#okay posting this hoping it doesn't suck and meeting my friend for dinner

[piedoesnotequalpi]

Fake Fic Title:

From The Ladder’s Last Rung

Hello! I am fairly sure (after some googling) that your title is a reference to a Noah Kahan song!

Anyway, to me "last rung" can mean either the highest or the lowest point on a ladder, depending on your perspective, and that is the premise of this fic concept!

Race goes through elementary/middle/high school with a reputation of being both the class clown and one of the smartest people in his grade. What most people don't know, though, is that he uses the class clown part of his personality to deflect from the fact that he is not doing as well, grades-wise, as people might think--sure, he takes AP history when it's available, but he never gets higher than a B- on his report card for it. So when senior year rolls around, the combination of good grades in most other subjects and extracurriculars that make him seem interesting means he is able to get into one of his reach schools.

Anyway, Race goes off to school and he's very excited about the whole thing. He can finally put history, which is his least favorite subject, in the metaphorical rearview mirror; he's going to major in math and minor in dance; he's going to join all the clubs that weren't available to him in high school. During course registration, he ignores the suggestion from his RA that he should perhaps consider only taking one math class his first semester and registers for honors calculus (yes, this is a thing at some colleges) and an upper-level math class that only has a prerequisite of calc 1 and 2.

The problem with college, especially the first semester, is that it is often a big adjustment from high school no matter what your high school was like. Classes that really should not be taught lecture-style are taught that way, you're (sometimes) in a new city/town and even if you aren't you probably don't know a ton of people, and suddenly you have a much higher degree of independence. So Race is dealing with the general first semester freshman woes of making new friends and having a roommate and balancing time and navigating dining halls, but he's also dealing with the fact that for the first time in his life, he's struggling in his math classes. And that makes everything worse for him, because if he can't even do the one thing he's supposed to be really really good at, then how can he get through the rest of college? Does he even deserve to be there? Clearly his college made a mistake when they accepted him despite his less-than-perfect history grades. (those are his thoughts, not mine; he does deserve to be there)

As I mentioned earlier, he's used to using his class clown-esque personality to deflect from what's actually going on in his life, so almost no one knows how stressed he is. He still talks to his high school friends a lot, but so many of them are at their colleges having (as far as he's aware) a much easier time adjusting, so he doesn't want to talk about it with most of them. He goes to office hours sometimes, but he is very careful about which problems he gets help with to keep up the illusion that he knows what's going on. This would be less of a problem if he met up with his classmates to do homework, but he's worried he won't be useful enough to them. And obviously he would rather die than tell his new college acquaintances how overwhelmed he's feeling. The semester goes by in a blur of homework stress and club meetings and conversations where he just barely manages to convince everyone that he's doing okay (it's a lot harder than it used to be), all overlaid by the feeling that he's not good enough.

Being a college student gets easier, but not easy enough that he's able to turn everything around by the end of the semester. He withdraws from one of his math classes, and doesn't do great in the other, and he does...okay in his other classes. It's not the end of the world, but it does mean he has to drop out of the honors calculus sequence and possibly retake the class he withdrew from. But that doesn't stop Race from feeling like a failure, even though the only people who see his grades are him and his parent(s) (I haven't decided what his parent situation is in this), and they're understanding. It'll be easy to make up the credits he lost from the course withdrawal by taking some lower credit electives in later semesters, and he has seven more semesters to raise his GPA and figure things out.

And then we come back to the title and my (mis)interpretation of it (I wasn't just rambling pointlessly this whole time): To Race's parent(s), he's fallen off the bottom rung of the metaphorical ladder, so it's pretty manageable to get back up and keep going. But to Race, he's fallen off the top rung, because he can't stop thinking that he peaked in high school.

Things do get better for him, and later on he'll probably experience stuff that's way worse and wish it were just a rough first semester of undergrad, but in the moment, it really sucks!

[katsukikitten]

Part one. Master list for plus one can be found here.

Just a nice fic I decided to write for fun. Please enjoy!

Asshole!

He was nothing but a huge, giant fucking ASSHOLE for the entire two years the two of you were dating and he decides NOW is a good time to break up with you?

Two days before your cousin's wedding and over TEXT MESSAGE?!

That fucking asshole.

