and you were on opposite sides. But after everything that happened, you weren’t so sure anymore.

Dazai always dreamed to find someone who he could commit suicide with. He felt it was the most romantic way to go out, side by side with someone he loved. But when he met you… Someone so full of life and love. He could no longer want that stupid dream of his. It haunted him at night when you laid beside him. He’d never felt this way. This fierce protectiveness to kill anything that would even try to harm you. Everything he loved was taken from him and a scared part of him hoped you’d be his exception. Hoped you’d do as he said. His rules to keep you safe and anything to do with the detective agency far far from you. He had his enemies. His enemies were cunning. He knew how they thought. Knew having you in his life meant he had a weakness to exploit. It kept him up at night because if he wanted to beat a villain he’d go after their loved ones as well. And when that day came it only felt the sickest fate, the worst kind of karma. 

Dazai was smart, but he met his match in Fyodor and when Fyodor found out about you it was all over. You were taken in the night. Dazai was working late when he noticed a missed call from you. The voicemail… your frantic voice, the way it cut off. Dazai tripped over himself to get back to the house, he practically broke his foot busting down the front door only to find it empty. He went to the bedroom, blood splattered against your guys’ bed. Dazai dropped to his knees. You were gone and knowing Fyodor you were dead. He was quick to slide his blade out and press it against his own neck. There was no point to living if you weren’t here with him. So Dazai closed his eyes, tears falling down his cheek as he started to drag the blade across his neck. A hand shot out, grabbing him by the wrist. 

“Dazai!” Your sweet voice croaked out as you pulled his hand from his neck, the other pressing against the small wound he made. “Didn’t you hear me? I’m okay!” You cried, falling to your knees in front of him. He stared dumbfoundedly at you, his hand slowly coming up to your cheek. To feel you and to know you were right here, and alive. His thumb swiped across your cheek that was wet with tears.

“I thought you were dead.” He said, his voice trembling as his hand tangled in your hair, yanking you into his body until you were practically sitting on his lap. 

“I’m not, I’m okay.” You gasped through tears, holding him tightly.

The bomb went off, destroying half of the train station. Kunikida was thrown back several feet into a brick wall, body falling hard against the concrete. He couldn’t hear, just the muffled sounds of debris breaking and crashing to the floor. He pushed to his feet, his body aching. He held his ribs as he slumped slightly against the wall. He was mere inches from you before the bomb went off. You were a fingertips length away from him. 

A ragged breath escaped his lips, his throat choking up. He surged forwards, dizziness throwing him off balance. He called out for you once, twice, three times but heard nothing. His hands bled as he yanked debris to the side where he’d last seen you. He moved on particular piece and his hand stopped. Part of the hem of your dress stuck underneath. It was ripped and when he pulled on it it came out easily. He pulled the piece to his chest, tears forming in his eyes. He felt sick to his stomach. He pocketed the piece and continued working to find you. He could barely stand straight, he bled from his hands, his ribs probably broken from the blast. He coughed up blood, tears mixing with the dust on his cheeks. He screamed your name, yelled it into the desolation. He’d search until he was dead. 

You had to be alive, you just had to be. 

So he moved until the pain brought him to his knees and even then he still moved. He’d rather die than give up on you. He stumbled through the debris and just as all hope seemed lost a hand shot out and grabbed him by the ankle. Kunikida’s balance tipped, he practically fell to his knees in shock as he yanked on some bigger pieces of rock until they dislodged. And there you were, coughing and sputtering covered in dirt and dust. A choked sob escaped his lips as he mustered all of his strength to pull you out of the mess and back into his arms. 

“Doppo-“ you coughed, arms falling around his body. He pulled back, teary eyes searching over you for any wounds. He brushed your hair from your face and kissed you, kissed your cheeks and your forehead, yanking you into his chest to hold you close.

[iheartcake123]

hi i love your fanfictions. can i request a imagine with sweet home sergeant kim. you are a doctor +soldier.you served in the military but your base camp was destroyed.so you joined the crow platoon.since then only seok chan and the others have been your friends.sergeant kim was always cold towards you.one day you had argument with him. please i dont know what should be the argument about.it could be she being careless and getting hurt??and then they had to go for the supplies and when getting the supplies a monster comes and attacks sregeant kim.she then tries to get it off. and then the monster comes for her and she gets hurt.then after the monster died,sergeant kim scolds her for getting herself hurt.she couldnt bear him anymore.she then breaks down about how he was always so cold to her and etc. he went quite and they went back to their camp she went back to her room. she struggles to clean up her wound on the shoulder.sergeant kim was heading to her room to apologize to her.he sees her struggling so he helps her.there is ome sexual tension between them. he broke the silence by saying sorry.then afte that they are sitting so close together they kissed made out.confessed their feelings for each other and fell asleep together.sorry i wrote this much.

hellooo!! tysm :) here’s you’re fic, i changed a couple of bits but tried to stick to the storyline you wanted as best as possible so i hope you like it!

Masterlist

yeong-hu x f!reader for @bilibiliiiiiii

“make sure to keep the wound as clean as you can, okay?” you smiled at the women in front of you before handing her some bandages “take these and change the dressing every two days”

“thank you, you’re always so kind” the lady thanked you before walking away.

with a smile you watched her walk away as your wrapped up for the day. being part of the platoon and being a doctor you split your responsibilities. some days you’d go out on expeditions to find supplies and other days you’d be on doctor duty, helping the civilians.

you wanted to make sure you were doing your part.

after packing up your supplies up and closing the infirmary, you headed to the platoon area. when you got there, most of the men were eating supper or waiting for their shirts to dry.

“oh it’s y/n. come eat with us!” seok-chan gestured for you to come over to where he and some of the other platoon members were eating.

you nodded with a grin before grabbing yourself a bowl of whatever they were serving and went to sit next to seok-chan.

“how’s my favourite military doctor doing?” he gently elbowed your side and you chuckled.

“i am very good. i just can’t wait to go back to my room and sleep later though” you answered dramatically putting your head on seok-chan’ shoulder.

“busy day, huh?” he nudged you slightly and you lifted your head.

“don’t even get me started but anyway enough about me. what did you get up to today? find yourself a girlfriend yet?”

“ahh no way. you know i could never date unless the sarge decides to. that will never happen though”

“that’s right. the sarge is too serious to start dating anyone” seo-jin chimed in.

“please, the sarge will never find someone. he’s too uptight and cold. i mean, he literally doesn’t even talk to me! how rude can someone even-“ you complained but seok-chan suddenly cleared his throat causing you to stop talking.

you twisted your head slightly and saw yeong-hu stood a meter away with his arms crossed looking at you.

“i think you should stop worrying about such trivial matters and focus on doing your appointed jobs miss y/l/n. you’re on washing up duty and there’s a big pile waiting for you to clean” yeong-hu said before walking away.

when he was a safe distance away, you sighed aloud.

“he heard all of it, didn’t he?” you held your head low “god, he didn’t like me much before. i bet now he’s likes me even less”

“it’s not that bad y/n. you know how the sarge is…” seok-chan made an attempt to try and make you feel better but it was not working.

sergeant kim yeong-hu just didn’t like you and you didn’t know why.

the following day, you woke up nice and early. you were going to be going on an expedition with the platoon. after getting your gear you went to the main platoon area. most of the members were still getting themselves ready and you joined jin-ho who was doing his usual tech things.

“i don’t know how you do all this. there’s about a hundred wires” you commented watching jin-ho attach one wire onto another.

“it’s easy once you know what is what” he said and briefly looked at you.

“right..are you thinking of growing your hair out again?”

“not any time soon. it’s easier if it’s just short…” jin-ho answered running a hand over his head “i do like how it looks when it’s longer but-"

he abruptly stopped speaking as his eyes widened slightly. he then cleared his throat and turned his focus back to what he was originally doing.

“if you don’t mind y/n, let’s talk later im busy right now” he said in a serious tone and you awkwardly nodded.

it wasn’t until you got up from your seat next to jin-ho that you realised why he was acting in such a weird way. when you got up and turned on your heel, you saw yeong-hu stood nearby. he had a stern look on his face and spoke once you saw him.

“any luck jin-ho?” yeong-hu said aloud “i hope you’re not getting distracted by certain people”

yeong-hu kept his eyes on you as he looked you up and down as you walked past him. you did your best to hide the fact he was slightly intimidating and went to go sit with some of the other platoon members.

-later-

you made sure to be on your best behaviour when on the expedition to get supplies. you didn’t want to get onto yeong-hu’ bad side.

“let’s split into two groups, that way we can cover more ground. this is a wholesale store so there should be plenty for us to get. seok-chan, seo-jin, jin-ho and y/n come with me to cover the second floor of the building and the rest of you cover the ground floor” yeong-hu ordered and soon enough the group was split into two.

yeong-hu led from the front with seo-jin behind him. you were behind seo-jin and at the back was seok-chan. you all quietly made your way to the second floor, the concrete floors and walls in the staircase area were covered in some thick brown substance and the smell was sickly.

“stay cautious. we don’t know what creature could’ve done this” yeong-hu looked back briefly before continuing forward.

“ah what’s that fucking smell. it’s so bad” seo-jin cursed.

“man up seo-jin, it’s not that bad” seok-chan let out a chuckle and you couldn’t help but giggle slightly.

seo-jun shot you both a quick glare.

“seriously, what monster did all of this though” you breathed out as you all approached the top of the stairs “it’s disgusting”

“focus! we are about to enter the second floor” yeong-hu suddenly snapped and you gulped with a small nod.

you didn’t understand why he was so cold to you. you tried your best not to dwell on it though. you had to focus on the task at hand.

you held your gun close as you followed the others as you all entered the second floor.

yeong-hu and seo-jin covered the right side while you and seok-chan covered the left.

“clear!” you called out as seo-jin did the same.

“let’s all split up. look for any supplies you think we need. keep within ear reach of each other” yeong-hu announced.

“we can’t be sure there’s no monster here so keep your eyes peeled and call out if you need help” seok-chan tapped your shoulder, and you sent him a quick nod as you all then went separate ways.

you went straight to what looked like an area with a bunch of medical supplies.

“bingo!” you smiled to yourself, quickly making sure the area was safe before getting your hand torch out and putting your gun down. you placed the torch on the shelf so that it would illuminate the area as much as possible.

after filling your bag to the brim with different medical supplies, you began to make way to see if maybe there was anything else. you made your way over to a check out counter and began rummaging through the draws underneath, checking to see if maybe there was anything useful. you crouched down and held the torch in your mouth as you needed both hands free. it was practical.

as you continued to rummage through the draws, you heard a scraping sound and your head immediately shot up. you took the torch from your mouth and held it in the direction where you thought you heard the scraping was coming from. you took a deep breath in trying to stop yourself from reacting badly as you noticed a creature that had a human head, a human upper torso but the rest of its body was a centipede body climbing up the wall.

luckily, it hadn’t seen you.

you tactically turned off your torch and stayed crouched as you made your way to try and find the others. you couldn’t exactly radio any of them or call out to them because then it meant the monster would know you were there.

you barely made it a meter or two away before, you heard footsteps approaching. it was yeong-hu. he was walking in the direction of where the creature was.

“stop” you whispered as loud as you could while waving your arms to try and get his attention.

he at first didn’t notice you but when he did, your eyes widened as you realised hanging above him was the creature.

“what are you-” he raised an eyebrow but was cut off at the half centipede creature jumped on his back. yeong-hu fell to the ground and the creature

you immediately got up and rushed to help yeong-hu. you had your knife in hand and pierced it through the creatures chest. it shrieked in pain and then turned to look at you. the head of the creature had large teeth, that resembled fangs and its eyes were pure black. it hissed and lunged towards you.

you felt its full weight on top of you and it held you down as its teeth sunk down on your shoulder. you released an ear piercing scream as pain shot through your body. you didn’t stop trying to push it off of you and soon all you could hear was gunshots and eventually the weight that was once on you disappeared.

“y/n!” you heard yeong-hu’ voice yell as your eyes became heavy.

“sarge..i” you just about managed to say before everything went black.

when you woke up, you were in your room back at the stadium. you couldn’t remember how you had gotten back. you tried to sit up but felt a sharp pain in your left shoulder and remembered the hideous creature that had bitten you. your shoulder was now bandaged up and you were in your pjs.

you noticed on your bedside table that your radio was there so you carefully went to reach for it. you then turned it on and spoke into it.

“hello? is anyone there? seok-chan?” you said into it but no one answered.

maybe they were busy?

with a sigh, you let yourself fall back onto your pillow. you were in a lot of pain. you closed your eyes and tried to see if you could remember what had happened after the creature had bitten you but it was of no use.

after a couple of minutes, you heard your door swing open and you lifted your head. you saw that it was yeong-hu.

it took you by surprise that it was him so you quickly sat up, ignoring the pain you were in. you cleared your throat and smiled politely at him.

“sergeant kim” you greeted but by his facial expression, you could tell he wasn’t in the mood.

what possibly could’ve made him in such a sour mood?

“how careless could you have been?” he suddenly raised his voice causing you to flinch in shock “do you know the position you put yourself in? you can’t just put yourself in harms way! do you understand how it affects the team? i had the situation handled and because you decided to step in. you not only hurt yourself but we had to leave the expedition early!”

you felt tears swell in your eyes. how cold could he be?

you only wanted to save his life. it wasn’t like you planned on getting hurt.

“im sorry sergeant” you voice was quiet. you didn’t want to argue and make things worse.

“sorry doesn’t cut it y/n! you’re a part of the crow platoon. you should know not to be so careless! i’m relieving you from your platoon duties. from now on just focus on providing medical attention to those who need it.” yeong-hu’ voice was harsh.

“you know what? i give up with you sar- to you, i can never do anything right. you’re always to cold and rude towards me! I’ve done everything in power to get you to try to like me and treat me like you do with the other platoon guys but it’s clear that i’ll never get your respect. so you can relieve me of whatever duties you want because i give up! now please get out of my room” you finally snapped, tears were streaming down you eyes now.

you dont know what overcame you but you stood up, ignoring all the pain in your shoulder and began to push yeong-hu out the room.

“get out” you were trying not to yell and eventually he walked out. you slammed the door behind him and broke down some more.

why was he so cold towards you.

the next couple of days, you avoided the platoon members as best as you could. you couldn’t handle facing them, especially yeong-hu. you felt embarrassed about everything that happened. seok-chan tried his best to talk to you and you appreciated it. you just didn’t want to get involved with the platoon, now that yeong-hu had basically banned you.

you got back to your doctor duties the day after your confrontation with yeong-hu. you wanted to keep yourself occupied. at first it was difficult due to your shoulder injury but you soon managed to navigate your way and treat the patients with one hand.

“it sounds like a vitamin deficiency to me, which can happen in these circumstances. take one of these pills everyday for the next two weeks” you told the guy in front of you as you handed him a bottle of vitamin pills “if after two weeks, you still have symptoms then come back and let me know”

the guy you helped quickly thanked you before leaving and you sighed. you were working longer hours in the infirmary now that it was the only thing you would be doing. you checked the time and saw it was quite late so you decided to call it a day.

you closed the infirmary door and put the sign up to say it was closed for the day and went to examine your own shoulder. this was the last thing you needed to do for the day. you replaced the bandage every day, you didn’t want to risk getting any infections but it was a hard job each time and it was never wrapped as tight as it should be.

you threw your shirt off leaving you in just your tank top. you held your breath as you began to peel away the bandages from the wound. after successfully removing it, you then grabbed some sterile water to flush the would out. this proved difficult to do. but you managed.

just as you were about to apply some cotton with some antiseptic solution on it, the door to the infirmary opened and when you looked to see who it was you gulped.

yeong-hu.

once he noticed you he turned on his heel to walk out again. you breathed out a small sigh as you turned your focus back to your shoulder. however, he then paused and turned back towards you, this time walking to you. you were too busy trying to apply the cotton.

you grit your teeth as it burnt ever so slightly and you jumped in shock after realising yeong-hu was now stood beside you.

“let me help” his voice was firm.

“i’ll be fine” you whispered not looking at him.

“y/n let me help” this time you gave in.

you let out a sigh and nodded. you hoisted your body onto the infirmary table and let yeong-hu give a hand. his touch was soft as he gently applied the antiseptic cotton onto your shoulder. his fingers occasionally grazed over parts of your neck and you held your breath as he began to wrap the main bandage over to cover your shoulder completely.

you couldn’t help but to notice yeong-hu’ facial features as he did this. was he always this good looking? his eyes remained focused in your shoulder, you never noticed how soft and round they were. his hands, delicately placing the bandage around your shoulder. you never noticed how large and gentle they were.

your heart was beating fast and you didn’t know why. once he was done putting the bandage on your shoulder. he traced his fingers over the bandage, proud of how neatly he did it. yeong-hu looked up at you and your eyes locked with his for a second. he then stepped back and rested his hands on his hips, clearing his throat.

“thank you” you whispered carefully putting your shirt back on.

“you’re welcome..look, y/n” he began and then let out a sigh “im really sorry for how i treated you. i respect you a lot, really. it’s not an excuse but i have a lot to handle right now and i can’t bare losing anyone else. so when you got hurt i took all my anger out in that moment and i shouldn’t have”

“i appreciate your apology but it doesn’t explain why you’ve always been so cold towards me. I’ve done everything in my power to try and prove myself but it never seems like enough” you felt yourself become emotional.

yeong-hu stepped closer to you, closing the gap that was between the two of you.

“trust me you’re enough. y/n you’re way more than enough” yeong-hu took your hand in his.

you both stared at each other, your heart thumped inside your chest as yeong-hu looked between your eyes and lips. you swallowed hard as yeong-hu then leaned forward and pressed his lips to yours.

you lifted a hand and placed it on his chest, debating if you were going to push him away but instead you felt yourself leaning into the kiss. yeong-hu’ hands moved slowly down your back to your hips and your one arm moved to wrap loosely around his neck. the position was a bit awkward since you couldn’t move your one arm but that didn’t matter. you both couldn’t get enough of each others lips. the kiss was filled with passion, love and need.

when yeong-hu finally pulled away, you were both slightly out of breath. you couldn’t help but break into a smile as yeong-hu let out a relieved sigh.

“wow” you said aloud, looking at yeong-hu.

he rubbed the back of neck as he then let out a happy chuckle before being serious again.

“y/n, i really like you. i’ve liked you since i met you and i can never get you out of my head. i don’t know if you feel the same but even if you don’t, please give me a chance to put everything right and show you how much i care for you” he put a hand on your leg and gently rubbed circles.

“i like you too yeong-hu. i always have, that’s why i always tried so hard to get you to like me like you did the others” you put your hand atop of his “of course you can have a chance…just don’t blow it”

“i wouldn’t dare”

[yoongiseesawmp3]

marigold - hongjoong (m)

part of the frat boy series.

summary: annoying frat boy!hongjoong. your best friend and the bane of your existence is probably the love of your life, and you’re not sure how to tell him. your mutual friend seonghwa knows about your true feelings for hongjoong, and he does everything in his power to get you two together. one halloween party, one rainy car ride and one emotional rollercoaster later, you finally get a taste of what you’ve been waiting so long for. 

word count: 12.7k

warnings: smut!!!! protected sex. some alcohol use. afab reader, gendered pronouns. kinda unedited!

“you’re joking right?” you ask with a scoff. “you can’t be serious right now.”

“but i am!” your best friend, hongjoong, says with a devious smile. “it’s a cute costume!”

“joong, it’s barely a costume,” you insist, pulling at the strands of fabric he’s dangling in front of you. “i’m not sure i could get into that let alone wear it at a party all night.”

“cmon, you’re gonna find the perfect man wearing this,” hongjoong says, wiggling his eyebrows and nudging your arm. “no offense my love, but you need to get laid.”

“no offense, my love,” you emphasize with a shove back against him, “but i’m not wearing that even if you paid me.”

“name your price.”

“oh baby you can’t afford me,” you tell him, and he rolls his eyes.

“FINE,” he sighs dramatically. “but you owe me.”

“just like you owe me for setting you up with that girl from my japanese class?”

“ahem,” a voice cuts in, pulling your collective focus away. seonghwa is standing in the doorway of their shared room, eyebrows raised. it seems like he quirks them further when he sees that you’re sharing the futon under hongjoong’s lofted bed, your feet draped over his lap and his hand casually on your knee. it’s comfortable, because you and hongjoong are so close, but seonghwa knows what’s really going on.

seonghwa knows that you’re deeply, madly in love with your best friend. you’ve been into him since you met at work a few years ago, and you drunkenly confessed to seonghwa at a party last month that you’ve been waiting for hongjoong to make a move for about....two years now. super casual, no need for alarm, but seonghwa has been a little mad at you ever since he found out because he knows you’re aware of how slutty hongjoong is, politely. he knows that you know hongjoong will never be a relationship guy, and you’re not necessarily looking for something long term, but you’d want to hold onto hongjoong longer than he’d like to stick around. that’s why you’re fine with being friends, at least you still get to see him all the time and share all the exciting parts of your life with him. but seonghwa is still pissed, because he thinks you’re better than that. 

“hey seonghwa,” you say first, and he slowly walks into the room.

“hope i’m not interrupting,” he says as he dumps his clean clothes onto his bed.

“not at all,” hongjoong replies, pushing your legs off him to go show seonghwa what he thinks is the perfect halloween costume. “look at this.”

“did you get into a fight?” seonghwa asks. “how’d your shirt get ruined?”

“it’s not mine,” hongjoong says. “it’s y/n’s. i think it’d be a great costume, but you disagree, don’t you?”

“i don’t want to be a sexy mummy,” you insist, taking up the space hongjoong left and sprawling out over the futon. “i’m sleeping here tonight, by the way.”

“we knew that,” hongjoong says, and seonghwa nods in confirmation.

“you don’t want to wear that, y/n?” seonghwa asks, making you sit up and glare at him. “it could attract the right attention.”

“what do you mean by that?” hongjoong questions, eyes whipping back and forth between you and hwa. “y/n’s into somebody?”

“no,” you say quickly before seonghwa can reply. “hwa’s just looking out for me like you are.” hongjoong holds your gaze a moment longer to make sure you’re not lying, and while he’s staring you down you see seonghwa rolling his eyes. hongjoong turns around to ask hwa a question and you stick your tongue out at him, making him laugh.

“hey, i don’t like it when you guys have jokes i don’t understand,” hongjoong whines. “y/n’s my best friend, we should have inside jokes.”

“sorry man, i guess i just see a different side of her,” seonghwa says, and now it’s your turn to roll your eyes. 

“ok, whoa, don’t tell me you have a hard on for my best friend, man,” hongjoong replies defensively. he looks between you both and then his face softens as he goes on, “actually, you two would make a cute couple. have you ever thought about-”

“no!” you and seonghwa shout in unison. 

“ok, ok, sorry!” he says defensively. “but, like, have you thought about it...? even just a little bit?”

“i’m going to take a shower,” you say simply, standing up and grabbing a clean towel off of seonghwa’s bed. you ignore his protests as you head to the en suite that connects them to more of the boys living in the frat house, and you make sure the bathroom is free from frat-goers (or guests) before you get undressed. you hear seonghwa and hongjoong arguing through the door, but can’t make out the words. you choose to ignore it and turn the shower on, humming a song as you search for yunho’s body wash (it smells the best, sh!). maybe you’ll catch the end of the argument when you come back out.

-

“seriously, do you have a thing for y/n?” hongjoong asks seonghwa as soon as the bathroom door shuts.

“why are you so concerned? you don’t have a thing for her, do you?” seonghwa quips back, and hongjoong stutters out a response.

“i, no, i’m just saying, if you were into y/n i wouldn’t be opposed. you could dick her down-”

“stop talking.”

“-and maybe she’d get off my dick about how much i sleep around!” hongjoong finishes. “she needs to be reminded of the simple pleasures of being human.”

“why is she even friends with you?”

“you’re friends with me,” hongjoong points out, and seonghwa stares at him with a half folded shirt in his hands. 

“and do you think that’s by choice or by proximity?”

“careful or i’ll piss in your bed the next time i’m drunk.”

“do you two need to be left alone?” you ask, poking your head out of the bathroom to hear the end of the worst possible conversation ever. 

“hey sexy, sleeping without clothes on?” hongjoong asks, referring to your towel clad, post-shower body. 

“no jackass,” you say, cheeks heating up ever so slightly. “i forget this house is run by elderly rats so i left my clothes on the floor and now they’re soaked. i need a shirt to sleep in or something.”

“here,” seonghwa starts to pass you one of his clean ones, neatly folded into stacks on his bed. hongjoong beats him to it though, making it to his closet in two steps and pulling a shirt out for you. 

“you can wear this,” he says, tossing it to you and you thank him quietly but linger at the door. “need something else?”

“am i supposed to sleep commando? all my clothes are sopping wet,” you reiterate. “so i need. boxers. or pants.”

“you want em to match the shirt?” hongjoong asks, and you laugh even though he’s completely serious. 

“yes please,” you reply just to give him the chance to make something cute for you out of this awkward situation. 

“hmmm, ok,” he says, looking through his underwear drawer before pulling out a pair of boxer briefs for you. “these are probably clean.”

“probably?!”

“kidding,” he says as he slingshots them your way. miraculously you’re able to catch them and you thank him again before you duck back into the bathroom. when you come out a few minutes later, seonghwa is busy putting his clothes away and hongjoong is messing with pillows and blankets on the futon. 

“i could’ve done that,” you tell him, and he shakes his head.

“nope, i’m doing this for me,” he says. “you’re taking the bed.”

“hongjoong no-”

“no protests!” he insists. “let me be nice to you.”

“ok,” you reply meekly, gratefully taking the pillow he hands you.

“now give us a spin, let me see the fit,” he teases, and you roll your eyes at him.

“it’s just pajamas, it’s not a fit. it is cute though.”

“yeah, when you said you were giving her something that matched i thought you were gonna pull out your spongebob set,” seonghwa says with a sneaky smile. 

“you have spongebob pjs?!” you ask eagerly, and you catch hongjoong blushing. 

“only because hwa gave them to me!”

“because you asked for them! you liked my patrick ones so bad you wanted your own!”