He knew how you felt. Exactly how you felt about going alone to your cousin's wedding after your family begged to meet your boyfriend and teased you for "probably making him up." Which hell, he may as well have been made up considering how absent he was in the relationship. Using work as an excuse to come home late but forgetting to turn off his snap location when he showed up at the bar.

So you did what any rational woman in her upper twenties would do.

You drowned your sorrows in booze, tonight red wine as it was the only thing around, and you scrolled through your socials in hopes of distracting yourself from your suffering.

Alas the devil that is Instagram only amplified your sadness and irritation. Showing couple after couple, your friends on hikes kissing on the mountain top, kissing in the flickering light of candles at a fancy dinner or, worst yet, getting proposed to. The video showing her in hysterics screaming, "YES I DO I DO!"

And it feels terrible to feel this way. Especially about your friends, the people you love and want to support, still it stings. You hadn't told anyone about the breakup, you weren't even sure your friends even remembered that asshole's name.

A teardrop lands on your screen, magnifying all the magical lights of the led beneath the glad. You wipe away the tear and with that the feed refreshes. A new post has come in at the top, Res Riot's official account.

Kirishima stands with a fat white cat in his arms. He dwarfs the animal with his large stature that looks larger as he still has his Red Riot gear on. The caption reads something along the lines of "missed my precious baby."

Red wine is a dangerous thing as your body acts on its own. You go to his page to hit the little arrow to DM him. Typing out and backspacing your message as you struggle from the booze, you decide to say fuck it and use the voice memo feature. Before you know it your sniffling voice is playing back to you after you've hit send.

"My ex broke up with me before this stupid wedding. It's in two days and my family is going to roast me big time when I show up alone. They think I made that asshole up. I don't know why I'm even in your dms. Your account is probably run by some dick head who can't even capture your kindness. I guess I'm here cause my first thought seeing you on my timeline was Red Riot has always been my hero…"

Ugh totally fucking cringe.

There is no surprise as you see the three normally ominous dots pop up, probably his social media manager about to ask you to stop your "advances" as Kirishima is too busy to date and he'd hate to block you or some other bullshit.

But there it is a surprise to see a little bubble with the play button and some vertical lines in various heights. It takes your sluggish brain a moment to realize you've been sent a voice memo. Odd. Your thumb smashes the screen faster than you can think and a deep voice rumbles through the speakers of your phone.

"Actually I run my official and personal socials. And I'm sorry to hear about your ex doll. He sounds like a real ass. I'll be your hero, I'll go with you to the wedding."

Your heart stutters, no way, no way in HELL this was Red Riot. You had read about the horror stories before or pervy account managers taking advantage of women who so desperately wanted to talk to their hero.

Hell, it's happened to Dynamight plenty of times.

You swallow quickly but the bile rushes up your throat. Not just from the anxiety of a possible con but from drinking an entire bottle of wine with nothing on your stomach after months of sobriety. Quickly you stumble to the bathroom, abandoning your phone on your bed. You barely make it in time to praise the porcelain Gods before you fall onto your back. Looking up at the light in your cramped bathroom, the orb doubles and spins as you feel the Earth turning on its axis. You curl into your side using your bathmat as a pillow as you drift off into sleep, totally forgetting about the voice memo on your phone.

As you sleep peacefully on your memory foam bath rug, Kirishima settles into his nightly routine. One giant hand grabbing strands of long dark red hair into a towel while another sits snugly around his Adonis belt and the thick, black happy trail that follows up the center of his abs before spreading out onto his chest. He tosses the towel over the open door of the bathroom before sitting in his favorite armchair with phone in hand. Diamond, his beautiful white cat he rescued a few years ago, jumps onto the arm of the chair, purring loudly when Kirishima's free hand scratches her ears absentmindedly.

He chuckles to himself as he realizes exactly what he's done. Acting on a feeling instead of logic all because he heard a "damsel in distress." Starting off his rare vacation with spontaneity starting with an impromptu date with a stranger. He really isn't sure what you look like and it's obvious your handle doesn't have your real name in it, just PrincessPeach with some random numbers at the end. He takes the time to scroll through your profile. Seeing pictures of food, of many sunsets, a friend's dog that guest appears often, your own cat and plenty of strays.

It takes him a while before he sees a photo of you. His heart stutters in his chest as he looks you over. Laughing with a friend, soft lighting from strings over head that blur like little fireflies. Your smile is wide, half hidden by your hands as your eyes seem to smile with you. Sparkling as if they held stars.

For a moment Kirishima forgets how to breathe, it isn't until Diamond jumps down from the armchair does he inhale. He smiles softly to himself before he drops his towel, puts his phone on charge and promptly falls asleep in his bed.

Kirishima rises before the sun even has a chance to filter through his blinds. He sighs softly, getting up to a sitting position disturbing a fluffy white ball that lays beside him.

"Mmrow." Moon stone eyes blink slowly as they look at the mountainous man hogging the bed.

"I didn't mean to wake you sweet baby." He says softly, going to pet the soft white fur only for her to get up stretch and give him her butt before plopping back down.

"I know, mean ol' daddy woke you up too early again." He says softly, his hand falling onto her back before he rises from the bed. Fishing for his running shorts, socks, headphones and shoes. He makes his protein shake, leaning on the counter as he drinks it, looking at how you read, or better yet, listened to his message but still no reply. It was late and there was a small slurring of your words, he figures you've passed out. He just hopes you're okay.

His run goes as usual, up before anyone else unless they were the normal avid runner. Passing by the usual array of people. An old man holding onto his youth by jogging through his daily five mile morning run, Kirishima knows he runs another five in the evening while the sun is setting. He hopes he can embody some of this man's commitment when he is older. Then he passes a middle aged woman, who gives him the biggest smile as she pases, jogging backward to send him a wink before plowing ahead. Occasionally he'll see a running group or a few teens training to be heroes, they always ask if they can run his route. "It's long." He always warns in a kind, warm voice. They assure him they will be fine so far only one other person could handle his 12 mile morning run. A young woman in her second year of hero courses at UA. Since then Kirishima put in a word with his boss and so every time internships roll around she's in the office.

By the time Kirishima is rounding back towards his high rise apartment, the city begins to stir. Slowly waking as men and women in business suits rush towards the train, parents flinging open the doors or curtains fussing at their children who cling to an extra few minutes of sleep before school.

This was always his favorite part of the run, not because it was almost over, oh no it was because he had a chance to glimpse at everyday life. Of nine to fives, of school hours and after school hangs outs at snack bars or the library.

What most would call the mundane but Kirishima would never call it that. It's why he worked so hard to protect it.

Diamond greets his sweaty form at the door. Glaring angrily with her moon stone eyes. Tail swishing before she goes to the kitchen by her bowl. Waiting impatiently.

"I'm not late, sweet cheeks." He coos, and she glares, "I know I know. You're hungry now."

He opens the fridge, gets out the highest quality food there is and places it on her dish, sure to keep it all in the middle or she'll claim her bowl was empty. He added a splash of water too since the weather was starting to get hot.

He sucks down a water or two, demolishes a protein bar and then heads to the apartment gym.

A few hours roll by and without hearing from you yet his worry over your well being begins to cloud the forefront of his mind. He pauses his music, picks up his phone and talks out a voice memo.

A loud DING echoes from your room and around your skull as you rise with a throbbing headache.

"Fuck." You hiss to yourself grabbing at your head as you shakily rise to your feet. Yanking the handle of the faucet to drink from the stream before looking at yourself in the mirror.

"Ugh." You grunt ignoring your swollen face and eyes, yanking the mirror door open to snatch at the bottle of aspirin. Swallowing THREE extra strength pills before slamming the door shut and turning off the faucet. You make your way towards your bedroom, more than ready to sleep the rest of your day away. Grabbing at your phone to charge it you see the push notification of an Instagram message from Red Riot.

The fucking Red Riot.

Internally you scream before it bubbles up your throat and escapes. You fumble to unlock your phone before looking that it's a voice memo.

Mortified you realize you sent one too. And first at that.

"Fuck MEEE!" You plop onto the bed. Nervous this second voice memo is probably about how you're a weirdo or something as you relive the memory of asking him to be your plus one.

Hesitantly your thumb hovers over the play button before you find the strength to press the cool glass. A soft thunderous voice plays out.