“you guys have matching pjs?” you ask with a smile. “now that is just precious. maybe one day i’ll get sandy pjs and we can all match.”

“hey, that’s a good idea!” hongjoong says, a mischievous spark in his eyes.

“what is?”

“us wearing matching costumes,” he continues. “for halloween.”

“no, don’t involve me in this,” seonghwa says with a shake of his head. 

“no,” you and hongjoong both whine.

“it would be cute, hwa!” you insist. 

“cmon, we’ve been friends long enough i think we’re long overdue for a throuple costume,” hongjoong agrees.

“don’t call it that,” seonghwa says, “and maybe i’ll consider it. if you come up with a good idea and find the costumes, i’ll do it.”

“deal,” hongjoong says happily, grabbing his phone to no doubt look for costume ideas. “turn the light off when you’re done being anal about your sock drawer?”

“fine.”

-

the next day, you wake up to the sound of seonghwa tripping over hongjoong’s shoes as he’s getting ready for class. a quick peek over the side of the bed lets you know that hongjoong isn’t in the room, did he have an early class you didn’t know about? you lift yourself up, alerting seonghwa of your presence, and he nods at you with a yawn.

“how’d you sleep?” he asks with a smack of his lips. 

“pretty good,” you reply, absentmindedly playing with the corner of hongjoong’s pillow. “these sheets are really soft.”

“yeah, hongjoong pays for designer bedding,” seonghwa says. “he’s a weirdo.”

“yep.”

“what do you see in him?” seonghwa asks bluntly. “i know you’re super into him, but why? why is he the guy you’re hung up on.”

“maybe hongjoong was right,” you start. “maybe you are into me.” a pillow flying at your head tells you you’re wrong. “hey!”

“i’m in a relationship, you dipshit,” seonghwa says.

“since when?!”

“for about a month,” seonghwa brushes it off. “we’re not talking about me. we’re talking about you and your sadistic interest in your best friend who, to my understanding, you just set up with one of your friends?”

“so you heard that?”

“why’d you do that?” hwa asks, sounding disappointed. “why don’t you just tell him how you feel?”

“i don’t know,” you shrug. “i know him better than anyone. i would know if he liked me back. so i guess i tried setting him up with my friend to trick myself into moving on? like maybe if he was really into someone else then i could finally get him off my mind.”

“y/n,” seonghwa sighs. “you deserve more than this. you can’t just wait around for him, or wait for yourself to get over him. maybe you do need to get laid.”

“you and joong make a charming pair, did you know that?” you ask with a smile. “i’ll try my best.”

“you know san-”

“always hits on me, i know,” you cut him off. “but he’s so much worse than hongjoong. you look up fuckboy in the dictionary and his picture is there instead of a definition.”

“i’m not saying you need to find mr. right, you just need something..fun,” seonghwa says carefully. “san could be that thing.”

“i’ll think about it,” you assure him. “is he here, do you know?”

“is who here?” hongjoong asks, busting back into the room with a carrier of coffee and a bag from mcdonald’s. “i’m right here baby.”

“i knew you didn’t have an early class,” you say, reaching down for the coffee you know is yours. seonghwa always gets hot chocolate (child) and joong drinks cold coffee even in the snow (madman) so it’s easy to distinguish them all. the first sip is heavenly, and you thank hongjoong as he climbs up into his lofted bed with you.

“hwa i didn’t know if you were hungry so i just got you a biscuit,” he starts, tossing the food down. seonghwa has to act fast, but thankfully he catches it. “and i got you that weird sandwich you like. it confused the poor girl in the drive thru though, i don’t think anyone ever orders it.”

“well i appreciate the effort,” you say as you snatch the delicacy from his hands.

“so what did i interrupt?” hongjoong asks, mouthful of hashbrown. “who are you looking for?”

“did you see san downstairs?” seonghwa asks, and hongjoong thinks for a minute.

“he might have just come home, yeah,” he says finally. “why, you lookin for him?”

“no, y/n is,” seonghwa smirks, and hongjoong stiffens next to you. “i’m trying to convince her to stop ignoring his courtship and just let the guy take her out.”

“why?” hongjoong asks defensively, and you look to him quickly, trying to read his expression. he turns to catch your eye, and you almost see...panic? worry? but it vanishes before you can identify it. “he’s a dick.”

“he’s your friend,” you say.

“yeah, and he’s a dick,” hongjoong repeats. “he just wants to get in your pants.”

“i’m sorry, didn’t we have a whole conversation last night about how you wished someone would blow my back out?”

“OH!” hongjoong shouts, shuffling around for his phone. “that reminds me, i figured out our costume!!!” 

you and seonghwa share a look, noticing how hongjoong ignored your question and changed the subject so quickly. the side glance is interrupted by hongjoong’s phone being shoved in your face, and you cackle at the picture in front of you.

“ok, that’s it,” you gasp through another laugh. “you can’t pick our costumes for anything, ever.”

“what is it?” seonghwa asks, scurrying over and standing on his tiptoes to see into the bed better. hongjoong shows him, and a slow smile creeps over seonghwa’s face.

“NO,” you say, “you LIKE it?!”

“what? it’s cute!” seonghwa says.

“thank you!” hongjoong shouts. “two against one, y/n, sorry.”

“ok, then it can be a couple costume,” you tell them as you shake your head. “i’m not doing that.”

“but we love this movie,” hongjoong pouts. “you’ll be boo, i’ll be sully, hwa will be mike wazowski, it’ll be perfect.”

“that’s what you said about the mummy.”

“i mean it this time.”

“wait, why am i wazowski?” hwa asks. 

“because of your big beautiful eyes. or should i say eye,” you joke, and hongjoong laughs, falling over into your side as he does. when he regains his composure, you feel like he’s closer than he was before, but maybe that’s just your imagination. “plus, your new little boo thing could be celia!”

“seonghwa has a celia?!” hongjoong asks, eyes wide. “ok, i officially don’t like you two knowing more about each other than i do.”

“aw does baby have main character syndrome?” you tease, pouting in joong’s direction. “hwa and i can be friends, shut up.”

“no,” he snips. “you hurt my feelings. and to make up for it, you have to be the boo to my sully.”

“fine,” you sigh dramatically. hongjoong leans in and pecks your cheek, thanking you profusely as he dives back into his breakfast, thrilled about the frat’s halloween party this weekend because the three of you are “totally gonna dominate the costume contest.” you don’t hear him though, too focused on the heat lingering on your cheek. you smile to yourself as joong blabbers on, and return to the food in front of you. maybe the costumes will be fun after all.

-

“hongjoong, no,” you insist, getting deja vu to the other night. “that can’t be my costume! why do you keep doing this to me?”

“why do you hate having fun?” hongjoong counters, pouting behind the shirt he’s holding up. this is supposed to be your entire costume?

“it’s freezing and you want me to wear a shirt and nothing else?”

“i got biker shorts!” he says, scrambling through a bag on his futon. “they look like boo’s shorts, so you can wear those and the shirt. what’s wrong with that? may i remind you that you agreed to this.”

“yeah, but i thought you were gonna get actual costumes.”

“these are costumes!”

“these are just clothes!” you argue, pointing to the goodwill bags on his bed. “you made it seem like you were gonna be in a full sully suit, so i thought i was gonna be in that fake monster suit boo wears. not clothes that could still get me hypothermia.”

“y/n please,” hongjoong begs. “i worked really hard to find these outfits, and i’m really proud of them. we’re gonna look so cute! and you’re ruining it!”

“i’m not ruining it,” you grumble, snatching the shirt from his hands. “i’ll do it.”

“thank you thank you thank you!” hongjoong cheers, kissing your cheeks repeatedly in gratitude. he finishes with one last peck on the tip of your nose, and you can’t help but smile at your annoying best friend.

“you’re welcome,” you sigh, grabbing the shorts too. “but move, i need to go to the bathroom and change.”

you shuffle past hongjoong and he says he’s going to find seonghwa to give him his pieces, and you nod before sneaking into the main part of the bathroom. you turn around and almost jump out of your skin, not expecting to see san in there. especially not a half naked san, because he’s in...red leather pants? and nothing else?

“jesus, you scared me,” you say, clutching your chest. 

“well i do live here,” he says with a smirk, eyeing the items in your hands. “costume?”

“yeah,” you nod. “you?”

“nah, this is just my loungewear,” he teases, getting you to crack a smile. 

“so what are you?” you ask, not so subtly checking him out. what kind of costume is just red pants? sexy santa?

“i’m the devil,” he responds, holding up a headband with horns on it to complete the look. 

“dressing in character i see,” you tease, and san pretends to look offended.

“do you need help getting into your costume, love?” he asks, motioning to your clothes, and you shake your head.

“no, thank you,” you say sternly. “but i might need help with the pigtails.”

a few minutes later, you’re in full boo (and freezing, why don’t they turn the heat on in here?) and san has you centered in the mirror with the most concentrated look on his face. he’s trying to get your pigtails to be the same height. the left one is done, perfect, and now he’s working on the right, his tongue tucked between his lips in concentration. for once he’s quiet, not trying to hit on you, and as he smooths your hair to add the elastic, hongjoong comes bursting into the bathroom, causing san to let the hair tie go and slingshot against your head as a result.

“ow!” you shriek, elbowing san in his very warm, firm and exposed midriff. 

“sorry,” he says quickly, kissing the side of your head that got the hit. “all better?”

“what are you doing?” hongjoong asks coldly. you look at him through the mirror, san’s hand still gripping your hair and restricting your movement. you notice hongjoong leaned up against the bathroom door in his subtle sully costume, arms crossed over his chest.

“i’m helping y/n get dressed,” san says simply. “can you hand me another elastic, doll?”

“why, did the other one ricochet off my head and sail to the moon?”

“hey, i didn’t fling it that hard-”

“i can help her,” hongjoong cuts in, moving behind you to push san out of the way. “looks like you’re not dressed yet yourself.”

“nope, i’m all good,” san replies, winking at you in the mirror. “being a sexy devil doesn’t need much work.”

“who said you were sexy?”

“people,” san shrugs, catching your eye again. “i bet y/n agrees.”

“i’m not feeding your ego, san.”

“ugh, such a tease,” he whines. “i’m gonna go check on the drinks. i’ll see you down there?”

“maybe,” hongjoong answers for you curtly, slighting pulling your hair as he finishes the pigtail. you mutter a quiet ouch that goes unnoticed by the two men, and you roll your eyes. frat boys are so dramatic. hongjoong finishes your hair, adjusting a few things before patting the top of your head to signify he’s done. you turn around to face him, and the proximity almost takes your breath away. you stare at him closely for a second before speaking.

“so could you have been any ruder to san?”

“i wasn’t rude to the kid,” hongjoong says with a wave of his hand. “he’s a big boy, he can handle it anyway.”

“hm.”

“what?”

“nothing,” you shrug, pushing past hongjoong to go back into his room. you see seonghwa in there, adjusting his hair in the mirror on their door. he checks your costume and smiles.

“you look cute,” he says sweetly. then he sees hongjoong behind you. “you look mad.”

“hongjoong is jealous,” you tell him, gathering your phone and the cheap white sneakers you’ll wear tonight, even though it’s not necessarily part of the costume. you refuse to attend a frat party in just socks.

“i am not jealous!” hongjoong says defensively. is that a blush you see creeping up his neck?

“of who?” seonghwa perks up. “san?!”

“yeah, he was flirting with me and joong didn’t like it,” you explain. 

“i’m liking this,” seonghwa says with an evil smirk. “operation get y/n laid is in motion.”

“no!” hongjoong shouts, pulling your attention. 

“and why not?” you ask, quirking an eyebrow as you wait for a response. hongjoong sputters for a moment before he can get a real thought out.

“i...he...i don’t....ugh. fine, yeah. go fuck him, who cares.”

-

hongjoong doesn’t know why you and san being so buddy buddy has his blood boiling, but he sure doesn’t like it. he knows he started this whole "operation” but the thought of you spending the night at the frat and not ending up in his bed was...strange. 

wait, not like that though. like, you ending up in his bed as in he’s letting you sleep there while he’s on the futon. not like..fucking. or maybe that’s what his subconscious is trying to tell him? why else would he be so jealous? no. don’t even go there.

it could just be the fact that you’re such good friends and hongjoong doesn’t want to watch you get hurt by someone he knows will lose interest in you as soon as he gets his dick wet. yes, that’s it! that’s his story. not the him wanting you in his bed one, no. that’s weird. so he’ll just play up the protective friend card, and everyone will be happy in the end.

that’s what leads to hongjoong following you around all night, at least more than usual. typically he’ll slip away at some point to chase some ass, but tonight he’s everywhere you turn. you’re not complaining, you like the extra attention from him, but you also really enjoy the way san keeps checking you out, and hongjoong is preventing anything from happening there. 

“hey, i think my friend from class is here,” you say, pulling hongjoong down to your level to make sure he hears. your lips just grazing his ear has the hair on the back of his neck standing up, but he just shrugs it off.

“oh really?” he asks, looking over your shoulder to see the girl he was chasing earlier this week. you must not be that close with her, otherwise you’d know how brutally she turned him down. she looks good though, so good that he almost abandons ship and risks the humiliation of another rejection. but he sees san move closer out of the corner of his eye, and he refocuses on his main objective for the night. “i think i’m good right here.”

“while i’m flattered you want to spend time with me,” you begin, “i don’t need a babysitter. you can go talk to her, i don’t mind, really.”

hongjoong tries to object, but you actually start to push him away, so he decides he has to at least disappear for a minute or so to make you think he went to shoot his shot. thankfully she went into the dining room where there’s germ filled bowls of snacks, so he heads in that direction and passes right through to the kitchen to grab another drink. he makes too, one for him and one for you, and he’s working on his story as he walks back but the sight he returns to stops him dead in his tracks.

you’re in the same spot, except now you’re pinned to the wall by none other than choi san. and even though it’s dark, and hongjoong doesn’t have the best view, it looks like san’s trying to fuse your lips together by sheer force. hongjoong decides in a split second whether he should back off (he did say you needed to get laid) but he realizes it can’t be by choi san. forget whatever he said earlier, he’s stepping in. 

he walks up to you and feigns innocence, letting out an “oh!” once he’s within ear shot. your eyes shoot open and find his, and san notices your attention being pulled away. he doesn’t separate his lips from yours as he turns to follow where your eyes are looking nervously, and when san sees hongjoong he pulls away but places his hands firmly on your hips.

“hey man,” he says casually. “you having a good time?”

“i was,” hongjoong spits. “y/n i brought you a drink.”

“we’re kinda busy man,” san says a little more sternly. “we’ll catch up with you later.”

“y/n?” hongjoong asks, ignoring san. you look between the two men awkwardly, unsure of what to do. 

“i’m not thirsty,” you finally say, politely pushing the cup hongjoong has offered you away. “thanks though.”

“sure thing,” he grumbles, stomping off to god knows where. you watch him go, but san pushing your chin up to meet his sultry gaze pulls you back to the moment. 

hongjoong huffed his way through the party up to his room, trying not to think about what might be going on downstairs. only when he opens the door to his room, he sees seonghwa getting busy with his new girlfriend (hongjoong wasn’t sure she was real, this confirms that for sure). 

“oh god,” hongjoong groans, closing the door and shouting “sorry!” a few times for good measure. he doesn’t know where to go now, so he trudges his way to the stairs and plops down on the top step. he poured your drink into his own before heading to his room, and now he downs the double before sighing and leaning his head on the wall. he closes his eyes for a moment, unable to process his thoughts with all that’s going on around him. a drunken stranger stumbling out of the hall bathroom brings him back to reality, and he scoots out of the way as they walk treacherously downstairs. hongjoong watches them go, wondering how everyone else is having a better time at this party than him. when the partygoer reaches the end of the stairs and turns right to head back into the fray, hongjoong notices two people scurrying to the bedrooms on the main floor. he recognizes the pink shirt and red leather pants, and you make eye contact with your best friend as san leads you into his room. hongjoong just watches on as you get pulled in, and after moping for a moment longer, he stands and heads back to the party. if he can’t stop you from getting seduced by his new mortal enemy, then he’ll just go drown his sorrows until hopefully seonghwa and his girl tire out so he can just sneak into bed later and hate himself for getting into this situation in the first place. 

-

“so,” san starts, standing in front of you in his dimly lit room. there’s one line of led lights on the back wall, lit red to keep up with his devilish theme tonight. “what now, love?”

“what, you talk a big game and then when it comes time to take off my pants you just back down?” you laugh, and san shakes his head. 

“no, i’m very familiar with what happens next,” he assures you. “i just didn’t know if this is what you really wanted. if i’m what you wanted.”

“what do you mean? my tongue down your throat didn’t confirm that for you?”

“no baby,” he laughs. “i just...got a vibe from hongjoong earlier. a few times tonight, actually. he doesn’t like this.”

“no, he’s never been this..protective before,” you start, and san cuts you off.

“he’s not being protective, he’s jealous y/n,” san says. “has he told you he likes you yet?”

“no?” you scoff. “he doesn’t like me. what makes you say that? no, no. he’s not into me like that.”

“but you like him,” san says as more of a statement than a question, and you just nod. 

“i love him, actually.”

“wow,” he whistles. “i’m honored to have been in the running then.”

“you weren’t a bad distraction,” you say, and san smiles, his resolve almost breaking. but he’s nothing if not nosy. and now he needs every little detail. 

“so tell me. how long have you been into hongjoong?”

“about since the day i met him.”

“wow,” he whistles again, and you whine. 

“it’s pathetic, isn’t it?” you ask, and san shuts you up quickly.

“no! no,” he says, “it’s sweet. it’s frustrating though, because, as a completely unbiased third party, i’d say hongjoong has had a thing for you about as long.”

“he has not-”

“no, hear me out,” san says. “you probably never heard this, but anytime he met someone new he would always make a comment about how something they did or said or wore reminded him of you. he’d stop seeing people because they weren’t “more like y/n” and when he wasn’t talking about clothes or stupid guy stuff, he was talking about you. the man is obsessed with you my dear. i just think he’s oblivious. and a little dumb, for spending so much time with you without making a move, but that’s just me.”

“i don’t know,” you mumble, playing with the hem of your shirt. “i know him better than anyone else. i would’ve known.”

“ok, lemme ask a question,” san tries a new approach. “have you ever told him you liked him?” you shake your head no. “have you ever done anything to explicitly show him that you were into him as more than a friend?” again, no. “and why is that?”

“i know he doesn’t feel the same,” you say simply.

“ok, and? what if he feels the exact same way? what if he’s so sure you couldn’t like him back, and that’s why he hasn’t shown any of his true feelings?”

“that could be possible,” you nod, and san nods in agreement. 

“so,” he nudges you. “what now?”

“i don’t know,” you whine. “i’m nervous. and joong is in a mood. i think we really pissed him off.”

“yeah we did,” san smiles proudly. “so you have two options, methinks.”

“methinks?”

“focus.”

“sorry.”

“you can either go find him and tell him how you really feel and make sweet sweet love-”

“don’t say it like that-”

“or you could stay here, and we could make him a little more jealous? maybe make him confess first?”

“...i’m listening.”

-

while you and san had a come to jesus downstairs, hongjoong had stumbled back to the steps in front of his room, dissatisfied with the party downstairs and how everyone there wasn’t you. all he wanted to do was lay down and go to sleep, but just because he was having a crappy night doesn’t mean he should bring seonghwa down with him. he’s trying to wait it out and give them a respectable amount of time to...finish up, and then he’ll politely knock and put some headphones in and blare music until the shots he did with some strangers knock him out for a few hours. he’s planning this in his head when someone sits down next to him, and he’s surprised to see seonghwa.

“hey,” he says casually.

“hey?” hongjoong replies, confused. “you um, you all done in there?”

“gross,” seonghwa groans. “but yes, thank you very much. she’s asleep, so don’t be a dick if you’re going back in there. i wanted to come check on you.”

“i don’t need to be checked on,” hongjoong grumbles, nursing the beer he brought with him to pass the time. “i’m just tired, ready for this to be over.”

“y/n got with san, i assume?” seonghwa asks, and hongjoong can’t even be surprised that he knew. san had been plotting this for a while, it was a long time coming. even more reason for joong to be mad at himself, he could’ve stopped this weeks ago. instead here he is, drunk and hurt and a little angry. 

“yep.”

“and you’re mad about it?”

“yeah, hwa i am.”

“and why is that?”

“what is this, a therapy session?” hongjoong scoffs. “i’m fine dude, go back to your girlfriend. i’ll go to sleep in a second.”

“fine, if you won’t admit you like y/n and you were jealous of san tonight, maybe we can do this tomorrow then,” seonghwa says as he stands. hongjoong looks up in shock, and seonghwa nods. “yeah man, you weren’t subtle about it.”

“i fucked up man,” he says and seonghwa sits back down, nodding. “i shouldn’t have talked about setting her up so much, i feel like this is all my fault.”

“it is,” hwa agrees, and hongjoong pushes him slightly. “don’t get mad at me for pointing out what you know is true. you’re in this position because it took you too long to realize your own feelings, and that kept you from noticing how madly in love y/n is with you.”

“she is not-”

“is too!” seonghwa insists. “she told me! and i have eyes, it’s not hard to see. except if you’re you, i guess.”

“so what do i do now?”

“well, you could go talk to her.”

“i’ve already walked in on one couple having sex tonight, i’m good thanks.”

“sorry about that,” seonghwa says sheepishly. “but you don’t know that they’re fucking-”

“i watched her follow him into his room,” hongjoong cuts him off, and seonghwa nods.

“i still say you should try to talk to her tonight,” seonghwa says, “even if it means...waiting.”

“i don’t think i want to tell y/n how i feel when i know san has just fucked her though,” hongjoong counters, and seonghwa just shrugs. 

“ok, then i’m back to what i said originally. go talk to her now. just don’t open your eyes immediately.” hongjoong sits for a moment, thinking it over, and then he crushes the rest of the beer in his hand before he stands. he doesn’t need to tell seonghwa where he’s going, he just watches on with veiled concern. hongjoong stomps downstairs, stopping in front of san’s door, and just as he raises his fist to bang on it and get you out of there, it swings open with another sight that makes his stomach drop.

you’re on your way out, which should be a good sign, except your hair is down (and a little messy, like someone’s hands were running through it) and you’re no longer wearing your costume. in fact, your costume is clutched in your hands, and you’re wearing what hongjoong can only assume is san’s hoodie and sweatpants. he’s too late, he thinks. he’s caught your walk of shame, leaving san’s room after...he stops himself. hongjoong takes in the sight before him, and he holds your confused gaze for a moment longer. then he turns, and he’s gone. 

-

after halloween, you don’t hear from hongjoong for days. 

no calls, no texts, and certainly no visiting the frat house to hang out. it was complete radio silence from him, but you weren’t making an effort either. you’re not sure how you feel about him currently, so the space might be good for the both of you.

while you’re upset, but mostly doing okay, hongjoong is a wreck. he didn’t get out of bed until seonghwa and yunho sat on the futon and kicked hongjoong’s bed from down below until he got annoyed enough to leave. then he only went to class because another guy in the frat, jongho, was in there with him and literally pulled him out of his room and towards campus. no one’s sure if he’s even eaten, but food disappears from the fridge every once in a while so he must be getting some nutrition. san has laid low too, not sure hongjoong knows the full story and worried there would be hell to pay if hongjoong got within swinging distance. 

you’re walking home from class one day, contemplating a coffee break, when you almost physically run into seonghwa. you start to mumble an apology and a “see you later” but suddenly he’s grabbing your arm and pulling you down a hallway. 

“well hello to you too seonghwa, how are you? i’m doing fine thanks for asking,” you huff, resetting yourself once he’s done manhandling you.

“what happened between you and san?” he asks bluntly. 

“why do you care?”

“you know why,” he says, and you roll your eyes. “you know he saw you go into san’s room.”

“yeah, i saw him too, sitting on the stairs not doing anything,” you counter, and now seonghwa rolls his eyes.

“i’m tired of the two of you complaining about no one doing anything. you need to do something!”

“i did! i made out with san!”

“made out with him?” he asks. “is that all?”

“yes,” you answer quietly. “i...i couldn’t do it. and for what it’s worth, san apparently clocked that me and hongjoong had something going on so he wouldn’t have let me try anything anyway.”

“but hongjoong said you left in his clothes,” seonghwa says, confused.

“yeah, because i wasn’t gonna stay there and i needed something warm to walk home in,” you explain. “hongjoong didn’t plan for weather when he bought my costume. san was just trying to help.”

“well he helped a lot,” seonghwa says. “hongjoong thinks you two slept together and now he’s moping around like his life is over. you need to talk to him. tell him what really happened.”

“he’s not talking to me.”

“gee, i wonder why!”

“fine,” you sigh, giving seonghwa the side eye. he can be a little bitchy when he’s in problem solver mode. “i’ll call him when i get home.”

“good. i’ll know if you don’t,” he warns you, and you nod. 

“we’ll talk, i promise,” you assure him, and he pretends to believe you as he says goodbye. he starts to walk away and you stop him, calling out, “is he home right now?”

“yep,” seonghwa shouts from further down the hall. “better go now, before any of the guys come back from class. i’ll spend the night somewhere else.”

“thank you,” you say with a meek smile, and seonghwa gives you one back. he keeps walking, and you take a deep breath before making your way to hongjoong.

-

seonghwa said none of the boys would be home, so you spend some time on the front porch psyching yourself up to see hongjoong. you practice what you’re going to say, and after a few minutes of weirding out the neighbors, you finally knock. it takes a second for the door to open, and you’re expecting hongjoong but instead you see san. he gives you a small smile, a questioning look in his eyes. you open your mouth to speak, hongjoong’s name on the tip of your tongue, when you see him heading downstairs over san’s shoulder. he catches your eye, and your heart stops. he looks awful, like he’s been sick. is he really like this because of you? hongjoong looks at you, and then who he assumes you’re here to see, and anger flashes over his features. he gives you one hard stare before he’s stomping back up to his room, leaving you still sputtering at the front door. san watches on, a little worried, and when you look up at him he asks if you still want to come in. you shake your head no, waving goodbye as you turn and walk back home. 