"Good morning sleepy head. I haven't heard from you yet, I hope you're okay. Be sure to drink some water and eat something greasy. Trust me, late nights with Denki and Bakugou taught me something. Since the wedding is tomorrow I'll need a picture of your dress for the color and style so I can match you Sweet pea. Contact me soon so I can know where to pick you up."

Did he… did he just call you SWEET PEA? Your heart pounds in your chest before it registers he's asked for your dress color and lowkey asked for your address. This couldn't be real. It sounded like Kirishima, his voice familiar from interviews you've watched but it very well could be a prank. Defeated you hit the small microphone and reply.

Kirishima hears a sharp DING in his headphones over his music as he finishes his set. He wipes the sweat from his face on his shirt giving the few people in the gym a lovely view of his sweaty and thick torso. One woman trips on the treadmill but it goes unnoticed by Kirishima. He pauses his music and hits play on the little memo. Your beautiful yet groggy voice comes in through his ear buds causing Kirishima to bite his lip. It causes such a flutter of butterflies in his stomach he has to listen a second time to actually hear what you said. Although he understand, he cannot help but feel hurt by your reply.

"How do I know you're not just some pervy guy using Kirishima's Godly looks to prey on unsuspecting people."

Your phone chirps at you from the bed stand and you growl reaching for it. You had hoped your message would have been clear. An unspoken of you know they're a fucking creep taking advantage of their PR job.

"What can I do to prove it to you, Sweet Pea?"

You hate how that cute nickname sends your heart into a somersault and your stomach in delightful knots. Still your doubt pulls a harsh tut from your lips before you reply.

Kirishima doesn't need his phone to alert him that you've messaged him, he's been looking at his screen for far to long without having to restart his set. He listens to your voice as if it were music.

"Fine, you wanna prove it to me so bad. Take a picture of yourself shirtless with the word 'Sweet pea' you love so much and send it to me. No photoshop I know what my favorite hero looks like!"

For over an hour you don't hear back and you figure you showed that perv.

But now you can't sleep so you nurse a water, door dash a "greasy" breakfast all before cranking your shower as high as it can go. Your phone dings and you try to ignore it. You really do but as the saying goes curiosity killed the cat. Opening the message you see a classic guy mirror selfie. Kirishima is clear as day in the photo, his large hand pointing to his bare, hairy chest where sweat pea is scrawled in his adorable handwriting. He winks at the camera as his kissable lips wear a dangerous, almost cocky eyes travel down his bulk following his happy trail that dives under a pair of black shorts, the best part of the view getting cut off by the vanity. At first you try to rationalize that this was fake but damning evidence was sitting on the vanity. A fluffy white cat in a diamond and ruby encrusted collar sits on the counter giving her owner an odd look.

His cat Diamond that everyone knows he loves and adores. Slick begins to collect between your thighs and especially so after you listen to the voice memo that comes through shortly after. His normally friendly and soft voice comes out a bit dark, husky as he says in a playfully annoyed tone.

"Now send me a picture of that dress, Sweet Pea."

[thedaredevilsgirl]

Chapter Three - Like a Lollipop

Warnings: Tom being a big smug, smutty (oral-man receiving- and dirty talk).

Word count: 2109

N/A: Sorry for the delay in posting. It was my birthday on Monday and I kind of got inspired by that for this chapter. I hope you enjoy it.

Sorry for the grammar mistakes, English is not my first language.

Tom's arms were around your body when you wake up early in the morning. He would no longer leave when he was done and go to your room, even when he was doing nothing, he would go to your room in the middle of the night lying on his side and you would sleep together, Tom liked the feeling of having you in his arms during the night, but he was very careful about leaving early in the morning before your brother saw you there.

"Good morning," you say in a husky voice from having just woken up.

"Good morning," he says smiling "And happy birthday."

"You remember, that's nice" you smile.

"Of course I remember" he caresses your face "it's not every day my girl turns 19".

You feel your heart beat faster in your chest when he calls you "my girl". You were trying your best not to let your feelings for Tom show, you promised yourself that you would keep your feelings hidden for your own good, but it was hard, especially when Tom acted like you two were in a relationship.

"Actually," he says smiling as he gets up from his bed "I have a present for you."

"Really Tom? You didn't need it."

The bedroom door suddenly opens and a smiling Harrison appears.

"He shouts happily, but the smile disappears from his face when he sees Tom standing in the middle of his room shirtless and wearing only a pair of gray sweatpants. He asks suspiciously.

He mentally thanks him for being well dressed.

"I came to wish Y/N a happy birthday" he lies quickly.

"Couldn't you wait until she comes down for coffee?" Harrison continues with his questioning.

"I was going to" Tom speaks laughing "but I was already passing by, so I decided to say so".

You watch as Harrison gives Tom a strange look.

"Sure" In the end Harrison seems to believe what he has been told "Makes sense, come down soon, coffee is ready" he starts to leave but quickly returns "And happy birthday again" you smile and he finally leaves the room.

"Oh my God, I thought he was going to find out about us" you sigh in relief.

"Not this time darling" he smiles before leaving a kiss on your lips "I'll have to leave the present for later, see you downstairs" he leaves you alone in your room.

You take your shower and get ready for another day before heading down to the kitchen.

All the frat boys were downstairs and made a point of hugging you and wishing you a happy birthday, you thanked them all before sitting down to eat.

"We were planning to have a party..." Harrison starts to speak and you interrupt him.

"No, please, you know I'm not very comfortable at parties.

"...But since you have something against parties, we decided to just have a dinner party to celebrate, me, you, the boys and Megan, what do you think?" Her brother asks.

"Sounds good to me" you agree.

"Great" he says smiling "You will love it, we will cook for you".

"Please don't set the house on fire trying to cook".

"Don't worry, I will keep something bad from happening" Tom says smiling.

•─────✧─────•─────✧─────•

"I hope you are excited for later" Megan speaks smiling.

"I think you're more excited than I am" you laugh "I'm afraid they're going to burn the whole house down or something".

"Honestly Y/N, you worry too much" You say.

"I'm the worried friend and you're the one who acts without thinking, remember?"

"Exactly, and I have a lot of fun being that way, which is the way you should act, you're 19 you have to enjoy your life" She speaks excitedly.

"Okay, and what should I do to act like that?" He asks.

"She points with her head in a direction and you look at the place she pointed to and see Tom surrounded by his friends.

There was a girl standing next to him, holding his arm and tossing her hair in a conquering way, but Tom didn't seem to pay any attention to her, in fact he was looking at you from across campus and gives you a little wink as soon as he notices your gaze on him.

"Look there, you know the two of them have slept together before and she probably wants a repeat of that."

"It wouldn't be a problem for me" You lie "You and I have nothing, I'm not going to compete with another woman just to get a boy's attention".

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about female competition, you know I hate it when they pit one woman against another, but I'm talking about you admitting how you feel, I'm talking about you telling him the truth, that you like him, before it's too late and you lose him.

"Do you think I should do that? What if he doesn't want me like that?"

"Then he's the one who will be losing out" She is sincere "I have class now, so I'll meet you at your place later".

•─────✧─────•─────✧─────•

When you enter the house you go straight to your room to get ready for dinner, the boys were in the kitchen and the smell of food was already spreading through the room.

Quickly go up the stairs and enter your room, closing the door afterwards.You quickly get ready, wearing the new blue dress Harrison had given you.

"Hi," Tom's voice says behind you, startling you.He entered the room quietly and locked the door.

"Oh my god" you place your hand on your chest breathing heavily trying to recover from the fright "What are you doing in here?"

"Sorry honey, I didn't mean to startle you" He smiles "I said I would deliver your present later, I came to do that" he shows you the small blue box he was holding and hands it over.

"Thank you" you smile at him and open the box, inside was a gold choker with a small butterfly pendant "God, Tom, that's beautiful".

"You like it?"

"Of course I like it, this is wonderful, you shouldn't spend money on me."

He rolls his eyes and takes the box from her hand, removing the necklace from inside it.

"Don't be silly" He says as you stand in front of the mirror with your back to your body, he moves your hair out of the way and places the choker on you leaving a small kiss on your neck "I don't mind spending money on you".

"Tom" You say looking at the reflection of the two of you in the mirror "Are you getting any other girls?" You ask nervously.

"What?" He looks up not understanding why you are asking this question out of the blue "No, I'm not fucking anyone, why are you asking me that?"