-

unfortunately for you, it’s hongjoong’s birthday. it’s unfortunate because he’s still not talking to you, but he’s your best friend, so it would look really weird if you weren’t at his birthday party. you don’t want to go because it’ll be awkward, and you don’t wanna burden his special day with that. he’s decided he wants to go to the fall festival just outside the city, opting for a walk through an apple orchard and then a pumpkin patch so the boys can gather the discounted gourds for some weird prank they’re trying to pull on a neighboring frat. it sounds like a fun day, and you only know about it because you were added to the group text, which stings a little. usually you’d help hongjoong plan, or you’d be organizing some sort of special surprise for him. none of that this year. 

you agree to ride with seonghwa and his girlfriend, who seems really sweet. you’re excited to get to know her on the short ride over, and it starts off as a pleasant day. hongjoong is nice to you when he gets out of the car with his brother and some of his friends from home, introducing you to the ones you don’t know and still giving you a tight hug when you hand over your poorly wrapped present for him. you all putter around as you wait for some of the other boys to show up, and hongjoong makes a subtle effort to keep at least two people between you at all times. bless seonghwa’s girlfriend though, maybe she knows what’s going on between you two, because she keeps talking to you and you like her more and more. 

once everyone has arrived, hongjoong explains that you can all pick apples in the orchard and then take them back to the cidery where they’ll press what you picked into your own cider to take home, and while you wait there’s drinks you can sample. there’s also a wildflower field to take pictures in, which seems very on brand for hongjoong (he’s got a new camera strapped around his neck, must have been a present) and once he’s done talking you all mingle for a moment before going off in twos or threes to the orchard. seonghwa swoops his girlfriend away first so they can go be cute together, and you would go join hongjoong’s brother to catch up with him but he’s nowhere to be seen, so you consider just heading straight to the cidery to drown your sorrows. you turn in that direction and see hongjoong waiting for you, awkwardly clutching your present in his hands. 

“i uh, i didn’t want to carry this through the orchard,” he starts, “don’t want it to get lost. so uh, i was gonna open it before i left, is that ok?”

“yeah,” you nod. “go ahead. i hope you like it.”

“i’m sure i will,” he says as he tears into the old newspaper you used as wrapping paper. he sees the corner of what’s inside, and recognition instantly lights up his face. “y/n you didn’t.”

“didn’t what?” you ask, trying to fight a smile. 

“you bought me the beat pad i wanted,” he says in disbelief. “it’s the special edition one and everything. how did you know?”

“gee, it’s not like you didn’t talk about it for weeks before and after it dropped,” you tease. “i got one of the first releases.”

“there’s no way,” he says, shaking his head as he unboxes it further. “it’s beautiful. thank you.”

“you’re welcome,” you say with a genuine smile. “just remember me when you’re a big famous producer. or when you start your own fashion line, whatever.”

“you’re not gonna be by my side when it happens?” he pouts, and it almost tears your heart in two.

“i don’t know,” you say. “i’m not entirely sure where we stand right now.”

“that’s my fault,” he sighs. “i’m really sorry. i hope you can forgive me for being a dick, but i understand if it’ll take some time.”

“you never let me explain what actually happened,” you say, and he nods, telling you that seonghwa filled him in. “so i guess you know.”

“about you and san? yeah, like i said, hwa told me-”

“no, i mean,” you start, and you stop to take a breath before you continue. “so you know that i like you. that i’ve liked you for a while. years, actually. i hope that’s not weird.” 

“it’s not weird,” he says sweetly. “i’ve liked you about as long, so. there’s that.”

“cool, so everyone’s caught up,” you nod. “coolcoolcool.”

“yep.”

there’s an awkward moment as you stand there and hongjoong plays around with his gift a little more, but he gets distracted by the camera around his neck and thankfully interrupts this terrible silence.

“oh! let me get a picture of you,” he says. “i want photos of everyone who came today. go stand over there.” you follow his orders and pose simply as he snaps the photo, looking on proudly at the result. “cute. cmon, let’s go get some more further into the orchard.”

“yeah, you’re missing out on your party, birthday boy,” you say while he carefully puts your gift back in his car. when he rejoins you, you offer your hand, and he smiles brightly as he grabs it and gives it a squeeze. “ready?”

“just a second,” he says, tongue poking out between his lips as he tries to take a photo of your intertwined fingers, and you laugh. 

“cmon, stop being a simp and let’s go,” you give his arm a tug and he shrieks over you messing up the picture, and how he only has so much film and you just ruined a perfectly good moment, but you shoot him a silent glare and he smiles a dopey smile and shuts up. you start walking and you think fast, grabbing a basket for any apples you may grab on your walk. hongjoong explains how the website said there were different types of apples in certain areas, and you listen on in fascination as you watch him talk. you’re admiring how cute he looks with his bangs peeking past his beanie, and you stop him abruptly. “hand me the camera.”

“why?” he asks defensively, yanking it away like a child.

“joong, let me get a picture of you,” you beg. “you look handsome, and we need a picture of you too.”

he grumbles over being careful with his baby, and he quickly shows you how to use it. he waits for a moment, assuming you’ll take the picture then and there, but you eventually tell him that it needs to be candid, like when the inspiration struck you. he whines and you distract him by asking what kind of apples are in the tree behind him, and he says they might be honeycrisp so this would be a good spot to pick from. you hand him the basket and let him reach for the best lookers, and you let him get focused before you call out for him.

“hey baby?” you try out, and hongjoong turns, apple in hand and a shy smile on his face. 

“baby?” he asks, not sure he heard you right but hoping he did. that’s when you snap the photo, cheering about how perfect that picture is gonna be. 

“ok, you can have this back now,” you say happily, returning his “baby” back to him. he gives you a sweet smile and grabs your hand before you continue on. you stop shortly after to grab some golden apples, and at the next cluster of trees you finally catch up with the group. they’ve found the wildflowers, and everyone is stopping to take pictures, which hongjoong quickly barges in on. as soon as he leaves your side, seonghwa appears, giving you a look that says he wants to know what took you so long.

“we made up,” you tell him, and he let’s out a sigh of relief.

“thank god.”

“don’t be a dick.”

“well! it took you long enough!”

“i know that,” you hiss, smiling at hongjoong posing for a picture with his brother. 

“he looks happy,” seonghwa points out and you agree. “you made him like that, with your womanly wiles and whatnot.”

“hey, speaking of womanly wiles,” you begin, “your girlfriend is really nice.”

“i concur.”

“maybe we could-”

“y/n!” hongjoong shouts, waving you over. “cmere!”

“your boyfriend wants you,” seonghwa says with a smirk, and you push him a little. 

“he’s not my boyfriend yet.”

“beg to differ, but ok!”

“what’s up?” you ask as you approach. “i thought you already got a picture of me?”

“yeah, but i want a picture in front of the marigolds,” he says like it’s obvious. 

“there’s marigolds?!” you ask, looking at the colors behind you and smiling when you spot the buds you love so much. you turn back to hongjoong and say, “you know those are my fav-”

“your favorite flower, right,” he says, pulling you into his side. “come closer, act like you like me.”

“actually, they’re not flowers,” you tell him, “they’re weeds. you’re supposed to pick them or else they’ll take over.”

“smile,” he says, and yunho snaps the picture for you. hongjoong bends down, pulling up a bundle of marigolds before handing them to you. “thanks for picking me.”

“oh that was so corny,” you groan, a smile threatening to split your face in half. “what happened to the suave frat boy? who brought their dad here?”

“watch it or i’ll take them back-” he starts, but he stops when you place your hand under his chin and pull him closer. 

“no, i love it. i love them,” you assure him, centimeters away from his lips.

“i love you,” he whispers, and you lean in to finally, finally, kiss him. and suddenly it feels like everything is right with the world.

while you’re distracted by hongjoong’s lips, the hoots and hollers of your friends drown out the sound of another camera shutter, and yunho boasting about his perfect shot pulls you back to reality. you try to ignore the smug looks of your friends but apparently everyone knew about your crush aside from you, so this positive shift is shared throughout the group pretty quickly. no one dares break the two of you up, and that’s how you end up riding home with hongjoong at the end of the day. 

while there was the most beautiful weather during your time at the orchard, the ride home is trying to completely ruin your day. it gets so bad once you and hongjoong are driving back to the city that you insist on pulling off for a while to let the storm pass, but hongjoong insists on driving farther.

“we’re almost at our exit,” he says. “so if i can just get to your house then we can go up to your room,” he continues, wiggling his eyebrows at his last comment. 

“sure, but i don’t think this storm is gonna let us do that,” you tell him. “slow down a little so i can see this exit sign.” hongjoong doesn’t let up on the gas, so you don’t quite catch the sign passing by next to you. “okay genius, my spidey senses aren’t working, maybe we should just pull off here.”

“are you sure?” hongjoong asks. “we’re in the middle of nowhere.”

“i’d rather be in the middle of nowhere than stuck on the highway waiting for a tow truck with a bunch of other people who can’t see through the rain driving by super fast,” you oppose, and hongjoong quickly agrees. he waits until there’s a track of highway well lit by streetlights, and he pulls off under a tree in full view of the exit. just in case you get snatched he wants there to be witnesses. 

“do you wanna play i spy?” he offers, and you just laugh. 

“are we five?”

“i spy something pretty.”

“that’s not how it works.” 

“well too bad,” hongjoong insists. “i spy something pretty.”

“your eyes,” you guess, and he shakes his head. “your smile.”

“how conceited would i be if i made you guess something about myself?” he asks. “keep trying. don’t focus on me though.”

“is it something nearby?” you ask, and hongjoong shrugs. “is it in the car?” he nods furiously. “and it’s not you? you’re very pretty.”

“no,” he insists, “keep guessing.”

“if you’re trying to make me guess myself it’s not going to work,” you warn him. “i’m not falling for your tricks.”

“darn,” he sighs. “you ruined my whole move.”

“that couldn’t have been your whole move,” you say unsure. “what’s your go to?”

“well,” hongjoong begins. “i don’t do this often, if that’s what you’re wondering. i usually start off with a comment about the place, so i say whatever we’re doing is really cool or the paintings are beautiful, whatever. and whatever the compliment is, i work it back to my date. everyone always eats that up.”

“i’m glad i’m here to keep you on your toes,” you tease. 

“yeah, whatever,” hongjoong rolls his eyes. “what’s your move then?”

“it’s simple, really,” you assure him, turning to look directly in his eyes. “i just make sure to really look at whoever i’m talking to, really listen to what you’re saying, y’know? then i pull them in,” you say, grabbing hongjoong delicately by the chin and bringing his lips closer to yours. “and then i usually tell him something important, our lips barely touching. and then, if i’m feeling it and he hasn’t moved away, we kiss.”

“i’m not moving,” hongjoong says confidently, and you smile.

“i see that.”

“and we’re gonna be here for a while...”

“mhm.”

“so i think we should do something fun,” he says, pecking your lips quickly. he notes how you chase his lips as he pulls away, and he makes a proposition. “we could go into the backseat...”

“should we really have sex on the side of the road?”

“well what do you want me to suggest!” hongjoong whines. “we have nothing better to do, might as well try it out now!”

“wow, how romantic this man of mine is,” you joke, and hongjoong laughs. he’s still staring at you though, waiting for a response. “you really want to?”

“what did you think we would do when we got home?” he asks shyly. “i’m just trying to use our time wisely.”

“wow, really, if you’re trying to get me hot with all this talk-”

“baby,” he whines, kissing you once so quick you barely notice. “please. let’s at least go make out or something. it’s my birthday after all.”

“oh not fair,” you whine back. “you can’t pull the birthday card on me!”

“cmon baby, for my birthday?” he pouts again, finally getting you to crack.

“okay, but don’t look while i climb into the backseat, it’s gonna be awkward.”

“i’ll look as much as i want, it’s my birthday,” he says as you pull your way over the console. while you’re brushing aside his jacket from earlier, he takes this opportunity to caress and smack your ass, and you laugh a little at the sound of glee he makes in response. 

“you are such a guy.”

“i’m your guy,” he says with a wink as you plop down in the backseat and reach for him quickly. 

“move with a purpose please,” you urge, and he moves to join you as fast as he can. once he’s seated as close to you as he possibly can be, he pretends to yawn and puts his arm around your shoulder. you watch in fake disgust at the old school move but lay your head on his shoulder anyway. “hey.”

“hey.”

“so now what?” you ask, not moving from this very comfortable position. hongjoong hums in response, and you turn to place your chin on his shoulder and watch him as he thinks. he catches you off guard, kissing you before you even know it’s coming, and the sound of surprise has him letting out a laugh from deep within his chest. 

“do you know how cute you are?” he asks. 

“no, tell me.”

“i’ve always wanted to just wax poetic about about how everything you do drives me insane,” he starts, “and now i can. hope you’re ready for it love.” 

now it’s your turn to steal a kiss, your heart swelling at hongjoong’s words. only this time neither of you pulls back, and what started off as innocent is quickly turning pg13. it registers in your mind for a moment that, wow, you’re in hongjoong’s car making out with your best friend, but that only makes your heart warm even more. you’ve wanted this moment for so long, you’ve wanted him for so long, and he’s finally here. he’s finally yours.

you’re pulled from your thoughts by hongjoong mumbling into your mouth that he wants you in his lap so you maneuver yourself to straddle his legs. before you settle back down he shakes his head, breaking from the kiss.

“no, not like that,” he tells you, lifting you up by the hips and placing you back down so you’re just straddling one leg. you don’t think anything of it at first, and you go back to kissing joong’s swollen lips. his hands stay on your hips, gripping tighter and tighter until you feel a change in pressure and you realize he’s guiding you to grind along his thigh. you take the hint and brace yourself on his shoulders, gasping as he bounces his leg under you. 

“what’s wrong baby?” he asks in mock innocence. “don’t like it?” you just whine and shake your head, grinding down harder as hongjoong lets you set the pace. the layers of clothes between you are making this infinitely more frustrating, but hongjoong has captured your lips again and doesn’t seem to be interested in removing anything yet. 

“joong,” you whisper between kisses. “need more.”

“what, can’t come like this?” he asks, and you shake your head. “too bad.”

he dives back into another kiss, his hands leaving your waist knowing that you’ll keep up the pace for him. instead he focuses on pulling your shirt up just enough to trace under your bra, and you moan into his mouth when he slides a finger under the fabric and just barely grazes your tit.

“you’re so sensitive,” he smiles. “i like that.”

“please baby, i need more,” you say again, and this time he gives in. 

“fine,” he sighs. “get undressed.”

“will you help me?”

“so needy,” he complains, but helps you anyway. as you pull your shirt off, he works on undoing your pants. he cups your head so you don’t hit it on the ceiling as you raise up to slip your pants off, but before you can get rid of your panties honjoong is pulling you back down to his thigh. “that’s enough for now,” he decides, fingers tracing along the outline of your bra before trailing down to your panties. his hand dips to your core, finding the wet spot on the fabric and grinning. “man, you are sensitive. all this and we’ve barely started, baby.” 

“are you gonna fuck me back here or do i have to keep getting off on your thigh?” you ask.

“hmm, you’ll come on my thigh and then we’ll see if you deserve to get fucked.”

“are you always this mean in bed?” you whine, and hongjoong chuckles in response. 

“are you always this difficult? i said get off on my thigh,” he demands, and you don’t know if it’s the temperature of the car or his words that sends a chill down your spine. you wrap your arms around his neck, kissing him once before you lock your hands and get back to work, grinding down on his tensed thigh. you’ve shifted slightly so now you can feel his boner nudging your leg with each roll of your hips, and you can tell hongjoong is holding back whimpers at the contact. he bounces his thigh again unexpectedly, giving you a jolt that sends your forehead crashing into his. you both start laughing, but even that slight movement has you shaking in his lap. you keep your forehead pressed to his as you move again, gasping at the feeling of his hand sliding from your waist down to ghost over your clothed clit. 

“touch me,” you beg, eyes pleading, and hongjoong can’t deny you what you want when you’re asking so sweetly. he holds eye contact with you as his hand dips into your panties, collecting some of your arousal before connecting with your clit. you keep dragging your hips, doing most of the work but hongjoong helps by rotating little circles on your bundle of nerves, sending you closer to your high with each touch. 

“that’s it baby, gonna come for me?” he asks and you can only nod. “need you to use your words.”

“yes baby, almost there,” you whine, hips moving faster to chase the feeling. hongjoong picks up speed rubbing into your clit, and his encouraging words help you come crashing down with a gasping breath. “need to do that again, need to make you feel good.”

“if you insist baby,” hongjoong says. “doing so good for me.”

“how do you want me?” you ask, lazily kissing his neck as you catch your breath. hongjoong squeezes your hips in response and helps you situate yourself so you’re sitting down next to him. 

“i want you several ways,” he says with lust in his eyes. “not sure how i wanna start.”

“ok, you think and i’m gonna take a minute,” you tell him as you close your eyes and try to regulate your heartbeat back to a normal pace. being with hongjoong has your senses heightened, so even though it was a little orgasm you feel like you just ran a marathon. while you’re trying to remember how to breathe normally, you feel hongjoong nudging at your legs so you let him move you where he wants. your eyes remain closed, until you feel hongjoong’s lips kissing over your soiled panties and you gasp, sitting up and instinctively pushing him back. “get outta there!”

“baby i don’t know how this is gonna work if you’re saying shit like that,” he laughs, looking up at you through hooded eyes as he rubs your thighs to calm you down. “what’s wrong? want me to stop?”

“no, no,” you assure him. “i just. it surprised me a little. i still can’t believe this is happening. doesn’t feel real.”

“it’s very real baby,” he says, pulling your underwear to the side to start stroking your entrance. “can i try again?” you simply nod, a whimper threatening to escape. hongjoong lets his finger gather some of your slick before he’s pulling your panties harder, exposing your clit to his hungry gaze. he gets to work rubbing soft circles on it while his lips kiss up and down your thighs, making you squirm. you want more, but this is almost too much for you, so you don’t want to ask just yet. you just let your head fall back on the seat and let out a shaky breath, but hongjoong doesn’t like that. he stops all movement and slaps your thigh, sharply pulling your attention back to him. “nope, eyes on me the whole time my love. need you watching every move i make or i stop moving.”

“ok,” you agree, eyes meeting his. he looks like he’s ready to devour you, and as you hold eye contact with him he starts to do just that, his tongue replacing his hand on your clit. he starts with kitten licks that have you whining for more, and when he thinks you’ve had enough he swipes his tongue all the way down to your core. 

“mmf, you’re the sweetest birthday cake i’ve ever had,” he mumbles into your pussy.

“ew hongjoong,” you laugh, and he literally growls into your core. 

“it’s true,” he says, eyes meeting yours again. “i could eat you out every day for the rest of my life and it still wouldn’t be enough.”

“promise?” you ask, getting cocky too soon because he moves back up to suck your clit and brings a finger back to your core, slipping it in quickly. he only pumps once or twice before he inserts another, curling them both to find your g spot. he’s frantic but in a practiced way, like he definitely knows what he’s doing but he can’t wait to feel every part of you, taste every part of you. he keeps making out with your clit and starts scissoring his fingers to open you up, and you let out a shriek at the new sensation. 

“more of that baby,” he says, “let me hear you. there’s no one around to stay quiet for, let me know how good you feel.”

“it’s good hongjoong,” you tell him, hips bucking to meet the stroke of his hand. you’re stuffed with his fingers, his tongue on your clit, and it’s still not enough. “i want more. need more of you. need it all, baby.” 

“no i wanna eat you out-”

“hongjoong!” you whine.

“y/n!” he whines back, but one look at you tells him he’s lost this fight. he licks from your core up to your clit one last time, swirling the nub for good measure and making you jolt. he sits up from his cramped position and huffs. “i don’t know how to get you where i want you for this.”

“fucking in the car was your idea,” you point out, and he groans, head falling against your thigh.

“just gimme a second,” he says and you groan. “patience baby.”

“let me at least see some of you,” you beg, grabbing for his pants and trying to undo the button. he lets you work him out of his pants as he thinks, and when you start cupping his bulge through his boxers his hand covers yours on instinct and guides you to touch him the way he likes, squeezing your hand over his balls and his hips buck in response. 

“fuck,” he whispers, pulling you up as much as he can. “ok, you lay like this,” and he moves you to lean against the door with your hips up, and he pushes your legs to your chest. “hold these. now let me get my pants off.”

he finishes undressing rather awkwardly, and you have to laugh. a blush creeps up his neck as you giggle and pull him in for a kiss, mumbling about how cute he is. his demeanor breaks for a moment and he giggles back, sending you straight to the moon. hongjoong is yours. he feels the same way you do, and he’s about to show you how much you mean to him. he rolls a condom on quickly and climbs over you, pushing your legs further into your chest. he lines up with your entrance, eyes flicking up to yours to check that this is okay. you nod and blow him a kiss, and he’s smiling as he finally fills you up. his first full thrust leaves you with your mouth open in a silent moan but the next few thrusts pull the most pathetic whines from deep within your chest and hongjoong is eating it up. 

“does it feel good baby?” and you can only nod, not sure words will come to you as he’s hitting your g spot and filling you so perfectly. he was made for you, and you know that now in this moment. he reaches up and plays with your tits, cupping them and flicking your nipples to earn himself extra moans from you in your fucked out state. all you can think of is hongjoong, all your senses filled with him and the way he’s making you feel. you come unexpectedly, moaning out his name so beautifully he almost comes with you. he slows down as you clench around him, trying to last longer to fully enjoy this moment. he leans down to kiss your chest, and you whisper his name to get his attention. he looks up at you delicately, and you smile in return.

“i love you,” you say so quiet you don’t know if he heard you. a smile spreads across his features as he kisses his way up your chest to your lips, kissing you sweetly.

“i love you too,” he says into your lips, brushing over them as he speaks. “you’re perfect, and i love you.”

“show me,” you encourage him, and he takes it as a challenge. his speed picks up out of nowhere, and you moan into his mouth as he captures your lips in another kiss. he helps you hold your legs in place, your arms falling to his waist as you try to pull him in closer. he’s fucking you so fast your head starts bumping against the door, but he quickly pulls you closer so you’re laying down completely and he’s hovering over you. the angle has him hitting you perfectly, and you reach down to rub your clit to come with him. you can tell he’s close, but he smacks your hand away, replacing it with his own. you wrap your free leg around his waist, keeping him close as he picks up speed on your clit.

“i’m gonna come baby, want you to come with me,” he says breathlessly. 

“i don’t know if i can yet,” you whine, and he shakes his head.

“you can and you will. my baby can do anything,” he says, and you clench at his words. “see? you’re almost there baby, you can do it. count to three for me.”

“one,” you start off, and he slows his thrusts but keeps his pace on your clit. the change up has you seeing stars, and you almost forget you’re meant to be counting. “two.”

“good girl, come on, come with me-”

“three!” you shriek, a surprise burst of euphoria hitting you as you come. hongjoong came with you, groaning into your neck and sucking a hickey into what you assume will be a very visible spot tomorrow. he chuckles as he pulls back, appreciating the mess between your legs.

“when i said you could do anything i didn’t think it would make you squirt,” he says with a devilish grin. “made you feel that good, huh?”

“don’t be cocky,” you say, smacking his chest but shying away from his eyes nonetheless. “it was nice.”

“nice? baby i need us to do that every day. like a lot,”

“hongjoong!”

“y/n!”

“how am i supposed to clean this up,” you groan, changing the subject from hongjoong’s insatiable appetite. 

“don’t, i like what you’ve done to the place.”

“you’re disgusting.”

“kidding,” he laughs, pecking the top of your head. “i’ve got a gym towel in the back, i hope that’s enough.”

“i hope it’s clean!” 

“no promises!”

-

hongjoong cleans you (and the backseat) up to the best of his ability, and you spent some time pillow talking, laying on his chest with the sound of the rain in the background. eventually it dies down enough, and you’re able to convince hongjoong that no, you can’t just lie naked in his backseat for the rest of the night. so you’re finally on the way home, hongjoong driving extra careful but refusing to let go of your hand in his lap. 

he took you back the long way so you could spend more time together, forgetting the turn to your house and instead taking the main road back to the frat. he starts to turn around, but you tell him it’s fine.

“i can just sleep there,” you tell him. “but this time you’re not taking the futon.”

“but won’t the bed shake too much if we fuck again?” he asks with a pout. 

“you never quit do you,” you laugh, and he just shrugs.

“don’t hate the player hate the game.”

“i can hate both.”

“don’t,” he pouts, making the turn onto frat row. you both laugh at the first house, the obvious remnants of a party lingering in the yard. the rain destroyed whatever fun they were having, and now there’s just one sad dude passed out in the grass who’s definitely waking up with a cold and a hangover. hongjoong parks in his usual spot in front of his frat, and he rushes out of the car to open your door for you. you start to remind him of his presents in the trunk when he kisses you, halting your train of thought. his lips distract you so much you almost forget it’s actively raining on you right now, and you squeal into his mouth to get him to stop. 

“baby we’re getting soaked,” you cry and he just locks you in tighter, kissing you again. “mmf, joong, we’ll get sick,” you try again, and he doesn’t listen. at this point your clothes are drenched, so is it worth still fighting? but you take your final shot, promising him no more sex until his next birthday. you watch him move with a quickness you’ve never seen before, grabbing his gifts from the back and covering them with a jacket before he starts running toward the house, leaving you behind. you laugh as you run to catch up to him, watching as he hops from foot to foot trying to unlock the door with his gifts still in his arms. you gently take the keys and unlock the door for him, earning a quick “thanks babe!” and then he ducks inside. you follow him into the living room and who do you see but seonghwa and san sitting on the couch watching a movie. seonghwa watches in disgust as you both track wet footprints on his clean floor, and san smirks as he notices the dopey look on both of your faces.

“had a nice brithday bro?” san asks, and hongjoong nods.

“took you a long time to get home,” seonghwa points out and you clear your throat.

“we, uh, well, i got scared actually, and made him pull over,” you try to explain, but your cheeks heating up give you away.

“likely story,” seonghwa sighs. “go take a shower before you both get sick, i’m not taking care of two cry babies.”

“yeah don’t come upstairs for a while man,” hongjoong says as he starts pulling you toward the stairs. 