"Nothing...I just saw you with a girl today, you seemed close" you say pulling away from him a little.

"Y/N, are you jealous?" He asks smugly.

"Of course not" You roll your eyes, trying to pretend you didn't feel anything, but it was true, you kind of were jealous.

"I think you are" He says moving closer to your body "What? You don't like to imagine me touching another girl" His hands grip your hips pulling you even closer, he tilts his head to reach your neck and leave kisses all over your skin "No need to be jealous honey, I'm all yours, you're the only one for me".

You look him in the eyes, despite his cocky tone he was being sincere, you see that, you break the rest of the distance by pulling him by the shirt and making your lips glue to his in a thirsty kiss. He couldn't put his feelings into words yet, but he hoped that the kiss would say everything his heart felt.

He grabs you even tighter and deepens the kiss, letting his hand go up to your head and lightly pull your hair, making you moan between kisses, he bites your lower lip and you feel a shiver run down your entire body.

"Tell me what you want" he asks, his husky voice making you shiver once again. Your hands move down to your pants, feeling the hard member through your jeans.

"I want you...in my mouth," she says a little nervously. You had been thinking about this for a few days, Tom always helped you come, touched or fucked you until you came, but you denied all his help, he wanted to give you pleasure but expected nothing in return. But you wanted to reward him.

"Y/N, it's your birthday, I should do something for you" He speaks holding your hand.

"Exactly, it's my birthday and I want to suck you off, please" You look at him with a puppy dog face and a cute peck on your lips, a cute and innocent expression that completely contradicted what you had said a few seconds ago.

"Damn" he feels himself getting even harder in his pants. He was trying to go easy on you, but seeing you like that, begging to have his cock in your mouth was irresistible, and he wouldn't lie, he had dreamed of this moment several times.

You kneel in front of him, your fingers working quickly to open his pants.

"Are you sure you want to do this angel? I don't want to force you to swim sincerely I can wait" He speaks in a careful tone.

"Yes I'm sure I want to" you say confidently, pulling your pants down to your ankles "But I'm going to need you to help me".

"Ok angel, I'll help you" His hand slowly caresses your face, his thumb running across your lower lip, your mouth opens at the touch and he takes the opportunity to put it in your mouth, you suck your thumb slowly passing your tongue gently before he takes it out again.

He slowly pulls down his underwear exposing his member, you bite your lip getting a little nervous.

First" he begins to speak "You can start by spreading pre-cum over my tip, with your thumb." You follow his command, putting your hand around his cock and spreading pre-cum over the head of his cock, he sighs excitedly. It had been so long since a girl had touched him like this.

"Yes, darling, just like that" he says as you begin to move your hand from top to bottom on his member "Let's start off slow and easy, just a few licks from the shaft to my tip" you obey and he sighs as he feels your tongue touch his member "Now, do that again and put your mouth around my tip".

You run your tongue again over the entire length of his cock, before running it over the head and wrapping your mouth around it. Your fingers curl into his hair. You slowly begin to move further down, slowly getting used to his length in your mouth, the head moving up and down and your tongue dancing softly around his cock.

"Holy shit" He sighs, you look at him impressed, nothing was more beautiful than to see him moaning for you, his head thrown back, his lips open in ecstasy. He looks at you, his lips curling into your length and his innocent eyes staring back at you "You look so beautiful like that, what do you think others would say if they saw you like that in? The sweet innocent Y/N pleasuring me, being a good girl for me" you moan against his member, the vibrations making you moan even louder.

Being called a good girl awakened something in you, the word made your clit throb and your panties wet even more.

"Do you like that, being called a good girl?" He asks smugly "because you are being a good girl for me."

You speed up the movements, taking all you could with your mouth and rolling your hand in the rest, he helps you with the movements, without too much force, so as not to hurt you.

"Fuck, angel, I'm going to cum" different from what you thought you don't pull away from him, you continue the movements with more force making him quickly reach the apex.

You pull away from his body, with your cum still in his mouth, he groans at that sight, before you swallow it all quickly. He helps you up off the floor before kissing you, feeling the salty taste of your orgasm on his lips.

"You were so good, you learn so fast angel" he kisses her neck making her sigh "now" she sits down on her desk "I'll make it up to you" she says kneeling in front of him ready to make him cum too.

TAGLIST

@cherryobx

@a-daydreamers-day

@arlo-sanders

@multihoee

@storybookholland

@yazzyu

@hallecarey1

[joonievjones]

Grace

Grace 🌼

Status: ongoing :)

Future Mature content 💞

Text Copyright © JoonieVJones & Miickiye.

Please do not copy or repost my stories, I post on Tumblr as JoonieVJones and on Wattpad as Miickiye but those are my only two accounts.

🌻summary: You always knew of your parents wish for expansion of their kingdom, however you never expected you'd be the key to their fulfillment. Being thrown into a sudden engagement with a faraway prince never seen of previously while having your childhood best friend act in ways also never seen before can leave a girl in complete confusion with a lot to lose and one choice to make.

🌻pairings: readerxNamjoon, readerxJungkook

🌻topics: romance, fluff, eventual smut, angst

🌼 Grace

🌼🌼🌼chapter 3

"A unity?" Jungkook looked away angrily.

"I guess our kingdoms are now allies."

"Y/n… you know what this could possibly mean."

"I refuse to believe they'd marry me off."

Once again, like a couple of days earlier, silence surrounded you guys, this time it was suffocating.

"Let's run away together." You said seriously.

Jungkook's face paled while his eyes simultaneously lit up.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

You both stood up and grabbed the already packed bags, immediately setting them back down two seconds later.

You let out a frustrated grunt.

"If only it were that easy." He mumbled.

"You're telling me."

Tossing yourself onto the bed you scratched your head.

Usually it'd be styled into some sort of braid but today you had it loose and natural as well as instead of wearing a fancy dress you wore a lavender off the shoulder dress with a deep plum lace up corset belt.

Jungkook also wore casual clothes instead of his usual uniform.

"Imagine the headlines. At first we'd be assumed lost or kidnapped."

"Then I'd be suspected of treason."

"And don't forget the romance rumors." You quipped.

He laughed, making sure the windows were fully shut and covered before laying down next to you.

"I can read them already."

"Me too. It'd be the dream of many if we're being honest. I've seen a lot of people speculate on our relationship." You used his arm as a pillow and nuzzled up close to his chest.

"Do they?"

"Mhm." You nodded your head.

"They're idiots." He mumbled.

Your heart panged.

"They scrape at whatever to get some sort of drama from your family."

"Yeah…" A sigh escaped you, closing your eyes and breathing in his scent usually helped you yet today you couldn't help but be hurt by his tone of voice.

You didn't mind the rumors. Sometimes you even purposely fed them hoping they'd soften your parents up, why did he seem so annoyed by them.

"The trees were whispering today." Your voice was low.

"What did they say?"

"They told me about my future engagement." Your words were sour, immediately the atmosphere dulled. He stared intently at the ceiling.

Kook didn't say anything for a couple of seconds.

"Did they mention anything else?"

This time you took time to collect your thoughts. You couldn't tell him the full story, so you settled for trying to lighten the mood once more.

"They said I looked gorgeous as always."

Finally he turned to meet your gaze.

"Well, that sucks."

You gasped. "What the hell?!"

"Because-" He stopped your hand as you were about to smack his shoulder lightly. "Now we know they're right."

Your eyes met his, you swore your heart was suddenly pounding way too loudly. What was that about? Suddenly you were too aware of your position, when had you guys gotten so close? Your faces were mere inches apart, his hand was intertwined in yours and half of your body was atop his. This close up you could see the small scar under his left eye and the way his lashes lay ever so gently on his pretty doe eyes.

You took in a deep breath and released it slowly, closing your eyes and settling down. You needed a nice nap.

🌼

You stared wearily at the sight before you. You swore you recognized the man in front of you but also had absolutely no idea who he was.

Jungkook had left to go to the bathroom and had told you to wait at a table nearby but you'd left your post to order something for the both of you, and now you stood impatiently behind a man who seemed to not know what to choose. Abruptly he turned to look at you. He didn't seem much older than you, and was very handsome.

"What would you recommend?" He said shyly. His voice shocked you, causing you to stare widely at him just like a deer caught in headlights.

It was deep and melodic and seemed to pull you in.