“dude, gross!” seonghwa shouts. “i’m moving out.”

“but then you’ll miss us too much,” you tease, shooting him a wink as hongjoong pulls you away. you both giggle as seonghwa grumbles about never sleeping here again, and hongjoong stops you at the top of the steps to kiss you for the millionth time today.

“i can’t get enough of that,” he says with a smile. “of you. can’t believe it took us this long.”

“me neither.” 

“you’re never getting rid of me now, you know that right?” 

“ditto.”

[nhl-stories]

I'm Back- Jack Hughes feat. Nico Hischier

Summary: Lux stays with Jack in New Jersey, things aren't going as she expected.

Author’s Note: This is sequel of sorts to this previous work you don't need to read it to get this, but it's a good read if I say so myself. This is a bit of a romance story, but mostly it's an ode to platonic soulmates.

Also fudging the timeline of medical school interviews because this is my world and I can do what I want to fit my needs

Word Count: 5.3k

“Hey loser!”

Lux looks up to see Jack sticking his head out of the passenger window like a dog.

“Hey moron,” she shoves his head back into the car and drags her suitcase to the trunk.

Jack is out of the car and lifting it into the trunk before she has a chance.

“What a gentleman.”

Jack’s bright smile never fails to make her grin back, but she isn’t expecting the almost-tender hug that follows.

“Hi Luxy,” he mumbles into her hair, he sounds so tired, she squeezes a little tighter.

A honk jolts them apart.

“Our driver is a little impatient.”

Lux climbs in the back and wraps her arms around the seat and Luke’s shoulders before kissing his cheek.

“Aww look at my little Lukey all grown up.”

He shoves her back towards her seat.

“I could drive before,” he says petulantly before pulling away from the curb.

“Yeah, but now it’s in a car you bought on your own, because you have a job. Let me be proud I don’t have a little brother of my own,” she giggles as she sees Luke turn pink.

She lets him off the hook, and turns her attention to Jack, “Am I going to meet this new girlfriend while I’m here?”

Lux lifts a leg to kick Jack in the arm, “I should still be mad at you, I can’t believe I had to find out you have a serious girlfriend with the rest of gen pop on a fucking TikTok.”

“Sorry, she’s out of town.”

“How convenient,” Lux rolls her eyes, “now I won’t be able to prove I’m not a threat.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’ve spent our whole friendship proving to girls that we are strictly platonic and there’s nothing to be jealous of.”

“What would they have to be jealous about?”

If it were anyone but Jack the comment might hurt.

“Lots of men actually find me desirable, so a lot of women don’t understand how you don’t see me like that at all. And women can be just as territorial as men.”

“Remember Sam thought you two were dating just because you don’t fucking shut up about Lux.”

“Thank you, Luke, excellent point. And then people see us together and realize that is not the kind of chemistry we share. But without the live experience it’s hard to prove.”

“She’s kind of in a different league than you, she’s definitely not gonna be jealous.”

Lux kicks him a little harder than before.

When they arrive at the apartment, Lux immediately drops her bags and flops on the couch, “This’ll do.”

“You don’t have to sleep on the couch.”

“What are we gonna share? First, we have never been two friends-one bed type of friends, second, we just had the jealous girlfriend talk.”

“Then take Luke’s room,” Jack shrugs.

“Hey!” Luke looks up from his phone to protest.

“I’m not gonna take your room. You’re saving me so much money on hotels, I’m more than okay with the couch.”

“Now that it’s settled, get up, we’re going to dinner.”

Jack grabs her hands and tries to pull her up, Lux goes full limp body.

“Do we have to leave?”

“We just planned to meet up with some guys for dinner, we don’t have any food here” Luke adds, already looking antsy to go, probably more than ready for his next meal.

“Fine, can’t let you waste away,” she dramatically gets off the couch.

“Is that what you’re going to wear?” Jack gives her a once over.

“Do your teammates have some kind of dress code?”

She eyes the boys and their casual outfits that wouldn’t be considered much nicer than her travel clothes.

“No, you just look a little… like you were on a plane,” Jack says like it’s diplomatic, not rude.

“Are you worried I’ll embarrass you in front of your teammates? Cause I can do that with or without changing.”

“Whatever, just– I don’t know fix your ponytail!”

Lux rolls her eyes but takes down her hair and shakes it out, before grabbing a change of clothes just to stop the whining.

“Oh my god guys, I was pretty the whole time! I might be too hot and irresistible for your teammates.” She comes back in tossing her fixed hair over her shoulder.

“And obviously you’d act on that,” Jack tosses her jacket at her.

“What makes you think I wouldn’t fuck one of your teammates? I used to fuck your brother!” Lux shoots Jack incredulous look.

“In fact, I could do both right now, what do you say Lukey?” She winks over at the younger brother.

“Please leave me out of this.”

“Okay, let’s not starve the baby any longer. But reminder, I’m a former WAG, it’s not like I couldn’t get an NHLer if I tried.”

“I’ll start matchmaking then,” Jack wraps an arm around her shoulder and leads her out of the apartment.

The restaurant is a lowkey sushi place. There are only about five Devil’s players, and Lux quickly realizes no other women are gonna be here. She has war flashbacks to the lake house in the summer. 

Lux squeezes herself between Jack and Luke at the table, she wants to have an easy conversation to fall back on.

“So, you’re the famous Lux,” a man with a toothless grin, who Lux learns is Dawson, says from across the table.

“Famous? What have you heard about me?” her stomach twists, probably good things, but Hughes brothers might not be the only ones talking about her.

“With the way he talks about you, I thought Jack was dating you for a while until I learned you were dating Quinn.”

There’s a scuffle under the table, “Oh right, sorry about the break up.”

Lux flushes, “Um- it’s been a while don’t worry about it, I’m not still heartbroken.”

“Well, the other two Hughes brothers love you a lot, always telling stories about you. And Nico said you were really nice.”

“Oh yeah, when you had to introduce your girl best friend to your new best friend,” she pinches Jack’s cheek.

“I took you guys to that place in Greektown,” she perks up a bit, “Is Nico coming tonight?”

Jack eyes her for a second before John Marino butts in, “he bailed, said he was feeling tired.”

The rest of dinner is good, but Lux can feel herself fading fast. And while she’s starting to lean heavily into Jack’s side, he doesn’t seem to get the message.

“You guys want to hear about the time Jack tried to ask out a girl in our chemistry class?”

“Right, you have to get up early, we should go,” Jack is quick to stand.

Luke snickers and doesn’t get to his feet, wants to see where this goes in front of their intrigued teammates.

“After I can talk about when Luke was like 14 or 15 and–“ Luke shoots up and drags Lux up with him.

“Nice to meet you guys, see you later,” Lux calls as they push her out of the restaurant.

:::

She’s hit with the scent of cooking as she comes in the apartment, and takes off her shoes.

“I can finally take this bra off, it’s so uncomfortable but it’s the only one that works with this­– oh. There’s company.”

Lux freezes, one cup of her bra sticking out of her sleeve. Jack is facing the stove, not paying attention.

“Nico’s staying for dinner.”

Nico gives an awkward wave from his spot at the kitchen island with a glass of wine.

“Hi Nico,” she pulls the bra out the rest of the way, “Would have loved a little warning about the company,” then she whips Jack with her bra on her way out, ignoring his protest as she leaves.

She comes back into the kitchen and suddenly feels very exposed in her baggy Lions shirt and old, worn-out short shorts. Her packing hadn’t included thoughts of what to wear in front of men who are basically strangers while hanging around the apartment.

She tries to ignore the heat in her face and confidently take the seat next to Nico, where a new glass of wine is waiting for her.

“Hi Lux, nice to see you again,” he swivels in the barstool, bumping her knee with his.

“You too, even if it didn’t seem like I was before,” she takes a nervous sip of wine.

“Just with the whole bra thing, I try to keep the number of NHLers who’ve seen my nipples to a minimum, it’s probably already too high.”

Nico let’s out a laugh so delightful Lux feels her heart flip. She always thought Nico was cute, but up close and laughing at her jokes, she thinks it’s a bona fide crush now.

Jack scoffs, “You were dared to flash me, so I don’t really count.”

“Okay, so minus Jack, the three is probably enough.”

“Wait, who else saw your nipples?” Jack is less interested in what’s cooking now.

“Quinn, obviously. And Cole at prom; remember the strap on my dress broke, he got and eyeful before he helped cover me up.”

She takes another sip, let Jack’s mind run a bit wild.

“And Lukey walked in on me changing into my swimsuit once.”

The knife Luke is using to chop vegetables clatters onto the cutting board, “You said you’d never tell anyone that!”

“No, I said I wouldn’t tell Quinn that,” and she pretends to look around the room, “and there’s Jack and Nico… no Quinn.”

Luke’s cheeks are burning red and Jack looks like he’s torn between laughing and fuming, which ultimately makes him look a bit constipated.

“You were like 15 and had access to the internet, I doubt my tits were that impactful.”

“Can I throw myself out of a window now?” He looks like he’d prefer to melt into the floor.

Lux stands up and hugs Luke, pinning his arms to his sides, “Don’t worry I won’t let your older brother beat you up over it, though I think you’ve literally grown out of that phase now that you’re taller than him.”

“Now that we know that everyone here but Nico has seen your boobs.”

“We could change that…” Lux chirps at Jack and gets a shove from Luke.

“How was your interview?”

Lux shrugs, “Good, I think… I could not read the interviewer at all.”

“I’m sure you crushed it,” Jack gives her a noogie.

“Thank you for the vote of confidence, but it’s one of the most competitive med schools in America, so I’m not keeping my hopes up too much.”

Before the pair can continue arguing about how smart or not smart Lux is, Nico butts in.

“You’re interviewing for medical schools, right? Where at?

“Today was Columbia, I have Cornell tomorrow, and NYU Friday.”

“All just a train ride away,” Jack says as he starts to move them towards the dining table.

“And I haven’t decided if that’s a pro or con yet,” Lux smirks, before taking a seat.

“So, are you coming to both games?” Nico starts, clearly a ploy to stop the bickering before it really starts, already reading the duo’s antics.

“Of course, she’s coming,” Jack jumps in continues to cut off any protest, “you’ve never seen me play a home game and you’ve never even seen Luke play in the big leagues live!”

“But we agreed one game, two in one week will ruin my whole yearly quota.”

“You’re not a hockey fan?”

“That’s an understatement,” Luke laughs.

“Years with the Hughes family, then becoming a WAG, and we still couldn’t convert her,” Jack says wistfully.

“Maybe The Rock will change your mind,” Nico says thoughtfully.

Lux shrugs, she doesn’t want to rain on his parade, “Who are you playing? Just so I can make sure I don’t get a Zegras jumpscare.”

“He has a girlfriend.”

“I don’t think his relationship status would change how much he enjoys annoying me.”

“We’re not playing the Ducks, plus he’s out with a broken ankle anyway, I don’t think he’s traveling,” Jack adds, his tone hinting that there’s more on that subject he wants to discuss.

“Okay I can tell you’re dying to talk shop, so go ahead,” she’s surprised they let it go on this long.

“We were actually going to talk about the Canucks right before you got here,” Luke say with a little apprehension, always thinking of Lux’s feelings.

“How is Captain Q doing? They’re playing shockingly well, right?”

“I thought you didn’t like hockey?” Jack mocks.

“Our moms talk, I follow hockey players on socials, information gets disseminated.”

Jack makes a face, clearly unsure if that last word means what he thinks it does.

“The Canucks pretty much guaranteed to make it to the playoffs,” Luke probably knows disseminated doesn’t have anything to do with semen.

“Damn, I missed my chance to get a WAG jacket.”

Then the boys are off on tangents about trades and special teams and injuries. Lux silently enjoys the familiar chatter, letting it wash over her like a warm hug. Though she isn’t absorbing any of the information.

 She barely notices when the conversation turns to her while they start to clear the table.

“If you don’t want to sleep on the couch again, Nico has a spare bedroom.” Jack says as if he’s had to repeat himself.

“Excuse me?”

“He lives just upstairs, and has a guest room.”

“I’m staying here to spend time with you, why would I want to stay at some strange guy’s apartment? No offense, Nico.”

“No pressure, if you change your mind the offer is open,” Nico has such a kind smile Lux almost ask if she can stay in his bed.

“Thank you, that’s very nice of you, but I think I’ll stay here.”

Nico nods and says good night before leaving. Lux counts to five after the door shuts behind him.

“What the fuck was that?” Lux glares at Jack.

Jack isn’t quite sure how to respond.

“Why are you trying to pawn me off?”

He shrugs, “I’m not, but he does have a spare room. And it’s nicer to sleep on a bed. And if you happen to hit it off, that’s cool you’ll have another friend when you move here.”

Luke scoffs and retreats to his room, not wanting to get implicated in any scheme.

“So, you have ulterior motives?”

“That makes it sound like my motives are bad, friends are a bad thing now?”

“Friendship isn’t bad, but this feels like you know something I don’t and that makes me very uneasy.”

“I’ve never known something you don’t,” he gives a cheeky smile and Lux rolls her eyes.

He puts the last of the plates in the dishwasher.

“I’m gonna take a shower and go to bed, night Luxxy,” he ruffles her hair as he walks by.

Then she’s alone.

At 9 PM.

Not shooting the shit with her bestie.

Maybe she should have stayed with Nico.

:::

The Cornell interview is a dream. Lux had gone to other interviews and liked a few, but this was different. She was vibing with the interviewer. Everything she learned about the school she loved.

Everything just felt right. 

She was floating on air as she walked the streets toward Central Park. The pizza she stopped for tasted better… although that might have been a New York thing and not a feeling good in the moment thing.

She texts Jack a good luck for the game but doesn’t get a response, she assumes he’s napping or in the zone or something. It’s not a part of their usual texting unless she somehow knows there’s a specifically important game; like when he plays Quinn or the stadium series a few weeks ago.

Lux meets up with a friend from college, who takes her out for drinks then dinner then more drinks. She’s a little tipsy when she gets on the train to Jack’s apartment, insisting to her friend that she doesn’t want to sleep on a futon in her studio apartment.

Halfway there she realizes she should check the score before she gets back. She may not care about hockey but she cares about her friend’s feelings and knowing what kind of mood he’ll be in can only help.

They lost.

Quinn would get quiet and introspective when he lost a game, so it was always easy for Lux. Not only were they not in the same city, but usually he didn’t want to talk. Jack usually got grumpy and wanted to complain. So not the exact environment she was used to or really wanted to be in.

She gets back before the boys somehow. She’s not exactly sure how.

So, she gets ready for bed and turns on the TV, of course it’s already on some channel playing sports highlights. Lux flips around to find something more mindless when they boys come home.

Luke plops down on the couch, suit jacket discarded immediately. Jack sort of awkwardly stands behind the couch, staring at the TV where Lux stopped on a game show.

When neither of them speaks up, Lux fills in the silence.

“Sorry about the loss, but a goal and an assist, that’s pretty cool,” she looks up to Jack with a sad smile, hoping she’s at least a little comforting.

“Mmmhmm,” Jack hums.

She tries a new tactic, “Cornell went well.”

“Cool.”

“I liked it, a lot.” She emphasizes.

“Cool.”

“How about we order pizza, watch bad TV, and not talk then?”

“I’ll pass,” Jack finally moves, heading to his room and shutting the door behind him.

She looks over to Luke, “He’s being weird with me, right?”

“Kind of,” Luke avoids eye contact, his tell when he’s trying protect his brothers in some way.

“We haven’t hung out, just the two of us since I got here. Hell, we haven’t even done a Lux and the Hughes bros night. I want to know if I did something wrong.”

“It’s not you, he was really excited you were coming. Wouldn’t shut up about everything he wanted to show so you’d fall in love with here like he has.”

Lux smirks at that.

“I think the season has been rough for him, he’s been taking it out on himself a little.”

She scoots down the couch and pulls Luke into her side with a hug.

“And how are you doing?” She gives him a squeeze, her instinct to big sister Luke coming out.

“It’s my first full season, I’m just happy to be playing. And Jack’s been taking good care of me.”

“What an insane sentence, but glad you have each other here.”

“And I heard talk of pizza,” he hugs Lux back.

“You’re the local, tell me where to order from,” she ruffles his hair.

:::

Lux wakes up early despite her late night of TV and pizza. She clears off the table before heading towards Jack’s room.

She knocks gently, before just walking in. Though she hovers near the entryway.

“What’s wrong with us?”

Jack’s lying in bed looking at his phone, double chin on full display. Lux would normally make fun of him, or take a picture for her own blackmailing purposes, but now’s not the time.

“What do you mean?” He doesn’t look away from his texting or whatever he’s doing.

Lux crawls into the bed and lays on her side facing him.

“I thought we weren’t ‘share a bed’ friends?”

She rolls her eyes, snatches his phone and throws it to the foot of the bed. It gets lost somewhere in the crumpled duvet.

“When you’ve been using your brother and teammates as a buffer to not be alone with me, I’ll bend our friendship rules.”

“Okay we’re alone, what’s wrong with me?”

“It’s not just a you thing… it’s an us thing.”

Jack finally turns his head to really look at Lux.

“We haven’t talked at all since Christmas, and even then, it was like for 15 minutes between family obligations. And we’re barely texting.”

Lux hates her body for betraying her, tears starting to well up even if she’s more frustrated than sad.

“It feels like right before Quinn broke up with me.”

That gets Jack to sit up, confused, a little angry.

“I’m not fucking breaking up with you.”

“Good, I don’t think I could survive a second Hughes break up.”

Jack sighs, “Just this year has fucking sucked for me, we’re not doing as well– I’m not doing as well as I thought. And you’re in your senior year and applying to med schools, I didn’t want to add my own stress to you.”

“Are you still hurt?”

“Kind of, but we’re like still sort of in the race for a playoff spot and if I can just get us in…”

Lux knows to bite her tongue when it comes to injury management. They’ll play through the pain even if it’s not necessarily the best for themselves, if there’s a chance it’s best for the team.

“And on top of that you get a girlfriend, a meet your parents kind of girlfriend.”

“I guess I’m not over you and Quinn breaking up!”

Lux swallows, tries to put together a coherent thought.

“I know you had a crush on Quinn forever, and I was happy for you guys, but you were my friend first and he kind of ruined that. And now I feel like I have to be careful when it comes to talking about him, or relationships, or even just making fun of you.”

He finally turns onto his side.

“And most importantly I want to talk to you about how Quinn’s girlfriend is so nice it’s kind of annoying.”

“Oh my god, she’s too nice! Do you know she follows me on Instagram? We met like that one time at the lake and she comments on all my pictures about how pretty I am. She knows I’m his ex, right?”

“Oh yeah, it was a whole weird thing when we all played each other the first time. Quinn apparently hadn’t told her explicitly and we made some joke or something and then she just was like ‘oh she’s so nice and pretty, no wonder you liked her.’”

Lux can’t help but laugh.

“I mean maybe I couldn’t handle that like right after the break up, but I was so lost after. I didn’t know how to be a college student without a long-distance boyfriend and still be a good student or friend and whatever, and I was such a bitch at the end of our relationship I thought you wouldn’t be on my side, which you shouldn’t”

“What?”

“We were already having problems, but I purposely made them worse. Like, while I was dodging all his calls, you came to play in Chicago and I made sure that we took a picture together because I knew you’d send it to the family group chat and he’d see I was just living my life.”

“That’s fucked up.”

“I know! I can’t believe he never told you that. He really is like the best brother.”

“Why did you do that?”

“I don’t know, I think I wanted a break but I didn’t know how to ask for one, so I ruined it. And sometimes I think if we took a break maybe we’d get back together again, but also, I just don’t think we were meant for long term.”

She reaches across to grab Jack’s hand, “But us… this shit is forever. We have almost nothing in common and you’re still the first person I want to call with big news or if I need advice, which is crazy cause you’re one of the dumbest people I know.”

Jack laughs, it’s a little wet. They have to ignore it because they love each other but it’s not emotional like this.

“Okay, so I’ll still be your future kids cool Uncle Jack? Even if we’re not blood related?”

“Of course.”

“Okay enough of this emotional stuff, it’s very gross.”

“But what if we kissed right now,” Lux wiggles her eyebrows while trying to keep a straight face.

Jack shoves her hard enough she teeters dangerously on the edge of the bed, as she howls with laughter.

“Oka, now tell me why you’re trying to set me up with Nico?”

“He’s brunette with a lot body hair but almost none on his chest, that’s your type.”

“Oh my god! Shut up, that is not my type,” Lux covers her face, masking her laughs and her embarrassment.

“Palmer from high school was a fucking wolf man.”

“Okay, well recent studies show that’s not my type.”

Jack gags.

“Nico may also sort of be seeing this woman who’s massive bitch to him. And I like him and I like you, so maybe if you hit it off… it would be good for everyone. And make you want to move here.”

“I’m not making life altering decisions based on boys… even for cute Swiss boys or platonic soulmates.”

The door opens suddenly, “We’re gonna be late for morning skate, dude.”

“What if we had been having sex, dude?” Lux says while stretching out on the bed.

“Then the world would be ending, so it wouldn’t really matter,” he rolls his eyes, “I’m pulling out of the garage in 10 minutes with or without you.

“Want to go shopping later?” Jack asks Lux as he gets out of bed

“Are you paying?”

He scoffs, “Sure.”

“Then I’m in. Have fun at morning skate, I’m gonna nap in your bed.”

:::

Things snap back into place almost immediately, like it was more effort pushing each other away than just letting themselves get pulled into each other’s orbit.

And all feels right in the world again.

Thursday is another game day; Lux is reading on the boys’ balcony while they nap. She jolts when the sliding door opens.

“Sorry to scare you,” Nico in a suit sits down across from her, “they still napping?”

“Yes? I don’t know their routines. Why are you here?”

“We’re carpooling.”

They sit quietly for a bit, before Lux finally puts her book down.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to a game, is this appropriate attire?” She stands up and does a goofy little spin.

“What are you doing?” Jack asks from the doorway, a playful smirk on his face like he’s getting away with something.

“I’m asking if I’m dressed alright, since I’m sitting in your girlfriend’s spot with all the WAGs.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t force her to wear your jersey,” Nico laughs, “but you look nice, won’t even have to change when we go out after the win.”

“Oooh you’re ready to put on a show for me?”

“You could use some make up though,” Jack adds.

Lux just flips him off.

A sleepy looking Luke comes to the door, “Don’t let Lukey drive, he looks like an accident ready to happen.”

“Try to have fun tonight,” Jack hugs Lux.

Normally she’d say something snarky, like ‘try to win then.’ But after their heart to heart, that feels like a twist of the knife.

“I’ll try to be the best good luck charm.”

Lux gets to her seat five minutes into the first period in an attempt to avoid any awkward introductions. Not that she’s against meeting new people, but without social butterfly Jack by her side, she relapses into her shyer ways.

Still, the group tries to include her, shocked she hasn’t seen Jack play in Jersey and forcing her to take a picture where the mascot is holding her bridal style.

She has a couple drinks, cheers when Jack gets an assist, and pretends she doesn’t cheer louder when Nico gets an assist on the game winning goal.

She won’t admit it, but it’s the most fun she’s had at a hockey game, maybe ever.

The women lead her down to the family room while they discuss where they want to go out. Lux is buzzing with adrenaline she was not expecting, ready to follow everyone for a night out with no complaint.

Luke and Jack come out of the locker room simultaneously. Lux is about to jump on Jack when she remembers what he said about his shoulder, so she jumps on Luke’s back instead.

“Lukey, you were so good out there,” she squeezes him tight and ruffles Jack’s hair while she has the height advantage.

“I was -1,” he starts to let her go so she slides off his back.

“I don’t know what that means, so it can’t be that important.”

She gives Luke another hug then turns her attention to Jack, who wraps an arm around her shoulder.

“Guess you were a good luck charm.”

“And yet, you couldn’t score a goal for me.”

“Gotta keep you wanting more.”

She sticks her tongue out at him.

“I heard there were talks of going out? I have an interview tomorrow so the sooner that starts the better.”

They end up at a trendy bar on the other side of the river with about half the team and their significant others. She lets Jack talk her into taking a shot about two steps into the establishment.

She laughs, she dances, she drinks a bit too much. Her head starts to spin and she makes her way to the patio, the chilled air feels good and clears her vision.

A cold glass of water brushes against her arm.

“You probably should hydrate.”

“Thanks,” she smiles up at Nico.

“Did you have fun tonight? At the game?”

“Yeah, but don’t tell Jack it’ll go to his head.”

“Might be a con if you end up picking Cornell, he’ll make you come watch all the time.”

“I think med school is a good excuse to miss out.”

Nico shrugs, “I’d miss my good luck charm.”

The early spring air is chilly, but a gust of warm air comes over Lux. ‘This is flirting. Nico is flirting with me,’ rings in her head while she struggles to be charming, or smooth in response.

Of course, that’s when the clock strikes midnight and she turns back into a pumpkin, or really Jack interrupts the moment.

“Luxxy, time to leave! I won’t be the reason you’re late or hungover for your interview.” He yells from the doorway of the bar, for maximum embarrassment.

Lux close her eyes and lets out a sigh. Then lets a final burst of liquid confidence bubble up to the surface.

“I might not see you before I leave, so let me give you my phone number,” she holds out her hand for his phone, which he unlocks and hands over.

“Partially, because seeing this happen will make Jack lose his mind. And it would be nice to have another friend if I move out here.”

Nico is kind of dumbstruck as he nods along, “Friends are nice.”

“Especially cute friends,” she holds back a grin and gives him a kiss on the corner of his mouth.

He turns an adorable shade of pink.

“What was that?” Jack says as she walks by taking him in tow.

“What? Isn’t that what you wanted?”

:::

The last interview goes fine. Not great, but at least she isn’t hungover for it.

Her flight out is at an ungodly time the next morning, so she insists on an early bedtime from her chauffeurs.

Which is how she ends up sitting alongside the river, brown bagging beers with the Hughes brothers, watching the sun set.

“So, am I going to meet the new girlfriend at the lake this summer?”

“You’re actually coming to the lake house this summer?”

“If I can embarrass you in front of your new girlfriend? Absolutely.”

“I’m giving your room to Trevor,” beer sloshes out of his can when he elbows her.

“C’mon, this might actually be my last summer at the lake. I’m becoming a doctor; I think I’ll be busy. Or maybe I’ll meet someone.”

“Someone who will whisk you off to Switzerland?” Jack wiggles his eyebrows and Luke make smooching sounds.

“Anything is possible,” she raises her beer and drinks to that.

[shorthaltsjester]

god i cannot express how impressed in general i am with the storytelling that cr is doing with candela obscura but what really strikes me is how evident it is that the storytelling they do is defined by the hearts of those who are putting it together rather than adhering to a specific idea or image of a given story that they want to uphold. there is such a stark difference between the tones of chapter one and chapter two (to the fault of neither, i’ve enjoyed them both immensely because they both happen to hit parts of the supernatural-horror genre that I am so deeply fond of and so happy to see in a real play medium).

there’s the obvious difference in gming styles, matt has fantasy running through his veins and that’s evident in the way that chapter one ends up having a tone akin to something like the scarier episodes of buffy the vampire slayer. spenser outright references mike flanagan in his pre-interview thing and good grief is that so so evident in his narration and the way he emphasizes the themes emerging in the story in the environment of the world they journey through and choices like the letter from sean’s mother that subvert the audiences ability to rely on a character’s perception.

but the energy the groups of players bring to the storytelling is obviously also so important, too. like, even just looking at the groups prior to watching each I probably could’ve guessed which might’ve had a more lighthearted tone. the combination of ashley, anjali, and robbie already would be one i’d guess a more warm/goofy vibe for (not to say they can’t be serious and dramatic, but the tone of the seriousness is still warm and the world that prompts them towards drama likewise feels warm) and laura, despite her propensity for goofs, does tend to be a chameleon with group make ups. likewise i think we all had a certain (affectionate) fear™ when it was revealed that marisha, brennan, luis, and travis would be reuniting in another short form story and that has certainly held up and been incredibly bolstered by zehra’s absolute commitment and immersion into the story (constantly fucking blown away that this is her first real play she’s incredible).

this is all just to say as someone deeply interested in digital storytelling, i am so so enamoured by cr’s commitment to following their own desires as humans telling stories to one another while adhering to the requirements they have as a company. and also if you haven’t you should watch candela obscura, especially now that spooky season is here.

[storiesaplenty]

Jelly Bracelets (1)

Eddie Munson x f/Reader

Jelly Bracelets Masterlist

This has not been proofread. Please enjoy, though.

Warnings: swearing.

Gifs & photos do not belong to me: 1st @lengthofropes 2nd: @billy-hoegrove

WC: 976

©️ storiesaplenty 2024: Do not repost or translate my work. This is the only place I post my work.

Yellow - wearer is willing to hug

Eddie Munson may be the freak of Hawkins, but he is your best friend. Who is always willing to teach you new things, even when you get new bracelets from your cousin. Eddie will even go as far as teaching & showing you what each one means.

"You can not be serious Eddie." I exclaimed as I propped myself up on my elbow, leaning on my side as I laid on his bed.

He was sitting on the floor of his room, which I can tell he tried to clean up as he knew I was coming over.

He was looking for a magazine to show me that he was telling me the truth.

"I am very serious. I'm just trying to show you what," I zoned him out after that as he started to mutter to himself.

This all started when he saw the jelly bracelets on my arms.

His face was all serious when he asked me what I was wearing.

"Oh these?" I moved my sweater up a bit more and his eyes seemed to lock on every single one, taking in each colour.

"Yes those." His voice sounded tense.

"My cousin got them for me as an early birthday present. It is nice of her since she lives all the way in Maine, and she must have paid extra for me to get them as close to my birthday as possible."

"Do you even know what she sent you?"

"Yeah, bracelets." I replied, a bit confused, wondering where he was getting at with all of this.

"You know what they have been saying about these in the news right? I even read an article about them just the other day."

"Since when do you listen to the news?" I asked him as I flung myself onto his bed.

"They are calling them sex bracelets." Eddie said to me just as he started to look for this called article.

"Come on Eddie, we are supposed to meet Steve and Robin for lunch at Pizza Hut." I am getting impatient.

Him and I were supposed to spend some time together before we met up with those two, but he is just more concerned about proving himself right than spending time with me.

"You know Robin will make them be at least ten minutes late. We have time." He said as he threw a t-shirt behind him.

"Aha! I knew I didn't throw it away." He turned around and held up the magazine like it was a crown.

"Well, show me the article." I said as I sat up on the side of the bed.

He looked through the pages until he stopped and read the page for a few moments, then thrusting the magazine in my face, pointing at the article.

"See, look." I took it from his hands, my eyes scanning the page. Eddie sat down next to me on his bed, his body turned so he is facing me.

"This is all bullshit, just like the whole Dungeons and Dragons craziness. Which by the way, caused a witchhunt against the Hell Fire Club, if you recall."

"Yeah, yeah, but come on, this has to be true because how would this be known across the country if it wasn't true?"

"Eddie, I think you have smoked too much pot, and have lost some of your brain cells." I said, tossing the magazine on his pillow.

"Fine, don't believe me. I get it." Being the dramatic ass he is, he stood up, throwing his hands in the air, and then grabbing his keys.

"Get what?" I asked him.

"That I am right about them and you are wrong, now let's go and meet our friends before you make us late." He stood at his bedroom door, gesturing for me to walk past him.

When I did, I playfully slapped him across the arm and he chased me out of his trailer.

Eddie Munson's Pov:

The moment Robin saw those bracelets on her arm, it was like that is all Robin could talk about. She was listing off what every single colour means, as I just sat beside my best friend, watching her slump in her chair as I happily chewed on my pizza slice.

Steve was trying to change the subject, but once Robin was on a topic, well this is all that will be talked about.

"I mean, you can wear them if you want too, but just know that if someone snaps one, then you gotta do whatever that colour is." Robin said before she took a sip of her Pepsi.

"Robin, I do not have to, besides, I do have free-will and can just say no."

"So if I snapped this yellow one, you would be fine with it?" I asked her as I started to play with the yellow one, stroking my finger along it until I hooked my finger around it.

"What does it mean again?" She asked me, nervously biting her bottom lip. Such a cute thing, who has no idea what she does to me.

"Just a hug is all. Yellow means, wearing is willing to hug." I told her before snapping it, waiting to see what she would do.

She rolled her eyes as I held up the snapped jelly bracelet.

"Fine." Was all she said before she leaned over and wrapped her arms around me, and I her as we hugged.

I sniffed her hair, groaning internally to myself at the smell of her shampoo, before she pulled back and resumed eating her pizza.

I cleared my throat as the topic was finally changed to something else, and I could feel Steve's eyes on me, and I regretfully looked up, as he is sitting across from me.

The smug bastard, knowing about my crush on her, was chrewing his food, bur he smirked at me when he noticed I was looking.

I kicked his leg, and he coughed to hide the slight yell of pain.

I placed my arm across her chair, just like I always do, wondering how far I can go with this before she tells me to fuck off.

Orange (2)

[yuseirra]

Ch 160 ..let me jot down my stream of consciousness about what I feel, my reading comprehension skills can't be that bad, it'd help if I can sit down and think through a little more.

+ Okay, I'm complete! I understand things much better now!! Upon close examination, This chapter doesn't change anything so dramatically.

IT STILL DOES NOT ANSWER JUST WHAT THE DAD'S MOTIVES ARE, but... the conclusion I have after having reread it thoroughly??

It's that my interpretation of him as a mild guy still stands—it enhances it, even. He's still really kind, which is a pretty surprising conclusion compared to what I felt about it at first glance.

He's.. really kind and considerate. I'm serious. wow.

well, analysis/interpretation below!

I was spoiled about chapter way back sometime last Friday, right? and it was pretty accurate in sense, with it being just some bunch of sentences and that one really creepy panel.. it does help to see the actual art and the expressions that are associated with the dialogues.

Now that I sit down a bit, there are two different interpretations of the same story: Kamiki's testimonies on what's happened (I believe these are all truths. They perfectly match up with how I've interpreted his character all along.) and Aqua's takes on them.

I'm not reading things off the english version btw, so the dialogues may differ.

According to what Kamiki says,

-he considered Ryosuke and Nino as good people and as friends. But they approached him because they were obsessed with Ai, so he didn't know about their true colors.

-so he was able to talk about his breakup with her and talked about whether if he should visit her having children at the hospital where Gorou was. They went and killed Gorou, but Kamiki had no idea about that.

-on the day Ai died, he was still unsure about meeting her because he lacked the courage to see her face (god he's timid) so he asked Ryosuke to give her his bouquet on his behalf

I KEPT SAYING THIS GUY NEVER HAS IT IN HIM TO "SCARE AI!!!!!!!!!" HE LIED IN 154 OUT OF GUILT BECAUSE HE THOUGHT AI AND AQUA WANTED REVENGE ON HIM!!! SEE!!! I'VE BEEN!!! RIGHT!!!! I'VE BEEN!!!!!!!!!!

This was already in the leaks last Fri, I basically felt the same way about these back then

and I got every part of these right except for the part that Kamiki befriended them. I just couldn't picture the people who killed Ai or would actively go hunt their daughter down being his friend..

but seeing how.. much he seems to trust people, he used to be that way as a child, it actually all ties so nicely together.

I predicted that it was Nino and Ryosuke who went to the hospital and killed Gorou.

I predicted that Kamiki just wanted to send the bouquet to congratulate Ai but he couldn't go because he was nervous/sad from the phone call. I said that ever since I started drawing hikaai fanarts, you would have seen me going on and on about that, I drew them with this as the base!!!! The guy Ai chose wouldn't do such a thing as trying to get back at her!!! See??

I couldn't be more right!!! I am a prophet!! I should trust myself!!!! why am I so unsure of myself, really. I really, really did get everything right.

These must be all true. He's not lying about any of this. I've been analyzing this guy very very thoroughly so I know what I'm talking about.

I guess what's confused me was the latter bits, since Fri and even after I see the full images.

Kamiki smiles and says he never wanted to hurt anyone<this is really how I view him as well, this guy can't hurt people out of his own will...

However, Aqua dismisses Kamiki's statements as lies on the spot, and accuses him of having been unable to protect his own daughter. That he's been intentionally manipulated people to get what he wants. That would involve him causing people to kill each other without dirtying his hands.

Upon hearing Aqua stating "You wanted to kill your own daughter", Kamiki makes this really eerie smile (I kind of wish this is redrawn hshsh.. it looks like he's a demon spawn from hell, but this could REALLY be him being distressed yet AGAIN. this guy SMILES when he's that way. That's his coping mechanism. It's kind of hard to stare at that expression but that smile certainly ISN'T a happy one like the one we saw in 159. This is a really confusing habit he has. People are going to take him the wrong way but; sadly, it's become a habit of his...)

The scenes then shifts to visions of him manipulating nino and Ryosuke into doing what they've done with a smile. If this is really what's happened, then he IS someone pretty evil-

but now that I read it over I think that's just based on Aqua's interpretations about the guy.

Is what's being portrayed in those pages ACTUALLY how he is? Just yesterday, I theorized that Kamiki loves his children and has been doing whatever he's been doing for his children. I did have my reasons for making that claim.

We still don't know what his motives are!! Aqua doesn't state anything about why Kamiki would do such a thing if he's done so. Does he know anything about this??? Just what reason would make it.. enough to have someone kill the love of their life and their very daughter? What good would it do for Kamiki? For one thing, does he have ANY good reason to kill Ai at all? For having felt betrayed?? Then why wait out that long????? Killing their daughter? After having her live for, how long now? how old are they now? 15?? 16? Why now? Why would he??

The important thing would be just WHY he'd be doing all those things if he's really been so, so WHAT IS IT AQUA?? WHAT??

Forgot to mention this but in the beginning of the chapter, we have kamiki saying, Hm, but what did I do? Did I "stab someone?" did I "push someone off a cliff?" I never "did" "anything".

Then we have Nino going "Kamiki-san didn't do anything. He just talked about Ai. He talked about her so we(her and Ryosuke) wouldn't forget about her. That was enough to make us break."

OH come on. COME ON. HUH. I feel like he's never told them anything bad about Ai, he probably let out how much he loved and misses her, because he thought they were her fan and coworkers as a fellow member, I bet he was happy to befriend people who knew about Ai because they share a common interest together. With it being his favorite person in the world even while he was dumped.

What a stupid reason, Nino. You brought everything upon yourself. I can see that now.

I do think.. kamiki has some sort of power that causes people to grow insane or act out, that could have had some influence on ryosuke and nino in a way...

but again, why would he try to kill his lover and his daughter even if he can use it with his own accord??? Even if he's using those powers now?? Would he use it to do those respective things?

Even if he has those, that shouldn't be all there is to it. According to Kamiki, they were already obsessed with Ai when they approached him and YEAH! Makes sense?? They came to him first, probably already aware that he was Ai's lover?? He isn't responsible for them hoarding those kinds of feelings!!

Coming to think of it, I find it really strange that he still hung with nino being the complete wreck she is. Oh wait, I guess he still could. Ryosuke killed Ai and Nino doesn't seem to have played a part with that. Nino was there with Ryosuke when Gorou died but she's not the one who's pushed him off a cliff. Ryosuke's the really...horrible one. He had a pretty gf like nino JUST WHY. Then again, nino was obsessed w Ai too so they were a match. I guess Kamiki hanged with Nino thinking she's just another victim who wants Ai back or whatever. He still hangs with her when she says that are super creepy like she can't forgive Ruby if she surpasses Ai though.. Perhaps he's really bad at letting people go.. OH, YEAH. He was always pretty attached to people as a child. Okay, I got that part cleared up on my own. Stream of consciousness is like this. It can happen.

Continuing on!! Aqua says Kamiki is a "despicable, selfish liar, worse than a murderer". Even Kamiki can't smile hearing that. If he ISN'T one, then that'd hurt.

Well, he responds again, saying:

"Ah, yes. You're the same way as I am. You share those same eyes I have. The type of eyes that grant the power to persuade others into believing you. The eyes that grant you charisma, befitting that of a star." Then we see a panel with Ai, "The eyes of liars, that fool, and make others submit to you"

he must be thinking of what Ai's told him when she talked to him about having the same eyes. (CH 140)

"You've been inciting people just like I have, right? Just how many people did you fool to fulfill your goal?"

"It must have felt good to use your talents to impact the lives of others, right?"

I'm not sure if this is a taunt/mockery or just him stating the facts as a liar/a black star user himself.

If he's thinking about Ai... then it can be the latter. She approached him saying "they are the same". He could be thinking about that.

Actually, he's strangely calm. His emotions are a bit hard to read on this one, I'd say it actually feels collected compared to what he's heard.

This could actually be sympathy or empathy...

I didn't take it that way when I first encountered it, so I felt.. Kamiki could be lashing out a bit but no. That doesn't seem to be it.

Hey, he really never gets angry. He actually looks a bit sad depending on how you look at it, I think he may be feeling a sense of guilt in that particular panel where he says "Just how many people did you fool to fulfill your goal?", the one where he glances down,

just like how he talked to Aqua in 152, "It's a lie, isn't it? it's because they're important that you keep your distance from them. why would you go that far to bottle yourself up?"

This guy understands his son really well. In fact, I think he may be trying to say, "we're the same=I understand the way you are, we're on the same track" the way Ai's done for him. That's what was his salvation.

Aqua does not take this well.

He says yeah, we're both terrible beings, but Ruby is "different".

Oh, and the rest.. what's stood out to me is the panel where Aqua goes,

"sending love to the one who desires for love" as he describes what Ruby is doing. Kamiki shows up in that panel.. This is what Ai wanted to do for him.

and there's a panel that comes up that shows Ai with the twins that follows right after saying:

"it's the eyes of the one who desires to love someone"

This is really sad. I think that page actually indicates Ai desired to love him while he desired to be loved from Ai. That happened both ways. It was a nice page.

Yeah, and Aqua points his knife to his dad like a toy gun saying

"You must disappear right here and now, for Ruby's sake."

I don't think Aqua's actually up to stabbing him, actually? If he's pointing the knife at him like that, I think it's more like he's warning him to stay out of their way forever, scram, or just go die off on his own.

Both of his eyes are white, he's not going to kill him with his own hands, rather, he's going to make him go away.

So I don't think next chapter would start on a fierce note? Kamiki does not seem like a guy that gets agitated so easily. He STILL never once got angry in this chapter as well. He's still pretty sweet to his son. I'm not being biased on this, the way he talks has always been really soft. If this were to be an anime, you'd hear how he'd talk and see whether if he has thorns in them but I don't think it's that way at least, I think he's trying to be understanding??

This guy is soft. He will not put up a fight. I don't know, he may jump off that bridge and try to die maybe. If that's what his son wants? Move out of the way? He doesn't seem.. angry about it all. He's not even protesting.

In the end, the only thing that got proven in this chapter was that Kamiki DID NOT DO ANYTHING IN A PHYSICAL SENSE, AND HE DIDN'T TRY TO SCARE AI.

the fact about him manipulating people and lying to get his way, I think there's low chance of it being applied for Ruby and Ai's case.

I think he really didn't have a clue Nino would attack Ruby? If he's considered her as a friend?

what are the basis of Aqua picturing him that way? He must really hate his dad. There is no way he could have seen such things happen. Unless Tsukuyomi told him about it?? there is no proof that it's what's actually been taken place. Kamiki could have incited people, or influenced others, yeah, but I don't think he did anything to Ai or his daughter. Again, I think he loves his family. Why wouldn't he??

Until things get cleared up more, I???? I ACTUALLY?? think Kamiki's taking it in a really calm manner despite all the things he's being accused of??

This is very long, but that is all for now!!

Oh, this was worth revisiting and analyzing. There's a lot more I see when I scrutinize it like this!!

[munsonsmixtapes]

Hey ❤

i was wonderimg if i could request a fic where the roles are reversed and reader proposes to eddie.. (maybe a little optional scene where steve and robin help the reader pick out a ring?) and he feels so loved, Hes so giggly with butterflies and loves his ring

All their friends and wayne are around and supporting them and congratulating them

Um, absolutely! I love this idea!! Thank you so much for the request, lovely!!

Eddie x gender neutral!reader

You knew that you wanted to propose to Eddie six months into your in your relationship, but decided against it since it was probably too early. Once you had reached a year and your relationship had become more serious, you had started looking for rings with Steve and Robin’s help.

You had looked for months, but nothing seemed right. They were all too flashy or expensive and you wanted the ring to be perfect. Something that he would have picked out for himself. And Eddie had a very specific taste so it was definitely difficult, but you were going to keep looking until you found what you were looking for.

You entered the last store of the day, feeling hopeless with Steve and Robin in tow. You were glad to have them help you make such a big decision, but you felt like they didn’t understand Eddie the way you did. Robin’s suggestions were too shiny and Steve’s were too simple. You needed something that screamed “Eddie” but kept coming up empty handed.

“What about this one?” Robin asked as you looked over the very sad options.

“I don’t know,” you sighed, turning your head to see what she was pointing at and you stopped. It was black with a silver Celtic knot that went around the whole band. It was perfect. It was Eddie.

“It’s perfect, Rob,” you rested your hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze.

“Can we see this one?” Robin asked the employee and he pulled it out from behind the glass and handed it Robin who pulled Steve over, putting the ring on his finger to see what it looked like.

“I do,” Steve told you dramatically and you just rolled your eyes as he removed it from his ring and handed it back to the associate.

“I’ll take it,” you told him and five minutes later, you had the ring and a knot in your stomach. You were sure that he would say yes but that didn’t mean that you weren’t nervous.

You had told Eddie that you were having everyone over to celebrate his new job, but really it was just for the proposal. You also had Wayne keep the ring safe since you didn’t really trust that anyone else wouldn’t lose it.

Everyone had arrived sooner than you had hoped and your heartbeat quickened as the proposal set in. You were going to ask Eddie to marry you. To spend the rest of his life with you.

Soon, the party was in full swing and you had a chat with Wayne who was trying to calm you down. He had always liked you and considered you to be part of family so when you asked for his permission to marry Eddie, it was an easy yes.

“He’s going to say yes, everything is going to be great,” he gave your back a pat.

“Do you have the ring?” You asked.

“Right here,” he held up the red velvet box and put it in your hands, resting his on top of yours. “He’s very lucky to have you,” he told you, tears welling up in his eyes. “I’ve been waiting for someone like you for a long time and I couldn’t be more grateful that you’re part of this family. Now go propose to my boy.”

You wiped your tears away and headed to the center of the room with your glass of champagne where you were going to make a toast. You had everyone take a glass and pulled Eddie to stand beside you.

“I’d like to make a toast,” you announced and everyone was cheering you on, all of them being in the loop except your unsuspecting boyfriend.

“Eddie,” you started. “I couldn’t be more proud of you in this moment. You’re finally doing what you’ve always wanted and I couldn’t be more happy for you than I am right now. I have loved you for a long time, even before we got together. The moment we got together, I knew that I didn’t want to spend my life with anyone else. So Eddie,” you set down both of your glasses and got down on one knee, opening the box. “Will you marry me?”

Eddie let out a gasp and tears welled up in his eyes that he was trying to wipe away. He couldn’t believe it. He had been wanting to propose to you and just couldn’t make it work because of his nerves. Now he didn’t have to. You were taking the reins on this one and he couldn’t have been more grateful.

“Yes,” he smiled, pulling you to your feet. You pulled the ring from the box and put it on his finger as everyone erupted in cheers. He pulled you in for a long hug then sealed your engagement with a kiss and he couldn’t wait to walk down the aisle and vow that he’d love you in sickness and health until death did you part.

[steviewashere]

Balls in Laundry Baskets: An Apology Chp. 2

Rating: Teen and Up CW: None for this part, but check part one for the CWs that pertain to that one Tags: Post Season 4, Post Canon, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Arguing, Making Up, Apologizing, Steve Harrington & Lucas Sinclair Friendship, Eddie Munson Gets Put in His Place, Lucas Sinclair is a Sweetheart, Steve Harrington is a Sweetheart, Protective Steve Harrington, Emotionally Hurt Lucas Sinclair, Emotionally Hurt Steve Harrington, Established Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson, Eddie Munson Means Well He's Just Defensive, Hurt People Hurt Others

This is chapter two! Want to read chapter one? Click here.

Can also be read on AO3

🏀—————🏀 Eddie knew that Steve was right. He had to apologize. He had to mean it. And he can’t let Lucas think that his interests are unimportant to him.

What’s eating at him, though, is how exactly he’s going to prove his apology meaningful to Lucas. Whatever it means, he’ll do it. If Lucas wants him to beg for forgiveness, he can up the dramatics. If it means saying the words ‘I’m sorry,’ and then never seeing him again, then he’ll stomach that. But he doesn’t want Lucas out of his life. The sheepies are important to him. They matter to him on so many levels that they don’t know. 

So he’s got to prove himself. He’s got to mean it.

Which gives him a great idea. And it’s one he can share with Steve, now that they’re seeing each other again.

Steve picks him up from home. Drives out to their local diner. Orders them some food. And then Eddie leans in close across the table. “I’ve got an idea on how I can apologize,” he states.

“How’s that?” Steve hums. He drums his fingers against the table. Is feigning nonchalance, but the slight excitement in his eyes is enough to tell Eddie that he’s genuinely ready to listen.

“Okay, I was thinking,” he starts, “involving Lucas’s interests with mine. If, maybe, I decide to do Hellfire every other week instead of weekly. And on my off days, you and Lucas can show me the ropes of balls in laundry baskets.”

Briefly, Steve’s eyes widen and his eyebrows raise. All his minor movements slow to a stop. He leans away from his seat, across the table. Nearly nose to nose with Eddie. “You…you want to postpone Hellfire to practice basketball with Lucas and I?” He questions, clarifying.

Eddie leans back and nods. “Yeah. I figured the only way I’m going to make it up to Lucas is by showing him that I’m serious. And…maybe it’ll do me some good? Plus, the whole reason Lucas is mad at me is because I wouldn’t postpone Hellfire meetings. If I show to myself that I’m capable of doing so, while involving myself with basketball, then it can be a start?”

Steve leans away again, his eyes calculating. Eddie wants to chew on his fingernails or bite his tongue, but he sits patiently. Waits for what feels like an eternity before Steve gives a slow nod. He’s not sure if it’s out of approval or taking in the idea for what it is, but Eddie stirs something hopeful in his stomach.

However, the silence between them stretches. Steve’s eyes continue to roam. And the idea grows to be futile in his mind. Was it that bad, he has to wonder, am I still being an ass?

“Do you not like it?” He finally asks. Clasps his hands together, if only to keep them from sweating, jittering off his body, shaking like a leaf. “I can…I’ll think of something new if it’s that bad of an idea. Maybe I should just go to Lucas’s? Apologize to him there and then let him sit with it a few days, let him decide whether or not he still wants to…” he trails off. Eddie doesn’t particularly like the outcome that could be Lucas completely distancing himself, backing away from the tabletop game he loves and their already tentative friendship. But if it’s what he has to do, for his own sanity and his own hurt, then Eddie should just let him. Right?

He rubs a hand between his eyebrows and looks down at the tacky table. “Who am I kidding?” He mutters, “Lucas is never going to forgive me.”

“Hey,” Steve softly scolds. “He will, Eds.” His eyes cast to Eddie like beacons. Of hope, Eddie isn’t certain. But of love, probably.

His hand slides from his eyebrows to cover his mouth. Next words muffled to the skin of his palm. “But you’re right, y’know? I’ve basically sidelined Lucas entirely. Separated myself from what he loves all because of stupid high school hierarchies. Which is…ridiculous considering I try to think of myself as somebody who doesn’t put people in boxes. And, well, look at me,” he states, gesturing to himself, “Here I am, putting people in boxes.”

Steve’s breath does something sort of funny, a little stuttered puff. His foot connects with Eddie’s shin in a gentle kick. That makes him look back up. Where Steve’s eyes are once again calculating in the odd perceptive way they do—all big and shiny and unmistakeable. His mouth is pinched down into a soft scowl. Eddie has to swallow back a shiver, he’s never seen somebody look so adamantly offended on his behalf. 

“We all do it,” Steve finally says. His voice is measured and low. “Even when you think you don’t, you do. It’s just the nature of how you’ve had to survive your environment, I guess. So give yourself some credit—at least you’re willing to face the reality of what you’ve done, as immediate as it’s been shown to you.”

Eddie shrugs. “How else am I going to make it up to you two? Lucas especially. Not that—I mean, you’re hurt, too. You are and I made you feel like that and that’s—“ He stops himself from rambling any further with a dismissive wave of his hand. Sighs away a grievance, an irritation at himself. “But I want to try. I want to show that I am capable of indulging other people, despite what I’ve known. And…Basketball seems like the way to go, for now.”

Steve’s foot is still firmly pressed against his shin, but then it slides down, hooking itself around Eddie’s ankle. His left hand is scooped up by Steve’s right; a gentle squeeze. There’s a tentative, lopsided grin plastered to his face, squinting the corners of those perceptive eyes. “I’ll help you do it,” Steve states, “I was thinking of how to get Lucas, though.”

Humming, Eddie sits further back and thinks. Of every opportunity he has to see the kid. Or what would end in sure failure, based on the approach he uses. There’s fear that if he apologizes at Lucas’s house, that he’ll only be shunned and turned away. Maybe even the chance that Lucas will notice him through the window and refuse immediately to even open the front door. A sure knot begins to form in Eddie’s chest when he notices the ways of approach are dwindling between his fingers.

Before he can say anything else, though, Steve is already speaking for him. “We should just pick up Lucas from his house.”

“We?” Eddie asks, befuddled.

Steve nods, his eyebrows scrunching in blatant confusion, as if this should be obvious. “Well, yeah? Did you really think I’d let you do this alone? Besides, it’s best to have a mediator there just in case. And, not only would I be there to kind of relax the conversation, but it gives you a chance to show yourself to me, too, right?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Eddie mutters in turn. He fidgets with a straw wrapper from the soda he had, that Steve insisted he paid for. And swallows heavily. “Maybe you can…Would you help by maybe just bringing him here? And that’ll give me the chance to apologize to his face while also…I just don’t want to corner him at his house or in your car or something.”

Across the table, he watches Steve’s eyes relax. Something in them going soft and easy. A small nod. “I can do that,” he murmurs, “just stay here, go over what you want to say, and keep yourself calm.” His hand squeezes Eddie’s, fingers toying with his rings. Reassures, “This’ll work out. There’s no reason that it won’t.”

“But—“

“It’ll resolve.” And his voice is like an anchor, something tangible and grounding.

For now, Eddie believes him. Because Steve hasn’t been wrong. Not yet, at least.

——— When Steve returns, it’s with Lucas in tow, just as Eddie asked. Granted, from what Eddie can see, Lucas has the appearance of somebody going on their first roller coaster ride—queasy before the ride even goes over the first hill of track. But it’s a miracle he’s here at all.

He finds himself straightening up in his booth seat, scooping the straw wrapper garbage to the side, even going as far as to untangle the ends of his hair. Wrestles his hands together so that they’re intertwined and heavy on the surface of the table. And flashes at the two of them, what he hopes, is a graceful and pleased smile.

Steve sits in the booth opposite of Eddie, against the wall. While Lucas joins him, also facing Eddie. And he realizes it for what it is: in case Lucas needs to claim bail and make his grand escape. Something turns over in Eddie’s chest, hot and hard like a freshly warmed piece of coal.

“Uh—Hey, Lucas,” he greets, choppy and clumsy. Good thing his hands are kneaded together like pretzels—they’d probably be glistening with sweat and shaking otherwise. His stomach tenses briefly at Lucas’s stare, stoic, yet calculating like Steve’s. Eddie takes a deep breath, it nearly wheezes right out of him. “Do you…I can get you something to snack on while we talk? Y’know, if you want?”

Lucas shakes his head. Swallows harshly, the sound carrying over the clatter of other diner’s eating, forks shifting on plates. “Nah, man,” he answers stiffly, “I just want to talk. Steve told me you had something to say?”

Eddie nods tersely. Brings his intertwined hands to his lips, just barely kissing his knuckles. Eyes darting over Lucas’s shoulder to the diner’s glass push door. Truth be told, he’s never been good at apologizing. More of a person who awkwardly says something good about a person before running in the other direction. But that’s reserved for people he’d be willing to see leave his life. Saved for people like his dad, a few old crotchy neighbors, the cops.

Not somebody like Lucas. A friend. Somebody Eddie wants to know until the end of time, see flourish, be proud of. Now, it should have started with attending the championship game, making time for the kid. But later is better than never. And Eddie’s great at being notoriously late—part of the reason he had to redo senior year three times.

He takes another deep breath and locks eyes with Lucas. Schools his expression to be empathetic, but not pleading. He has to do this right. And he has to be serious. Can’t joke his way out of this. Can’t explain away with supernatural bullshit. This has to come from him, he knows. Not The Freak. Not Edward. Just Eddie. His hands fall back to the surface of the table.

“I’m sorry,” he says immediately. “I’m sorry for not being a good friend. To either of you, but to you, Lucas, especially.” Eddie hates the way Lucas startles surprised. Bouncing on the vinyl of his seat, eyes widening beyond belief, nose flaring slightly with the purse to his lips. But he won’t say anything about it. Because if he loses track, if he stops talking, he knows this will be it.

He’ll lose Lucas. And he’ll lose Steve. He’ll lose all of the Hellfire boys.

Eddie will be just as lonely as the day he came back to Hawkins. When he moved in with Wayne. When he wouldn’t say anything more than: “Yes”, “No”, and “Whatever.”

“I’m sorry for being ignorant. And hypocritical. And abrasive about what you enjoy. There’s no excuse for my actions or my words. The only explanation I have is that I know what it’s like to be treated that way and I got overly defensive.” He shifts in his seat, eyes casting down to where Lucas and Steve’s hands rest on the table—palms flat and fingers spread wide. Solemnly, he murmurs, “People who have interests like the both of you have always shat on my likes. On Dungeons & Dragons and metal music and theater. But that should’ve never included the both of you.

“But, Lucas—“ And he makes sure his eye contact is firm, deep, and unbreaking. “—I never meant to make you feel…outcast, othered, or singular. Ever. But I did make you feel like that. Not only did I shun basketball, but I made your best friends and your sister play. And that wasn’t fair or right of me to do.

“I’m sorry, for all of that. For every bit of hurt I’ve made you feel.”

For a moment, there’s a long stretch of silence between the three of them. The white noise of the diner flittering through them. Plates and forks and mindless chatter. A staticky jukebox and a shitty rotating fan. Then, Steve’s foot slides under the table, pressing firmly into Eddie’s calf.

Lucas begins to open his mouth to say something. But Eddie beats him to it. Too afraid of what his response is.

“I’m going to prove myself to you,” Eddie promises.

He watches as Lucas’s eyebrows furrow. All his movements stop as he stares at Eddie. “Wh—What?” Lucas eventually chokes out, confusion clear in his voice.

So, Eddie repeats slowly, “I’m going to prove myself to you.” He separates his hands and taps his thumbs incessantly on the tacky tabletop. Wishes, briefly, that he had something to fidget with—a straw to chew on or a glass to pass back and forth. He continues, however, with a fierce, yet soft voice, “Hellfire is going to be moved to every other Friday. And on the days we aren’t playing D&D, you, Steve, and I are going to go to the park. To the basketball court. And I’m going to learn why you like playing basketball so much. I’m going to learn to indulge your interests, just as the both of you are indulging mine.”

And then, again, the silence envelops them. Across the table, he catches Steve’s eyes. There’s significant pride in them. A glow, a glisten to them. You did good, they say. Though it’s hard for Eddie to believe that, he tries to convey his gratitude with his own eyes. Because Lucas is still in front of him, quiet and absorbing.

Lucas’s mouth is twisted and his sight is down at his hands. But his breath is even and he isn’t making a swift exit, so Eddie counts that for something. Doesn’t take it as a win or as forgiveness, not yet. It’s good, though, that Lucas isn’t adamantly refusing him.

Though, Eddie recognizes, there’s still time. For their eyes to meet and for him to read every ounce of disproval Lucas has in store for him. To hear every note of bottled rage and pure, unadulterated hatred. He holds his breath. And in the time it takes for Lucas’s mouth to finally drop into something even more silent than the pervasive silence they’ve existed in, Eddie feels as though he’s facing the demobats again.

Like he’s noticing this window of opportunity. The great disaster that could come with it. The chance to let them have time before their friendship comes to an unsatisfied end. But he can take it, even as it brings tears to his eyes, he’ll take it. He’ll stomach when and if Lucas leans over to Steve and whispers something that’s lost in the scrapes of silverware—and as the softest of scowls form—and as Lucas’s back disappears into the confined space of Steve’s car. And with it: all the love he’s received, and all the love he has to give for the people he’s met—who he cherishes, even when they were in a moment of deep, disturbing crisis.

Finally, Lucas breathes, “Okay.”

And Eddie’s heart clenches as if a mighty fist has grasped for it. As if that fist has it in its hold, still beating, but now bleeding.

“I’ll let you prove yourself to me,” Lucas continues on, “but if you make a point to complain, criticize, or refuse any of what Steve and I do—then I…I won’t hold my breath and wait for you to be a good friend.” His eyes are so expressive, even as the rest of his face sits blank. Deep and promising. Fierce, protective.

God, Eddie realizes, he actually fucking means that. Though it hurts to hear, what he’s feared this entire time, he understands it.

“And…” Eddie steels himself, focusing in on Lucas. Only Lucas. “…I appreciate what you’ve said, but I’m not ready to accept it.”

“That’s fine,” Eddie rushes to say, “I didn’t expect you to forgive me, Lucas. I just wanted you listen to me. Let you decide, y’know, what’s worth the trouble.”

Lucas hums. “This Thursday, three in the afternoon. Wear something comfortable, something you can move in, and bring some water. Meet me on the court,” he says quickly before he stands. Towering over the table, his eyes fierce again and defensive. He slaps a hand on the back of Eddie’s left shoulder. His hand squeezes where it rests and Eddie can feel every ounce of tension leak out of Lucas and into his own body. “Thanks again, man, for apologizing. I’m not ready, but I’m sure I will be.”

“I’ll be there, Lucas,” he promises. “You matter to me and it’s time I show that.”

An affirmative, single nod from Lucas. And then his hand falls away from Eddie’s shoulder. He doesn’t spare a glance anywhere else. His eyes calculating again, just as Steve’s were doing earlier. He must see something because he’s turning back to Steve, his body looser and his face easier. “Thank you,” he mutters, “for what you’ve done for me.”

Steve dawns a soft smile, the corners of his eyes crinkling with it. Eddie wraps his own foot around Steve’s ankle, a gesture of: You did good. “‘Course, Lucas. You and your interests deserve respect, for somebody to care,” he responds.

Lucas shares the same smile. “Means a lot,” he sheepishly says. Then, his watch unceremoniously beeps, interrupting the rest of this interaction. He quickly silences it and looks back to the two of them at the table. “I’ve gotta go. Max and I have been reading comic books again, but she needs me to describe the panels to her.”

“Need a ride?” Steve asks.

But Lucas is already turning away from them. “Nah, it’s alright. It’s only a ten minute walk from here, no worries.” And then he’s off, gone without a trace.

Though, his presence is felt in the warmth glowing in Eddie’s chest. He gets a second chance to be Lucas’s friend. And he’s not going to waste it.

“Proud of you,” Steve says when Eddie turns his head back to the table. He can only furrow his eyebrows in response. Steve knocks his foot against Eddie’s leg again. “Well, I don’t know if any of that was planned or if you’re really just good at improv, but that was good. You didn’t excuse yourself, didn’t bulldoze over anything, showed your intentions. Something to be proud of, that’s all I’m saying.”

“Yeah, well, I needed to be quick and honest or else I was going to lose him.”

“It’s still great,” Steve murmurs, “took me literal years to get over my bullshit. You’re making record breaking changes, babe. Not exactly something to brush off.”

Eddie shrugs. “You guys matter to me. And I’m a grown fucking adult. The winds of change were bound to hit me sooner or later.” He sighs, a breath that rushes from him like sudden rain. Relief. “Thank you for getting on me about it, though. Really gave me the knock on my head I needed to notice the reality of things.”

“Everybody needs a knock to the head every once in a while,” Steve jokes. “I know a lot about that.”

“Let me take you home and show you how thankful I am?”

Steve’s face flushes, a grin splitting him in two. “Need a personal trainer for basketball?”

Eddie rolls his eyes. Shuffles out of his seat. “Let’s go, dork. Show me all your special stretches.”

🏀—————🏀 I've got one more chapter in me for this fic, but I hope y'all are enjoying it so far! <3

Taglist (open for chapter three): @wonderland-girl143-blog @tinyplanet95 @sharingisntkaren @ghostquer @practicallybegging

@croatoan-like-its-hot @reinedeslys-central @scoops-aboy86 @imfinereallyy

@theshireisburning-somordoritis86

[starlazergazer]

Princess

Pairing: Anakin x reader

Summary: Anakin Skywalker with the unique ability to get under the senators skin is assigned as her protection for an upcoming speech on the senate floor.

Warnings: None

Word Count: 6k

A/N: Honestly just thought it’d be fun to write some protective Anakin stuff with some cute banter and here we are so I hope you enjoy!

You dashed down the wide hallway as fast as your heels would allow you, flipping anxiously through your pages of notes trying to make as many facts stick in your brain as possible before you reached your meeting. The loud click of your heel against the hard floor every time you took a step calmed you slightly in it’s steadiness though nothing could fully take the edge off of the panic coursing through you as you headed into a meeting to prepare you for what was to be the most important speech on the senate floor of your career.

Not even looking ahead you rounded the corner, hearing the soft squeak of your head of securitie’s shoes from behind you as he briskly walked to keep up with you, trying to commit as many abstract numbers to memory as possible.

“Senator”

A single word broke through every thought running through your head, your entire body freezing at the sound of a familiar voice calling after you.

Spinning on your heel you made eye contact with the one and only Anakin Skywalker as he leaned casually against the wall just beside the corner you had just turned, apparently having walked past him without even noticing, if only he had done the same.

“Skywalker” you greeted with a curt nod, already spinning back on your heel and gazing back on your notes “I’m afraid I’m late to a meeting and don’t have time for whatever this is right now”

“Oh that’s okay” he called back after you and you could hear the smugness in his tone as he talked “from what I hear we will have plenty of time together in the coming days”

At this you froze again, spinning around to see Anakin had not moved from his position against the wall, clearly expecting his words to have such an affect on you as they did, halting you in your place. “And what does that mean?”

He smiled sweetly back at you, pushing himself dramatically off the wall and taking his time to stalk towards you, the smugness dripping off of him “Word from the council is that I am to be your Jedi security for your speech”

Again you were spinning on your heel, picking up speed again as you made your way to the meeting room neither in the mood nor having time for Anakin’s antics at this moment “I think I would know if I was assigned a Jedi guard”

You heard his shoes echo in the hallway as he sped up to fall into step with Cody behind you “You might want to talk to your head of security about that princess”

You halted in your steps, Anakin not missing a beat as he stopped on a dime too behind you, as you whirled around to face Cody, his guilty look telling you all you needed to know. “Cody, you didn’t”

“I didn’t know they would assign Padawan Skywalker to you when I asked” he defended himself quickly as you huffed, turning to continue your walk.

“Doesn’t matter when I didn’t need a guard in the first place” you sighed back in response, leading the two of them around another curve.

“As I’ve told you senator we need to take these death threats seriously” Cody called after you, his voice taking on the same serious tone it always did when lecturing you on safety “I promised your parents I’d keep you safe and that is what I intend to do”

In response you just shook your head softly, letting a small chuckle escape you as you walked “Using my parents worry against me like that – that’s a low blow Cody”

You could hear the smile in his voice as he responded just as you approached the door through which your meeting was to be held “If you would just listen to me then I wouldn’t have to Y/N”

You shook your head and paused in front of the door, spinning around the face the two men behind you “alright boys this shouldn’t take more than an hour I’ll see you both then”

“Very funny princess” Anakin cut in immediately, crossing his arms over his chest “we’re going in with you”

“Alright” you rolled your eyes, hugging your notes against your chest as you glared back at him “let’s get one thing straight you work for me here so if I say I meet you after then I meet you after. Cody can come in if he wants”

“Alright let’s get one thing straight” Anakin was quick to repeat you with a smug smile “I have been tasked with your safety so if I say I go where you go that means I go where you go”

You just glared back at him, clenching your jaw in frustration at everything at the moment. Anakin Skywalker held the unique ability to get under your skin like no other. Already this week was to be a pivotal one in your career, this was a meeting set with the sole intention of preparing you for that, you did not need Anakin Skywalker standing over you during it. He was nothing but a distraction.

But unfortunately, you were late and did not have time to argue with him.

One final glare at Cody who simply held up his hands in surrender before you turned back to Anakin “Fine but you stay in the corner, and you stay quiet”

“As you wish your highness”

And with a loud groan you opened the door and walked in, watching as thankfully Anakin and Cody broke immediately to the edges of the room silently.

Maybe you could make it through this week afterall.

-

The meeting had gone alright. You left with about a million notes on your speech which would be good if only each note didn’t directly contradict the others. Everyone at the meeting was on the same side, each fighting for the same thing though each had their own version of it making your job of explaining your position to the senate very difficult to do.

You could feel your legs going numb from sitting at your desk for so long, trying to fit everything that everyone wanted into your speech but still make it make sense. A part of you had to admit your mind had turned to mush hours ago but you couldn’t give up until you had it figured out, everyone was counting on you and you could feel the expectations like weights on your shoulders.

“Do you ever sleep?” The exact voice you didn’t want to hear sounded from in front of you and looking up from your papers you saw the familiar jedi sitting in one of the chairs in front of your desk, not exactly sure when he had gotten there.

“I vaguely remember what that is” you responded with a tired sigh, rubbing a hand over your face as your eyes drooped ever so slightly.

Anakin chuckled back in response, lounging back in his chair “I recommend you become better acquainted with it. Looks like you could use some”

“Thanks” You rolled your eyes, forcing your posture straighter as you looked back down at your notes, picking up your pen once again “But I have work to do, if you’re tired you can sleep though. I won’t hold it against you”

Anakin was silent for a moment in response, the only sound in the room your pen scratching against the paper as you crossed out the sentence you had written just moments ago, only now realizing how ridiculous it sounded, before he broke it “you know I’ve seen you speak to the senate before”

You paused your writing, looking up through your lashes at him, curious to see where he was going with this. “I’d assumed you had”

“I just mean you have a natural charisma and ability to think of your feet” he explained to your surprise, your eyebrows drawing as you waited for the punchline, seeing nothing but honesty behind his eyes.

“I-uh” you stuttered slightly, “thank you”

Anakin smiled softly in response “I just don’t see why you have any reason to worry so much about this one. You’re a good speaker”

Again you were drawing a blank on response, not having expected this softness, this genuiness from Anakin. “It’s just-“ and a part of you struggled to return it, struggled to admit to him your worries “we need more people on our side, I need them to hear me speak and understand the urgency with which we must act. People’s lives are on the line and in this moment it’s my responsibility to make the senate act. So this speech needs to be nothing short of perfect”

“And I don’t doubt it will be” Anakin’s response came quickly as he shifted forward in the chair, his elbows going to his knees “but I also know that you’re tired and anything you write now won’t be nearly as good as what you write tomorrow after a few hours of sleep”

And though you didn’t want to admit it you knew he was right. You had been trying to rewrite the same section for an hour now and you were fried. You needed a break.

So with a defeated sigh you stood up, stretching your arms above your head and relishing the pops that came from your joins as you stretched them out “yeah alright”

“Never thought I’d see the day the great senator L/N agrees with me” Anakin laughed as he stood too, following you out of your office.

“Don’t push your luck Skywalker”

-

Anakin took longer to join you and Cody for breakfast, you barely acknowledging him as he walked into the room as you scribbled more notes on your speech as you ate. Not yet ready to admit that Anakin was right, your writing was better after some sleep, but undoubtedly appreciative of his suggestion.

“So what’s on the schedule for today?” Anakin asked, his voice still a little gruff from sleep as he filled his plate “just work on the speech in your office, right?”

“No senator Organa just asked for a meeting” you muttered not looking up from your writing “We leave for that in about an hour”

Anakin just shook his head, still giving most of his attention to the food as he spoke “absolutely not”

Your writing halted, your gaze snapping up to him with drawn brows “what? Why not?”

“Could be a trap” he answered simply as he put his first forkful of food in his mouth.

“a trap?” you couldn’t help but laugh, sending your gaze to Cody across the table “from senator Organa? I’ve known the man my whole life”

“Sure but was it senator Organa who told you about this meeting or someone who works for him?”

Again, you eyed Cody suspiciously, the man sending you back the same look before you responded “It was someone who works for him”

“Someone you have seen before?” Anakin asked it what could be described as a bored tone, egging on your frustration as he drew out his objection.

“No but Senator Organa has lots of people who work under him; he is a senator” you defended.

“So to clarify senator Organa did not ask for this meeting, a random person came to your door and told you to meet them privately?”

“Senator Organa sent someone who works for him to me to arrange a meeting” you repeated through clenched teeth “something he has done before”

“And now you have death threats hanging over your head”

“I usually have death threats hanging over my head” you countered.

Anakin froze at that, his gaze whipping around to meet Cody’s as his tone grew serious “is that true?”

Cody looked between you and Anakin nervously, clearly not happy to have been caught between the two of you “the senator if very good at making enemies”

“How long?” Anakin asked, his voice raising slightly in anger and he stared between you and Cody. The two of you sharing a look before you answered.

“A few months?”

“You have been receiving death threats for a few months and no one told me” He glared between the two of you again and it was as if you were being scolded by a teacher, feeling yourself growing smaller on the spot “why speak up now?”

This he directed at Cody and even he cowered under the Jedi’s gaze slightly “these were the first to mention a time and place. The rest were just general threats”

“Oh and general threats to the senators life aren’t worth your time to investigate?” he practically spat at Cody prompting you to stand up, feeling the need to defend your head of security.

“I ordered him not to, in fact I ordered him not to this time as well, so Cody is the only reason you are here now. If you are going to be mad at anyone, be mad at me.”

“Oh I am” he responded back, turning his gaze back to you as he stood as well “that is why you’re not going to that meeting today”

“I am going to that meeting today” you countered “senator organa is my friend and I will not blow him off simply because of your superstition”

“You’re not going to that meeting today” Anakin repeated himself, leaning forward onto the table, his face inching closer to yours as he spoke “and if I had it my way you wouldn’t be making that speech on the senate floor tomorrow”

You clenched your jaw back at him, trying your best to contain your anger, trying your best to calm yourself enough to try and compromise with Anakin. “What if we went to Senator Organa’s rooms now?” you asked, leaning back slightly, trying to ease the tension in the room “We can ask him then if it was him who sent the man or not”

At this Anakin leaned back from the table too, his arms crossing over his chest as he thought it through before reluctantly agreeing “Fine, we can go talk to Senator Organa”

“Good” you tried to keep as much of your triumphant smile off your face as you sat down, returning back to your food. “we’ll leave after breakfast”

Anakin just grunted in response, sitting back down at the table “least you could do is not seem so happy about it”

You couldn’t have fought the grin from growing on your face if you tried.

-

Your position now nearly mirrored the one you were in yesterday. You leading Anakin and Cody through the halls, a steady click of your heels against the floor followed by the more muffled tones of their steps just behind you. You walking as quickly towards Senator Organa’s rooms as you could, more than ready to prove to Anakin that he was wrong.

“Do you always have to walk this fast princess?” he called from behind you making you roll your eyes as you rounded the corner.

“If you can’t keep up you’re more than welcome to stay back at the rooms” you heard a strained chuckle from Cody he tried to keep in, the man more than used to your hurried pace.

“I’m just saying what’s the usual expression, stop and smell the-“ he froze on the spot, his words dying in the air as you started to approach Senator Organa’s door, prompting you to turn your head and raise an eyebrow at him.

“Wait let me go in first” any teasing in his tone had dropped completely now, his tone going fully serious making you want to roll your eyes.

“These are Senator Organa’s rooms it’s fine-“ you started to object though he cut you off.

“Y/N I’m serious, let me go in first”

And it was his hard serious tone you were used to, one that meant he was a jedi on jedi business not to be messed with, but there was an undercurrent of softness to it, almost pleading, that was what made you pause.

And he called you your name.

Not princess, not your highness, not senator, but your name. You weren’t sure the last time he had done that.

So despite everything you just nodded, letting him slip around you to the door, not even knocking before he opened it and stalked into the room, one hand on his lightsaber.

And though a part of your brain protests that he was just kidding, trying to rile you up for fun, that he wasn’t serious. Another part of you could feel your heart drop to the pit of your stomach, a small ringing in your ears, another part of you didn’t want Anakin going in there alone.

But you waited outside the room, your eyes on Cody as he kept one hand on the blaster at his side, his eyes never leaving yours as Anakin stalked into the room.

Then you heard the jedi swear from inside of the room followed by something you were actually meant to hear “Don’t come in here”

And you could see Cody’s eyes widen in warning, see him predict what you were going to do before you did it, but you were too fast for him.

You ducked under his arm as it came up to grab you, easily sweeping through the doorway into the familiar rooms.

Anakin stood in the center of the room, his gaze fixed off into the corner, at what you just couldn’t quite see yet.

“No Y/N don’t” and you could hear the pleading in his tone again, could see him walking towards you ready to push you out of the room, but still you pushed forward, walking until what Anakin had been looking at finally came into focus.

It was the man from this morning, the man who had asked for a meeting on Senator Organa’s behalf, the man you had spoken to no more than an hour before, dead on the floor.

“Is he-“ it was all the words you could get out, feeling the panic start to rise in you, feeling the bile start to rise in your throat.

“Come on” and Anakin was there again, his hands going to your shoulders, softly guiding you back towards the door. Your feet were delayed in their response, struggling to keep up with your body as it moved back towards the door, your eyes never breaking from the man’s body in front of you.

You barely registered that Cody was there as you came back out to the hallway, stumbling for the wall next to the door, desperate for something steady to cling too as your body seemed to hum, practically vibrating on the spot.

You stared blankly out into the distance as you heard your heartbeat in your head, could feel it going wild as you started to struggle to breath, just not able to get enough air down your throat.

In the background you could hear Anakin calling your name, not fully recognizing that he was talking to you until two hands came to either side of your face, physically drawing your gaze to meet his.

“Princess I need you to breathe” and there was that damned nickname again. And though you hated when he called you that you had to admit there was some comfort in the familiar, something breaking the spell just enough that you could hear him.

You forced yourself to slow down, forced yourself to take a slow deep breath before you reached up to his wrists and pulled his hands from your cheeks.

“Is he-“ and again you couldn’t get all the words out, couldn’t bring yourself to ask the full question, though Anakin didn’t need it.

“He is” he nodded gravely, letting you just hold onto his arms for a moment as you focused on breathing, getting the rhythm back under control before it finally hit you, your brain finally calming enough to make the next logical leap.

“Senator Organa is he-“ Again the words didn’t come all the way out but Anakin was already shaking his head, his hands coming to your shoulders as if to physically stop the panic from rising in you once again.

“I don’t know yet” he admitted, eye contact breaking briefly to go to Cody just next to you before coming back to meet yours “But I will find out, you go with Cody, go back to your rooms do not open the door for anyone. I’ll go see where senator Organa is, make sure he is okay”

“You promise?” You asked him before your head could even catch up, before you realized you had basically just agreed to leave the situation and let Anakin go alone. Though admittedly for the first time you were glad not to be the person everyone relied on to fix something. You were glad Anakin could now be that person.

“I promise” he repeated with a soft squeeze to your arm, giving you one last reassuring look before straightening back up to his full height, turning to Cody without letting your arm fully go.

“Straight back to the room, open the door for no one but me” he instructed.

“yes Jedi” Cody’s voice was about as serious as you had ever heard it, nodding at the Jedi’s orders before extending an arm to you.

Giving Anakin one last look you broke from his grasp and walked into Cody’s, your head of securities arm going protectively around you as you crashed into his side, noting that his hand never strayed from the hilt of his blaster as he led the two of you back down the hallway towards your rooms.

Your pace slower than it had ever been.

-

You had thought you wouldn’t be able to do anything for the rest of the day. After seeing the body in Senator Organa’s room, you had shut down, could feel your brain just stop, your body freeze, no thoughts running through your head other than you had just talked to him, he was just alive.

Instead as Cody brought you back to your room you made immediately for your office, sitting behind your desk, ignoring Cody as he hovered in the doorway, eyes roaming around the room.

Looking down at the marked-up speech you had spent so long on your eyes glossed over the words. They were elegant, poised, perfectly political, trying to persuade others to your side through half truths and careful omissions. It was garbage with an elegant flourish.

You crumpled the paper in your fist and tossed it into the trash, grabbing another piece and letting your hand fly across it with quick steady words. And though you knew what you wrote now wouldn’t be perfect, wouldn’t be better said than what you had written before, you knew what you wrote now would be passionate, it would be honest.

The time flew by and you made no note of it, not pausing for anything you just wrote, a stead stream of consciousness onto the page as you demanded attention rather than pleaded for it, demanded respect and help for the people of the republic because that was who you served, not other members of the senate.

You hadn’t noticed Anakin walk in, had noticed him pause before your desk, hands crossed behind his back, until he cleared his throat.

The pen froze against the page as your eyes snapped up to his noting his somber expression though not letting it allow your brain to jump to any conclusions. “senator Organa?”

“He’s okay” Anakin was quick to assure you in a soft voice “wasn’t even aware of anything that had happened”

“Good” you all but whispered, not taking any more time before your gaze dropped back to the page and you resumed writing.

“How are you senator?” Anakin’s voice sounded again though you didn’t look up this time, didn’t halt your writing.

“Busy” you answered honestly knowing it wasn’t the answer he would want, not really caring in this moment.

“The speech?” Anakin tried again, you could hear the chair groan slightly as he sat down in it “still trying to polish it?”

“I scrapped the speech” you answered simply, not explaining yourself further.

Anakin froze on the spot, his eyes going to Cody’s in the corner who shared the same bewildered expression. “You scrapped your speech?”

“Yes” another simple answer, another attempt to get him to leave you alone.

“Why would you do that?” Anakin asked, shifting forward in his chair desperately trying to draw your attention to him. “You’ve been working on that speech for weeks, it was good it was-“

“It wasn’t enough” you cut him off, finally looking up at him with a hard expression, the pen freezing in your hand though you refused to drop it “It was soft and political and what is going on, what I’m trying to do here matters. I can’t tiptoe around the issue, can’t spare a senator’s feelings, I need them to listen to me, and that speech won’t do it”

“But surely the speech you’ve had over a dozen senator’s opinions on is the better one to present-“

“People are dying Anakin” you cut him off again, glaring down at the jedi from your desk “That man died because of what we are trying to do here, and I cannot let his death be in vain. I will not let his death be in vain”

You hated the soft, sad expression Anakin was giving you in that moment. The pity in his eyes showing that he could see right through you, right through your anger, right through this façade you had built up before him. You were used to Anakin’s anger, used to his reckless decisions, used to him doing anything and everything for what he thought was right. Why the pity now that you were attempting to do the same?

“His death isn’t on you Y/N”

And there was that name again, there was that stupid argument you had been having with yourself since seeing his body. Because no matter which way you spun it how could it not be?

“He was sent to silence me. Sent to make sure I didn’t speak today. Least I can do is prove they were right to be scared of me”

Anakin didn’t say anything at first, didn’t comment, just stared at you, eyes dancing back and forth between yours as if looking for something within them before speaking “okay. You have three hours before you’re expected on the senate floor. Make them count”

-

You paced anxiously back and forth in front of the door to the senate floor, waiting for your name to be called, waiting for your chance.

Your new speech was clutched tightly in your hand and for the first time since you had written the words you doubted them, doubted yourself. You were a politician, flowery language was your weapon, it was what you used to persuade people to your side and now more than ever, persuasion was what you needed.

No matter how much passion you spoke with out there you weren’t getting anyone to your side if you were screaming at them. And that’s exactly what this new speech did.

“You’re going to do fine” Anakin spoke from just beside the door with what could be described as an amused smile on his face were he not so clearly on edge.

He clearly was trying to be relaxed, leaning nonchalantly against the wall, arms crossed casually across his chest. Beneath it, however, you could see the rigidity in his posture, every muscle of his tense, his eyes repeatedly scanning the area.

You just offered him a small nod in response, continuing your pacing, running through your speech over and over in your head.

“I know you rewrote the speech and everything” Anakin drew your attention back to him, a hand reaching into his robes as he spoke “but just in case the first one had something good I grabbed this” and he pulled out a small, folded stack of papers.

You could see the wrinkles in the paper from where he held it out, knowing instantly what it was. “My speech” you breathed out, eyes snapping up to his. “You found it”

“Figured I’d grab it just in case” He shrugged as if it were nothing, offering you a small but comforting smile as you slowly grabbed the pages from him, unfolding the paper, relieved to see all of your work there.

“Thank you” the words came out in almost a whisper as your eyes scanned the page, already working to commit the words to memory “Anakin this means a lot”

And you watched his face pause for a moment, his mouth dropping ever so slightly open before growing into a grin “You’re welcome, Y/N”

You thumbed the pages, scanning as much as possible before you heard your name echo faintly from inside, a light on the outside of the door signally it was about to open. You walked to the center of the door, giving yourself a moment to set your posture, shoulders back, head held high, a deep breath to fill your chest.

You sent Anakin a look from the side of your eye, putting as much confidence into yourself as possible despite how little you felt.

“Good luck senator” Anakin sent you a small nod before the sound of the door opening drew both of your attention.

And the senate floor opened in front of you, your own platform waiting to take you to the center of the room.

You gave yourself a moments pause, one last second out of the senators eyes before you walked through the door, a rambunctious applause greeting you like a wall of sound.

You gave an appreciative small bow as you made your way towards the platform, steps from it before you heard your name being called from behind you.

Glancing back you saw Anakin crouched slightly, one arm extended to you, his other hand holding the hilt of his lightsaber.

You turned more fully towards him, eyebrows drawn in confusion, barely able to hear him over the sounds of the applause.

“Y/N come back something is-“

And Anakin didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence before the explosion sounded.

You’d heard it before you felt it, the large boom, the light washing the walls in front of you, then the force of the blast hitting your back, throwing you forward before you could even contemplate what was happening.

You saw Anakin lunge forward, saw his outstretched arms try and catch you but he was just too far away, just a bit too slow before you hit the floor.

-

The first thing to hit your eyes when you opened them was the bright white med lights prompting you to groan and immediately shut them again, your hands coming to them to try and rub out the green shadows they burned onto your eyelids.

“And just when I was getting used to the sound of silence you just had to wake up” the familiar teasing voice drew you attention to the side of your bed to see Anakin, lounging in a chair.

“We both know you’d get bored of silence in seconds” you rasped out, groaning as you tried to sit up, sending Anakin a thankful nod as he immediately got to his feet to help you.

“How’re you feeling princess?” He asked, the teasing tone dropping from his voice but it still stayed light and easy, genuinely wanting to know.

“I’m okay” you answered immediately, Anakin quickly sending you a look that had you changing your answer for a more honest one “My head kind of hurts”

“Let me see if I can get the droid to give you something for that” he was immediately making for the door, giving you little time to react before he was springing into action.

“No Ani I’m fine” you called after him, grabbing his hand before he could get any further.

Your hand on his to stop him clearly wasn’t needed as he stopped immediately at the sound of your voice, turning on the spot to face you again, his expression a mix of awe and delight “what did you just call me?”

You could immediately feel yourself go on the defensive, trying to retract your hand but Anakin held it in place, eyes staring down into yours waiting for you to answer “Ani – figured you’ve got a million nicknames for me you need one of your own” you explained sheepishly “do you not like it?”

“No I-“ he paused, sitting back down in his chair but bringing it up closer to the bed, fully encapsulating your hand in both of his “No I like it”

You could immediately feel the blush rising up to your cheeks no matter how hard you tried to stop it, breaking eye contact with Anakin to try and hide it.

“I’m sorry about your speech” He drew your attention back to him “all that work for nothing”

You shook your head at that “It’s okay. If anything they’re paying attention to me now more than ever. Should really come in handy when I try again”

“Try again” he sighed out though you knew he wasn’t surprised by your words “of course you’d try again”

“Now more than ever I have the eyes and ears of the entire senate” you cried out with a small laugh “I can’t let an opportunity like that go to waste”

And with a dramatic sigh Anakin’s head rested on top of your entwined hands as he stared up at you, sparkles in his eyes and a small smile on his face he just couldn’t rid himself of “you princess will be the death of me”

“That’s okay now that there has been a genuine attack on my life they’ll give me an even better Jedi guard” you teased, relishing the way Anakin simply hummed back at you with a raised brow and a soft smile “Do you think Obi-wan’s available?”

[seokgyuu]

→ genre: smut, college au, crack → pairing: Seungcheol (S.Coups) x Afab!Fem!Reader → synopsis: you have never been a person who turns down a challenge, but when your best friend challenges you to hook up with 13 boys in one semester you kind of wish you were.

→ warnings: Daddy Kink!!, Dom!Cheol, semi-public sex, blowjobs, fingering, unprotected sex (she just doesn't know when to stop), usage of the word "princess" and "baby" during intercourse, dirty talk, loud moaner coups

→  word count: 8.9k

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A/N: Hi everyone! I am finally back!! And I am bringing you the 8th chapter with our leader-nim, Coups! Thank you all for your patience, and for the attention this series has gotten in the past few days! I really, really appreciate it <3. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Also, I made a google form for the taglist, in case anyone wants to get added!

taglist: @ariachavez168, @cersti-mo0, @nixtape-foryou, @minahoeshi, @listxn, @starlight-night0, @havetaeminforbreakfast, @kwonranghaee, @haogyuslut, @a-dramatic-girl, @whyokoa, @lovercheol, @cosmicupoftea, @learnthisfeeling, @knucklesdeepmingi, @wonusworldd, @baldi-2, @kingalls00, @1-800-jeonwonwoo, @sandcasltes, @amiga-qmilagraso, @lovercuff, @grapefruithan, @seventeencaratworld

This wasn’t good. This was a nightmare. Wonwoo was standing right in front of you, his hair damp probably from a shower he hadn’t taken that long ago, his eyes showing clear signs of hurt, of confusion, specs on his nose as always.

“Is- is this a bad time?” He somehow pressed out and you watched how his gaze wandered to the figure behind you. Soonyoung was still standing in the hallway, arms up above his head – the only thing on his body his boxers.

“Why didn’t you text me?” You quickly asked, getting Wonwoo’s attention back on you. Something told you to just close the door and talk with him outside, but your feet were glued to the floor. Wonwoo looked so hurt, so vulnerable and you wanted to punch yourself in the face. Why did he have to show up now? Why did he have to show up and see this?

“I don’t know I-,” he broke off, clearing his throat, “I guess I should have.” The way his eyes sparkled now, not in the way you were used to, the curious, the sweet way, your heart broke a little. Instead of saying anything else, he turned around and walked away heading straight to the elevator. You cursed under your breath, hand pulling through your hair and before you knew it you were already going after him.

Your hand found his wrist and you stopped him from getting into the elevator, your heart beating in your ears.

“Wait, Wonwoo, I can- I don’t-,”

“No, you don’t have to explain yourself,” Wonwoo interrupted you as he turned around. And even though his words were true, you felt like neither of you actually believed them. Pressing your lips together, you watched how every wheel turned behind his head trying to figure out what to say, what to do.

“Just… just tell me one thing,” he finally breathed out, his eyes catching yours, “did you feel it too? The connection between us?” Shit. He was scanning your face, desperately looking for a sign that you did feel it, that he wasn’t imagining things. And you? You were dumbfounded and unsure. Because what exactly was the right thing to say? If you told him the truth you would have to tell him that you did in fact, feel it too but that it didn’t matter because you weren’t interested in something serious. If you lied and told him no, you would break his heart even more than you already had.

“Does it matter?” You then somehow stumbled out and Wonwoo’s face fell even more. Of course it mattered. How could you even ask such a question? How could you just stand here in front of him and not acknowledge what was going on between you?

“It matters to me,” he replied now, eyes cold as they stared into yours. You pressed your lips together, brain working at ten million miles an hour.

“I- yes. Yes, Wonwoo, I did feel it too. But I- I’m not in a place where I want to commit to anything, I don’t… I don’t want that and I’m sorry.”

There you said it. The hard truth that now made Wonwoo’s shoulders sink, and his jaw tighten. Immediately, you felt like shit. Like trash. Utter garbage. Before he could say anything, you brought your other hand to his arm, looking at him with your eyes widened.

“You deserve better than me, Wonwoo. You deserve someone who is able to be what you need and want. Right now, I can’t be that person. I’m not ready to commit and-,”

“And so you sleep with every single guy you see? You think I don’t know about Mingyu? Jun? Minghao? God, you even fucked Joshua. And that library part-timer? Something tells me you went back and fucked him, too.”

Ouch. You let go off his arm and wrist, your cheeks red from rage and shame, shame you shouldn’t even be feeling because who was Wonwoo to say that? Did he really just slut-shame you? Say all this to your face as if he had any right to judge you? You were shaking, your hands in fists now.

“Yes, Wonwoo. Exactly that.” Your eyes were shooting daggers at him as you said those words. Then, without anything else, you turned around and walked back to your apartment. And as he watched you, Wonwoo already knew that his anger and hurt were no excuse for the way he had just talked to you.

“Fuck,” he groaned, pulling a hand over his face, before turning to face the elevator again, leaning his forehead against the cold metal. He had really fucked up.

Soonyoung sat there in silence. His fingers were folded, his eyes narrowed as he looked at you.

“So,” he began then, tilting his head only slightly, “let me get this straight. You and Jiwoo made a bet at the beginning of the semester and-,”

“It’s more like a challenge, not a bet.”

“A challenge at the beginning of the semester and this Wonwoo guy kind of fell for you and you kind of feel the same way, but you are so determined to win that instead of being with him you continue sleeping with random guys, including me?”

You cleared your throat.

“Well, it’s not like I want to be with him. I just, well, he is cute. And nice. And he does make me laugh and yeah, maybe I did feel something for him, but that doesn’t change the fact that I don’t want a relationship, sure maybe this challenge is a bit over the top, but common. It’s not like I am forcing anyone to have sex with me.”

You looked at Soonyoung and he looked at you. He was blinking slowly, before leaning back and crossing his legs. To be honest, you didn’t even know why you had decided to tell him, but it felt good to talk to someone about it who wasn’t Jiwoo. When you had come back inside, he had asked you what had happened and with your anger still so present you began to tell him everything. How you and Jiwoo had come up with the bet- uh, the challenge, and how you had slept with Joshua first and how somehow your second target was already about to change your life and make everything complicated and how you slept with him again and then sucked him off and- yeah, just all of it. And now, Wonwoo had said these horrible things to you and while you wanted to be mad and angry (you were mad and angry) you also kind of understood where he was coming from.

“He shouldn’t have held it against you. You sleeping with different guys, that’s a no go. Sure, he can be hurt that you don’t want to be with him despite the obvious feelings you have for each other, but that does not give him the right to straight up slut-shame you,” Soonyoung pulled a hand through his hair and shook his head, making you smile just a little.

“Thank you for saying that. And sorry that I, uh, made you part of this challenge.”

“Are you joking?” Soonyoung laughed and looked over at you again, “this was by far the best sex I’ve ever had, don’t you ever apologize for it, Y/N.”

Now, your small smile grew bigger.

“Well, I’m happy to hear that,” you said, pulling your legs up onto the armchair. He was sitting on the sofa across from you, exactly that sofa he had fucked you on just the night before and you bit your lip thinking about it. Soonyoung probably thought the same thing, his lips turning into a grin as he leaned forward, forearms on his thighs.

“You wanna go again?” He smirked and you let your tongue slowly lick over your bottom lip as you thought about it. Perhaps this was the right thing to get your mind off of Wonwoo. But then your eyes wandered to your phone that vibrated just then, showing you the time.

“Fuck,” you groaned, “I can’t. Really would love to, but I can’t. I promised Jiwoo to help her set things up for her brother’s welcome back party.”

Soonyoung was obviously disappointed, but nodded, leaning back again.

“Jeez, how long has he been in Singapore now? A couple of years at least, right?”

You nodded as you stood up, thinking about whether you wanted to take a shower… and decided for it. After last night you had only quickly gone to pee and clean yourself up just as much as you had energy for, so a shower sounded about right at this point.

“He was over there for six years, I haven't seen him in ages. I’ll go take a shower… care to join me?” The idea popped into your head and Soonyoung stood up quicker than a child when it heard it was going to Disneyland.

“You can bet your sweet ass I care,” his grin was wide, and you laughed as you took his hand, leading him to the bathroom.

A couple hours later, the family brunch/welcome back party preparations were almost done, Jiwoo setting up the last big vase of flowers as you stood next to her, hands on your hips. You knew Jiwoo’s family was well off and that sending their oldest son to Singapore for university just showed for that, but it somehow never really reached your brain how well off she was. You were in a very fancy restaurant which you knew you couldn’t afford on your best day, and it was rented out just for the party. Jiwoo loved her brother, and you knew she would have probably rented the whole of Everland for him if she could – but this would do too. Seungcheol was a few years older than you which led to you only having seen him a handful of times during your friendship with Jiwoo. From what you remembered, you had thought he was cute, but nothing more nothing less, no conversation between the two of you had ever happened and you were only here now to help Jiwoo. You were pretty sure he wouldn’t care about whether you were attending his little party or not, but Jiwoo insisted. If their parents could invite all their friends, why wasn’t she allowed to bring her own? Jiwoo’s parents didn’t necessarily dislike you, but they also never treated you like family or anything of the sort. You were just… Jiwoo’s slightly (very much) poorer best friend from High School.

Now, you watched how Jiwoo happily looked at the bouquet of pretty blue and yellow flowers, the guests slowly arriving.

“You know, sometimes I forget how rich you are,” you said, a grin spreading on your lips and Jiwoo rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms.

“That’s because I don’t like using my parent’s money,” she explained, and you clicked your tongue.

“Could never be me,” you sighed, making her shove you slightly with her elbow. You laughed and looked over to the door, where your stomach did a front flip. Oh. Oh!

“Jiwoo!” you breathed out, your eyes widening as you saw who had just walked in. Way earlier than he should have. Way hotter… than he should have. Jiwoo yelped in surprise, starting to run towards her brother.

“Seungcheol oppa!” She cried out, her arms flying around his neck as he caught her, his eyes wide in surprise.

“Jiwoo-yah, what- what is all this?”

Now, what followed was Jiwoo being somewhat mad Seungcheol had already arrived when he wasn’t supposed to be here for another 30 minutes, him laughing and hugging her tightly again before walking to his parents who seemed delighted to see him and you watching him the whole time. Like a hawk. From the pictures you had seen from him, you would have never guessed that he was this… broad. He had an incredibly handsome face structure, almost as if it was carved by the Greek gods themselves, his hair long and falling into his face in soft brown waves, big round eyes, a well fitted suit on his muscular body. Shit. You couldn’t possibly do what you were thinking of doing right now. But ever since this challenge had started, you couldn’t stop yourself from looking at attractive men a certain way. You pressed your lips together and finally averted your gaze, trying to let the heat inside you die down.

He's Jiwoo’s brother, she would never ever in a million years be cool with you fucking her brother, she would probably kill you, he is that precious to her and- oh my god, they are coming my way, shit!

Jiwoo was leading Seungcheol to you, his eyes meeting yours and you felt your whole body stiffen. Why were you like this?

“Oppa, you remember Y/N, right?” Jiwoo beamed at him, and you quickly shook off your thoughts and instead smiled at him.

“Ah yes, nice to see you again, Y/N,” Seungcheol smiled back at you, and you nodded trying your very best not to seem phased.

“You too, Seungcheol oppa.”

The brunch was a torture. The food was good, the company was boring, Jiwoo was mainly with Seungcheol, and you were left alone at your table, eating said good food and drinking a few more mimosas than you probably should have – but the champagne they used was so delicious and you were pretty sure you would never get to taste that sweet, sweet taste of liquid money again. Thankfully you didn’t get drunk that easily with your stomach that filled, but in the end all that wasn’t the reason for all of this being torture. No, it was all Seungcheol. The way he carried himself, the confidence, the nature of his speech, the perfect pitch of his voice like honey in your ears, the watch around his wrist sparkling in the sun shining through the tall windows, his hands looking so big around the glass of champagne, making you wonder what they would look around your-

“Penny for your thoughts?” Jiwoo suddenly sat back down next to you, her eyes thankfully on her phone instead of on her brother – who you were still staring at.

“I- uh, nothing, just, you know, enjoying the extremely delicious mimosas they’re serving here.” Oh, how much you hoped she wouldn’t ask anything else.

“You’re right they are so good. By the way, how did last night with Soonyoung go?” You breathed out, relieved she hadn’t caught on. You leaned back in your chair, arms crossed in front of your chest as you let one hand rotate your glass, wetting your lips.

“Very good. Like, very good. Must’ve been in the top 5 of the best sex I’ve ever had, hands down.” Jiwoo let out an approving whistle, putting her phone down and looking at you with a grin.

“Love to hear that. I’ll text him tonight and ask him if he’s free sometime this week,” she wiggled her eyebrows, making you laugh. Shaking your head, you grinned and let your eyes roam the room again – only to find Seungcheol looking right at you. First, you thought he was looking at Jiwoo, but the goosebumps on your whole body told you to rethink that again. You almost choked on your spit, your heart speed rapidly increasing as you wondered what the hell you were supposed to do. You felt as if your body was suddenly on fire, and you wondered if he knew what an effect he had on you. And as if he could read your mind, one corner of his mouth twitched, an incredibly sexy half smirk on his perfect plump lips now that made everything inside you scream at you to get up and drag him to an empty bathroom. You didn’t though. You didn’t get up, you didn’t drag him anywhere. Instead, you cleared your throat and looked back at Jiwoo, trying your very best to act like nothing was going on.

-

You decided to leave the brunch around two hours later, happy to notice Seungcheol not being anywhere near you, so you didn’t have to say goodbye to him. Instead, you told Jiwoo to send him your regards and another warm welcome back and headed out. Or at least that was your plan.

Somehow your timing was just as horrible as it had always been – making you reach the lobby at the same time as Seungcheol walked back inside. He was in the process of putting his phone back into the inside of his suit jacket when you saw him, your own jacket still draped over your arm as you had left in quite the hurry. Mainly to avoid him. And now, here he was. Your eyes widened when his gaze met yours and a phantom lump formed in your throat. Shit. You hated the fact that you stopped in your tracks and watched him walk over to you in a confident strut, his posture perfect, that half-smirk back on his lips.

“Y/N, you’re leaving already?” he asked when he came to a halt in front of you and you nodded, clearing your throat.

“Y-yes, I have some reading to do at the library, but it was nice to see you again after so many years, oppa.”

Seungcheol wetted his lips, his brown eyes scanning your face, stopping at your lips.

“You, too, Y/N,” something in the way his gaze was still on your face with that expression had you weak in the knees. And also sure that he wasn’t finished with his sentence yet.

“I just got back here and neither my parents nor Jiwoo are free for dinner tonight. I have a table at the city’s most prestigious restaurant and would hate for it to go to waste. Would you care to join me later?”

Boom. You weren’t sure which part of you exploded, but you were pretty sure it was the one between your legs. Oh, to have him say this sentence again in that dark voice of his with the slight tilt of his head and the knowing smirk.

“I- uh, I don’t know if Jiwoo would… approve of that.”

“Jiwoo doesn’t have to know.”

He got you there. You swallowed again. It was clear that you should listen to your head that screamed at you to say no, to say you were busy tonight. This wouldn’t even count toward the challenge because I could never ever tell her! I shouldn’t. She’s my best friend, I can’t just go and have sex with her brother!

“Oppa, I-,”

“I’m not someone who gives up easily, Y/N. Just to let you know. If I want something, I get it. And right now,” he had interrupted you and was now leaning forward, his lips so close to your ear his breath hit your skin and made goosebumps erupt all over your body, “right now, I want you. And I saw the way you looked at me, Y/N. I could basically see how you were taking this suit off, on your knees ready to do whatever I want you to do. So, the offer stands. Dinner tonight, you, and me. No one has to know.”

His hand was on your waist at this point, had wandered there sometime during his little speech that took away every single ounce of self-control and -respect you still had left. His voice crept into your ear and filled your whole body, sunk down to your core and made you press your thighs together, your lips slightly parted as a sound escaped them close to a whimper. Seungcheol grinned, knowing full well he had won.

“I’ll have a driver pick you up at seven, Y/N,” was the last thing he whispered into your ear before parting from you and going back to his welcome brunch.

-

This was a catastrophe. Dinner would be in not less than 5 and a half hours, and you had nothing to wear! Not to mention you couldn’t ask Jiwoo for help because… she wasn’t supposed to know.

“I’m screwed,” you sighed as you flopped down onto your bed, face down and pressed into your pillow. This was a horrible idea. Going out with your best friend’s brother and not telling her about it. You deserved to be this crushed, not knowing what to wear, not knowing what to do! You should have never said yes, but-

But, what? But he was too hot to say no? He was too charming, too convincing? All of these, actually. You groaned into your pillow, hands in fists as they punched your mattress. It was about to be 2pm and you had already given up on getting any reading done today. Instead, you had gone home and sorted through every clothing item you owned, sure you were about to have a mental breakdown. And, again, you deserved it. A part of you wanted to call Jiwoo and tell her the truth, maybe have her help you pick an outfit, but you quickly decided against it.

Just then, when you were sure your brain was about to shut off, your phone vibrated next to you. Sighing, you lifted your head and grabbed it, looking at who had texted you.

[Unknown]: I got you something. Wear it for me tonight, princess.

Your mouth dropped. And then the doorbell rang.

It laid on your bed, the big and fancy looking box with the words PRADA written on it. The delivery man had made you sign for delivery and had gone his merry way, leaving you alone with this box and a throbbing head. This was crazy. Seungcheol had sent you something. What kind of sugar daddy alternative universe had you gotten yourself into? And where the hell did he get your address from? You’d been staring at the box for a good seven minutes, when your phone rang again. Slowly, you looked over at your bedside table where you saw the name “Soonyoung” pop up and sighed in somewhat relief.

“Hi Soonyoung, what’s up?”

“Hey! Did I forget my wallet at your place?”

“Oh, I don’t know, let me check.”

You walked into the living space, happy to have something to do instead of looking at Seungcheol’s gift and let your eyes roam the room.

“Uhm, it’s not in the living room, where-,”

“Pretty sure I took my pants off in the hallway, might have dropped it there somewhere,” Soonyoung said, and you nodded, memories of last night suddenly flooding your brain. Gosh, you really only had slept with someone the night before and now you had plans on doing it with yet another person today (The shower had only consisted of you sucking Soonyoung off and him fingering you against the wall, so… no penetrative sex, at last). One could say you had a run.

In the hallway, you finally found it, lying next to the dresser.

“Got it!” you told him, picking it up.

“Awesome, can I swing by and pick it up?”

“Uh, yeah, sure,” you thought for a second, “you can actually help me with something, too.”

Soonyoung arrived 20 minutes later, reunited with his wallet, and now standing next to you in front of the box on your bed. He clicked his tongue.

“So, you’re telling me that you just had sex with me yesterday and today you’re about to fuck Jiwoo’s brother?”

“Don’t say it like that. Makes me sound like a slut.”

“Are you… slut shaming yourself right now?”

Pause.

“Well. I’m not not slut shaming myself.”

Soonyoung snorted and shook his head, crossing his arms in front of his chest as he turned to face you.

“Y/N. Open the box, or I will.”

Sighing, you pulled a hand through your hair and took a step forward. Your teeth were chewing on your bottom lip, your hands shaking as you finally brought them to the box. You opened it while holding your breath, your eyes almost falling out of your skull when you saw the two main attractions.

A silk dress in a lovely dark green color that seemed too perfect to be true and a pair of shoes in your size (how did he know your size? You really didn’t even want to ask), pretty black stilettos that had straps to go around your calf. He was crazy. This was way too much.

“Holy shit,” Soonyoung said now, eyes wide, “try it on!”

You looked over at him, unsure.

“You really think I should? What if-,”

“Don’t be negative right now, Y/N. Just try it on!” Soonyoung took the shoes out of the box and rotated them, whistling in awe. Defeated, you reached for the dress, feeling like a literal princess when you felt the perfect silk underneath your fingertips. This was insane, absolute madness.

It was horrible how good it fit you. Almost as if it had been made for you. The dress flowed down to your ankles, a slit on the side showing off the beautiful shoes that now adorned your feet and even a bit of your calf. Soonyoung’s jaw dropped when he saw you, standing up from your bed.

“Holy shit, the dude has a good eye when it comes to fashion,” he mumbled, and you gnawed on your bottom lip as you walked over to the body length mirror hanging on the wall. He was right – Seungcheol had somehow picked out the perfect dress for you.

When Soonyoung left, you had taken the dress off again, his opinion on what make-up to wear and how to style your hair in the back of your head as you tried to get a little bit of work done until you had to get ready. Somehow you ended up revising your notes from one of your last lectures and found yourself ready just in time for the doorbell to ring. With a last deep breath and a long look in the mirror, you made your way downstairs, purse pressed to your chest as you walked out. And really, there was a driver waiting for you next to a pretty black Mercedes. He smiled when he spotted you and opened the door.

“Mr. Choi is already expecting you, Miss.” You nodded and thanked him as you got onto the backseat, looking around the pretty vehicle. This must have been the most luxurious car you had ever sat in. Black leather, the smell of new, lights sparkling on the ceiling. You felt like the main character of a bad chick-flick. The driver got onto his seat and started the engine, driving away from your apartment and making this whole thing more real than you could handle right now. You took another deep breath and got out your phone from your purse, seeing that Soonyoung had sent you a message.

[Soonyoung]: You can do this!! I believe in you!!

You smiled, quickly texting him back before leaning against the comfortable seat. You had to at least try to relax. Seungcheol was just a man after all. He might have been rich and powerful and your best friend’s brother, but he was just a man. You could tell Jiwoo you had hooked up with some wealthy dude at a party tonight, why would she not “allow” him to count then? She wasn’t responsible for choosing your boys anymore. This was your own decision now.

It took around 30 minutes until you arrived. Your jaw dropped when the driver helped you out of the car in front of the huge building you had seen from afar countless times. But never had you been this close. This wasn’t just the most prestigious restaurant in the city. This was also one of the most prestigious hotels. It had 65 floors, a luxurious rooftop pool as well as an indoor pool, a spa, countless beautiful rooms, basically anything you could ever think of. Never had you ever dared to think you would step foot into it. And now you were here with Jiwoo’s brother? How rich was she exactly and how had she never told you? Shaking the thought off, you thanked the driver and started making your way to the front door. A man in a suit opened it for you, bowing his head as you smiled at him and did the same.

The lobby was incredible. High ceilings with modern chandeliers hanging off of them, marble floors to your right that lead to the reception that stretched out over the whole wall, seven people currently working. You couldn’t stop staring at the art behind them, the paintings filled with so much color and life, prominent reds and blues, oranges and yellows. There were stairs going up to the first floor, one on each side of the room, leaving space between them for a long hallway that led to the elevators. And in that space, looking perfect in his dark blue suit, stood Seungcheol. He was on the phone again, one hand buried in the pocket of his tight dress pants, and you couldn’t stop but stare at his backside when he turned, your mouth going dry. God, he had really been built by every Greek God in existence.

Slowly, you walked over to him, hands holding your purse in front of you. Your eyes were focused on only him, suddenly the urge to show yourself as the confident girl you normally were taking over. When he finally turned around, his eyes found you immediately. Found the way your hair was sitting in that pretty high ponytail, how your neckline was visible and how much he wanted to already touch you and claim that neck as his. The way the dress fit you like a glove, the color so perfect on your skin, making it seem like you were glowing. And you were. The brightest light in the room came from you. He was quick to hang up the phone and walk over to you, his left hand soon on your lower back.

“You’re here,” he breathed, gaze scanning you again, making you feel naked in the best way possible. A blush crept onto your cheeks and the urge to be confident had vanished into thin air, now that he was so close, now that he was touching you.

“Of course,” you shyly smiled back, looking up into his eyes. Seungcheol wetted his lips, before parting them.

“You look incredible,” he then said, pushing you a little closer to him, his other hand now letting his thumb stroke your cheek. Every single inch of your skin suddenly started tingling. Swallowing down the lump in your throat, you smiled again.

“Thank you. I love the dress. You- You didn’t have to, oppa.”

“I wanted to,” he immediately said, letting his hand rest on your cheek now.

“When I saw it, I knew it would be perfect for you. Maybe I chose the wrong career.” It took you a while to understand that he had just made a joke. Only when he smiled and you saw his dimple popping on his cheek, you felt yourself laugh, letting one hand now rest on his chest.

“Perhaps,” you chuckled.

“Well, we should go inside. Our table is ready,” he took your hand now, intertwining your fingers and leading you to the elevator at the back of the lobby. Nodding, you let him lead you there, watching how he pressed the button up, gnawing on your bottom lip. He let one hand sink back into his pocket, while the other wandered from your hand around your waist. The spot where his hand touched you felt hot, your body feeling like jelly as you waited for the elevator to arrive.

It became clear then, once you stepped inside, that the tension between you two was nowhere as thick as you had thought. It was even thicker. The door closed, the two of you the only ones inside, his grip around your waist suddenly stronger. You could taste it, feel it, smell it, the way he wanted you, the way you wanted him, and it drove you absolutely insane. You didn’t dare to look at him, mainly because you were scared you would throw yourself at him the minute he looked your way, but when you heard him breath out and found yourself pressed against the mirrored wall, it wasn’t like you had any choice.

His hands were both on your hips, his crotch pressed against you, the feeling of his bulge ever so prominent and your eyes widened. How could he be hard when you were just standing there?

“Do you have any idea what you do to me, Y/N?” he whispered, fingers digging into your skin.

“I-,” you began, but he shook his head.

“No, you don’t. Fuck, I shouldn’t have gotten you this dress because all I can think about right now is wanting to turn you around, shove that dress up your pretty ass and fuck you right into this mirror.”

Oh lord. Your core began throbbing, your eyes widened even more, your mouth parting as you stared up at him and his wild eyes that really mirrored his exact words. It was as if the scene of him pounding into you from behind right here was playing inside them.

“Oppa…,” you whimpered then and Seungcheol let out something like a low growl, before he finally leaned in, about to finally kiss you – when the doors of the elevator opened with a ping and a robotic female voice told you that you had reached the 64th floor. He parted from you visibly unhappy and grabbed your hand, leading you outside and into the restaurant.

Your table was behind a beautiful dark wood door inside a room the size of your whole apartment. The windows gave you a breath-taking view of the city, all the lights seemingly the most incredible thing you had ever seen. The table was in the middle of the room, next to it stood another small table with a bottle of champagne inside a cooler and a waiter stood there, smiling down at the two of you.

“I’ll take the steak, medium rare. Please bring us a bottle of your best red wine,” Seungcheol said, looking at the menu. You did the same, noticing that there was no price listed next to the dishes. Well, you thought, perhaps the people coming here don’t need to care about the prices. Biting your lip, you looked up and smiled at the waiter.

“I’ll have the salmon. Thank you,” you handed him the menu and the waiter nodded. Then, he placed the menus on the table next to the champagne, about to open the bottle, when Seungcheol stopped him.

“Thank you, I’ll take it from here,” he said, standing up and the waiter nodded, grabbing the menus again to walk out the door. Now, you watched how he walked over to the bottle and took it out of the cooler.

“Tell me something about yourself,” he then said as he began to open it. Your eyes looked from his hands to his face.

“Uh, okay. Well, I am an only child. My parents got divorced when I was still pretty young, but they get along, so holidays aren’t that awkward. I grew up in a small town and came to Seoul in middle school, when my mum moved out here for work. I love cats and always wanted to get one, but sadly I’m allergic so… no cats for me,” somehow the words just flowed out of you, Seungcheol smiling as he listened, the champagne bottle now popping open. He poured you a glass and then himself, handing it to you first before sitting back down.

“And what exactly do you study?” he asked once he was seated again, elbows propped on the table and hands intertwined.

“I study International relations and German Studies,” you explained, having him nod.

“Impressive. What made you choose German?” He tilted his head slightly. You don’t know how he did it, how he went from wanting to fuck you in the elevator to having small talk over champagne, but you tried your best to match his energy.

“Well, I stumbled over some German poetry a few years ago. It was translated into Korean, and I realized that the two languages have some things in common. Some phrases in German don’t make sense in other languages. They have sayings like Korean does, they can express feelings in many different ways and if you tried to say those exact words in another language… it would be hard to.”

“But isn’t every language like that?” Seungcheol asked now, catching you off guard. He seemed like he was genuinely interested. Clearing your throat, you nodded.

“Probably, yes. I’m sure that every language has phrases that only exist in that particular language. I guess it was just that poetry book I found that got me hooked on German. Maybe it could have been anything else and I would have still taken it upon myself to learn the language, but I guess we’ll never know.”

Seungcheol smiled, his eyes watching you carefully. His gaze had made you nervous up until this point – but now it just seemed like he truly wanted to get to know you.

“I understand. And how would you say is your German now?”

“Pretty good, I’d say. It’s super hard to learn, but judging by the fact I was so fascinated by it, it doesn’t really come as a surprise I caught on quickly.”

“Say something.”

“What?”

“In German. Say something to me. I won’t understand you, so say whatever,” his eyes were boring into yours and you cleared your throat, leaning forward a bit.

“Es gibt nichts was ich mir gerade mehr wünsche, als von dir gegen das Fenster neben uns gefickt zu werden,” you said, an innocent smile on your lips. Seungcheol nodded slowly, his gaze on you.

“Impressive. What did you say?”

“Oh, a lady never tells her secrets.”

He laughed, shaking his head. Then, he leaned back in his chair.

“So, you’re a quick learner then?”

“When I’m really interested, yes.”

He nodded, the smile on his lips turning into a smirk that made your heart do a flip.

“Valuable information,” he said, grabbing his glass now. He raised it and you followed his motion, looking into his eyes as if he had hypnotized you.

“To us, Y/N. And a night we won’t forget.”

The dinner went by smoothly. The food was excellent, the wine was delicious, and the company was more than wonderful. He wasn’t just pretty to look at, but he also knew how to hold a conversation. He asked the right questions, made fitting comments, flirted just enough to have your cheeks burn and your stomach flip over. He was the perfect date.

But once the table had been cleared of dishes and the door had closed behind the waiter once more, the perfect date façade was switched out for something else.

Seungcheol got up from his chair and walked over to you, hand stretched out when he reached you. Without hesitation you took it and let him lead you to the window.

“It’s enchanting, isn’t it?” he asked, and you nodded as you looked out and into the lights of the city.

“It’s beautiful,” you agreed and dared to look over at him. He was indeed looking out the window, his side profile a whole different kind of beautiful view.

“I got to know more about you, Y/N,” he began then, eyes still locked on the window, “I am sure there is plenty more to find out. But for now, I think we’ve talked enough, don’t you agree?” it took a few seconds before the words fully reached your brain, but it was already too late then. He had already grabbed your waist and slammed you against the window, his hands soon enough finding your ass, pressing you against him like he had earlier. You squealed, eyes wide and mouth open in shock, but your body was reacting just the way he wanted you to.

“I told the manager not to let anyone in after dessert,” he said in his low voice, and you felt your knees grow weak.

“H-here?” You whispered back and he smirked, grabbing your ass a little harsher.

“Has anyone ever fucked you 320 meters above the ground, princess?” his mouth was right by your ear, and his one hand moved up, to your stomach and then further, thumb pressing down on your nipple.

“N-no,” you somehow moaned out and he chuckled against your ear kissing the spot underneath it.

“Then perhaps I should give in to your earlier wish, baby,” his hand now grabbed your whole breast, squeezing it hard, thumb back on your stiff nipple and you found yourself losing the ability to speak. He- he had understood your German? Fuck, how did you not realise? He kissed your neck, slowly and sensually, his tongue licking your prickling skin. How were you supposed to answer him? Or say anything ever again for that matter?

“W-wait, y-you understood m-me?,” oh, your whole head was red. Seungcheol parted from your neck then, instead looking back down into your eyes. The hand on your breast moved up and to your cheek, thumb shoved into your mouth soon after.

“Suck,” he commanded, ignoring your question and you did, sucking his thumb even deeper into your mouth, tongue pressed against it as he watched you with sparkling eyes.

“Good girl,” he murmured then before shoving your dress up with his free hand, finding your thong and ripping it off of you. You moaned around his digit when you felt him pull the ripped underwear off, saw him bring it to his face and smell your arousal.

“Fuck, so wet for me, aren’t you, baby girl?” He groaned, shoving the thong into his pocket, before pulling his thumb out of your mouth and finally crashing his lips into yours. It felt heavenly, the way he kissed you as if he had never done anything else in his life. He had the perfect balance of harsh and soft, of passionate and sweet. His one hand was now back on your ass, while the other moved forward, lifting your leg to wrap it around his waist. Your arms found their way around his neck, pressing yourself as close to him as physically possible, hands running through the locks at the back of his head.

“Oppa,” you moaned when his fingers slid over your pussy, his grip around you tightening.

“Baby, it’s not “oppa” anymore,” he said, thumb pressing down on your clit, another whimper escaping you. He began to circle his thumb, while his fingers got soaked in your juices and finally he let one sink into you, a perfect low groan escaping him.

“So, so tight and perfect for Daddy, baby, aren’t you?”

Oh. Oh. You felt your eyes roll back and your pussy clench around him, your nails digging into his scalp.

“N-ngh, y-yes so tight for Daddy only,” you cried back, and he gasped slightly, before kissing you again, his fingers still working their magic on and inside your core. God, he felt so good, everything about him felt so incredibly good. He smelled good, he made you feel good, the movements of his hands were about to drive you insane in the best way possible. His tongue was inside your mouth, devouring yours and for a few moments you forgot how to breathe. Had anyone ever kissed you like this?

Parting from you, Seungcheol opened his pants and shoved them down, you staring down now to see the big bulge inside his tight briefs that immediately made your mouth water. Seungcheol watched you with hunger in his eyes, a knowing smirk on his plump lips.

“You want to suck Daddy off so bad, don’t you, princess?” He caressed your head, fingers softly running through your hair, until he grabbed the ponytail and wrapped it around his hand, making you gasp.

“Common, get on your knees for me,” he murmured, pushing you down and you obliged willingly, your eyes glued to his cock the second you were seated. You swallowed once, before you let your hands wander to his briefs, pushing them down and biting your lip when his cock sprung out, red at the tip, pre already leaking. He was thick. Thick and big. Maybe even bigger than Mingyu. You felt like passing out, your head already spinning from how much you wanted him down your throat, inside your pussy anywhere, really.

Stretching out your tongue, you licked off the precum from his tip, sliding your tongue through his slit. Seungcheol took it upon himself to pull the hair tie out of your hair, making it fall down your back and pretty waves. His fingers skimmed through them now as his eyes watched you carefully take his cock into your pretty mouth. He really feared that you were gonna make him cum within mere seconds.

“Good, take in as much as you can, baby,” he praised you, hand now flat on the back of your head, pushing you further. You nodded, mouth stretched as wide as possible around him, his tip soon hitting the back of your throat, causing a minimal effect. Perhaps practicing with Mingyu had weakened your gag-reflex. You swallowed him down, causing him to moan in pleasure, his hand now in a fist around your hair, mouth hanging open. His hips thrusted slightly, you now with most of his cock inside your mouth and down your throat. Looking up, you saw that he was still staring down at you and your core throbbed desperately. You needed friction and you needed it soon.

“Fuck, you look so pretty with my cock down your throat,” he licked his lips and moved his hips once more, your eyes rolling back when you felt him leave your throat for a second only to push back in. He could tell that you liked it, that you were completely fine with him fucking your throat, and so he made his movements bigger, pulling all the way out and pushing right back in, your muffled moans music to his ears. He himself couldn’t stay quiet either, his moans deep and perfect, shaking your whole body with want as you tried to keep your eyes open to watch him watch you.

Soon he became sloppier, harder, and quicker, one hand now helping him keep his balance by leaning against the window, the other still fisting your hair while his own head was thrown back in complete agony. Never had anyone taken him this well, never had anyone’s coughs and chokes been as much of a turn on as yours. Because even though you weren’t gagging, you still found yourself choking on him a few times, felt yourself coughing when he slipped out. And he loved every single bit of it. To give our throat a break, he began fucking your cheek, his climax almost immediate when he saw the way you looked with your cheek stuffed with his cock, his groan so desperate you felt like you were going to die. Quickly, he pulled out, holding his cock by the base and breathing hard as he watched you regain all your senses. The thick string of precum mixed with saliva connecting his tip to your mouth was not helping his case in any shape or form.

“Fuck, you’re gonna make me cum, princess,” he murmured, and you looked up at him with pouty lips.

“Would love to eat Daddy’s cum,” you said and Seungcheol’s cock twitched in his hand, a quick movement of his pulling you back on your feet. Now, he had you turned around, your frontside pressed against the window, all the lights suddenly a blur in front of you.

“I’m sure you would, baby, but Daddy wants to fuck that pretty pussy of yours, what do you say?” He had the dress shoved up your ass, massaging your cheeks as he hungrily looked at his cock disappearing between your thighs. Grabbing it again, he let it slide through your cheeks and finally over your lips, tip pressing down on your clit and making you jump, a squeal escaping you.

“Yes, Daddy, please f-fuck me,” you whined and Seungcheol didn’t need to hear that twice. He pushed inside you almost immediately, his thrusts hard and quick from the get-go. And fuck, was he huge. So huge it took you a while to get used to him, to have the pain turn delicious, to feel like you were about to be split in half but in the best sense possible. He had only prepped you with one finger and as big as his hands were – they were no match for his cock.

“Yeah, so good for Daddy, baby, common, I know you can take it all, fuck,” his hands laid on your hips as he moved, sweat on the top of his forehead. You relaxed into the glass; hands next to your face as you smelled the wine from your breath.

“S-so b-big,” you cried out and Seungcheol stopped moving for a second, his hands moving to your front, one of his thumbs slowly beginning to circle your bud.

“You want me to stop, princess?” he asked, soft voice making goosebumps erupt all over you. But you were quick to shake your head.

“N-no! Just keep going, please, Daddy.”

Seungcheol nodded, controlling his thrusts more this time, wide and slow, thumb matching the energy on your clit. You felt yourself starting to drool against the glass, your hips wiggling against his crotch. He had to hold back, his balls so freakin tight, but he didn’t want to hurt you, didn’t want to make you feel discomfort. And so, he let you get adjusted, let you feel him slow and full, and once his whole cock filled you, he stopped, taking his hand away from your pussy.

“Move,” he then said, squeezing your ass cheek, and you nodded, endless pretty moans falling off your lips as you began to move your hips back and forth on his cock, your eyes rolling back as you couldn’t help but quicken your pace. Seungcheol watched how his cock kept on disappearing inside of you, how your ass wiggled whenever it hid his abdomen, and soon he couldn’t hold back anymore. He grabbed your waist with both hands and held you still, his eyes roaming over your body, lips and throat dry, cock painfully hard.

“Can Daddy fuck you now?” he asked calmly, and you nodded desperately.

“Pl-please! Fuck me hard, Daddy!” You were gone, completely lost to your lust. He did as asked the next second, pounding into you hard and quick, one hand had moved and was now pressing your head against the window, your moans muffled against the glass.

“Sh-shit, god your pussy feels so fucking good, made Daddy so proud, made me wanna cum so hard and deep inside your perfect cunt” he slapped down on your ass, catching you by surprise, a deep moan now erupting from your throat as he continued fucking you, his fingers digging so hard into your waist that he could already see marks forming. God, he wanted to ruin you. He threw his head back again, letting all control leave him and instead concentrate on his climax.

“I’m gonna cum!” you suddenly blurted out, you climax hitting you a second later, seemingly out of nowhere. Your pussy clenched around his cock, squeezed him tight, and Seungcheol felt like he was going to explode, both of his hands now finding their way back to your waist where they stayed as he fucked you through your orgasm and finally spilled inside of you, his cum feeling warm as it trickled back down your leg once he pulled out. He jerked himself off, making some cum land on your ass and his low noises made you feel like you could cum again the next second.

“Fuck, baby, you did so well for me,” he had let go off his cock and instead moved to turn you around, pulling you against his chest. Both of you were still fully dressed except for your underwear and Seungcheol’s pants and briefs were pooling around his ankles. You looked into his eyes, smiling as he leaned down to kiss your forehead.

“Daddy was so good to me,” you giggled, and he kissed you, first on the lips, then on both your cheeks. Who knew he could be this cute?

“Let me get you cleaned up, baby,” he cooed and parted from you after one more kiss, grabbing for the napkins on the table where the champagne had been on. You turned around for him again, his careful hands wiping away the cum that had left traces on your ass and inner thighs and legs. He kissed every spot he cleaned as he got up and finally you turned back around to him. He also cleaned himself and tucked him back in, pants and briefs to their places again. You, on the other hand, didn’t have any underwear left.

“Sorry about that,” he grinned, but you were pretty sure he felt no remorse whatsoever.

“It’s okay, the dress is long enough,” you laughed, watching him carefully. What was going to happen now? Was he going to send you home, now that he had gotten what he had wanted from you? You looked over at the table and bit your lip, unsure what to do.

“I have a room here,” he said, grabbing his suit jacket from the chair, “I don’t know about you, but I’m not ready to let the night end here.”

Relief washed over you and a smile appeared on your lips.

“I’m not ready yet either, oppa.”

header credit: @playmetheclassics