You froze.

"Um…"

"I'm new to this kingdom and don't know what I should get." He awkwardly scratched the back of his head and looked away, a light pink coated his cheeks and as you looked up you noticed the tip of his ears were reddened as well. Although he towered over you in height, at that moment he seemed to make himself small and childlike.

That. Was. Absolutely. Adorable.

Immediately your eyes lit up and you sprung with life.

"Anything you get will be amazing!" You smiled brightly. "The chef here is the best in the whole kingdom."

"I don't doubt it. My father's friend recommended this place specifically for their baking abilities." He paused and met your gaze. "What will you be getting?"

His voice once again completely lulled you. It was so beautiful. The way he spoke was calling to you and it made you want to have hours of conversation with this man.

"I'm getting cinnamon tea with some mini strawberry puff tartlets."

"I'll get that as well then." He smiled at you and you nearly swooned.

Two dimples popped out as he smiled and turned to order, a slight frown overtook your face however when he turned to ask you how many tartlets you wanted.

"Uh, I'd like six?" Was he ordering for you?

"Okay." He turned to the cashier. "I'll take two cinnamon teas and nine mini puff strawberry tartlets." He smiled at the boy, who you recognized as Seungmin, you frequented this cafe, and reached in his pocket for his wallet.

What about Jungkook?

"Umm-" You were at a loss for words.

"Of course!" Seungmin grinned and rang up your total.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but could you please add one more tea and charge me for it." You smiled kindly at the boy and immediately pulled out your card.

The man beside you gave you a confused look.

"No, it's fine. I want to pay." You said to hopefully answer his internal question.

"I don't mind paying at all." He said. "If you wouldn't mind sir, take my card instead."

He offered the cashier his card and the poor boy stared at you both with panic.

"Umm…"

"Please take mine Seungmin." You smiled as you said his name. "He is new to town and I think this should be my treat."

Seungmin carefully reached for your card instead and then also grabbed the man's card.

"How about I shuffle them behind my back and whichever arm one of you chooses is the one who'll pay?"

You bit the inside of your cheek.

"That sounds fair." Both you and the man spoke up at the same time.

After a couple seconds of shuffling Seungmin gave you both an expectant look.

"Which arm do you choose?"

"Left."

"Right."

Your eyes flew to the man.

"Right."

"Left."

Again your eyes met incredulously.

"Rock, paper, scissors?" You said.

He nodded and you both immediately began the game. In the end you won and chose the right arm.

Seungmin swiped it and then handed you both cards back.

"Kim Namjoon?" You asked.

He smiled shyly once more. "That one's mine, I believe."

You handed him his card back as he handed yours as well.

"Princess!" You turned to meet the wide eyes of Jungkook.

"Oh hey Lieutenant-"

"You weren't at the table?" He said as he finally reached you and scanned your body for injuries.

"Oh yeah, I was getting us dinner. You're cool with strawberry tartlets rights?"

He straightened his posture and turned to stare at Namjoon.

"This is Kim Namjoon." You offered. "He is new to the kingdom so I recommended one of Chefs Felix's best dishes."

"Of course. Good evening Mr. Kim." Jungkook stood rigidly by you.

This wasn't going well.

"Could you please make six of those tartlets and two teas to go?" You asked Seungmin.

"Of course."

"Thank you so much. Please pass my greetings to Felix. I wish I could stay longer but I'm sure I'm needed for something." You then turned to Namjoon and extended your hand. "It was very nice meeting you, and I hope you enjoy your stay here. I truly wish our kingdom doesn't disappoint." You smiled brightly at him as you shook hands and then immediately pulled Jungkook away to sit back at the table he had asked you to while you waited for your order.

"What was that about?" You asked as soon as you were seated.

"I'm not supposed to leave you alone for long, I just panicked when I couldn't find you."

You laughed.

"I doubt that counts as a long time. Besides, I enjoyed my time."

Jungkook raised an eyebrow.

"The guy I was talking to was alright." You smiled and lay your head on the palm of your hand while you looked out at the setting sun. "He seemed cool."

"He's not from here you said?"

You nodded your head.

Kook looked around the café and spotted the man. He seemed to be fully enthralled in the book he was holding and didn't notice the glares Jungkook sent.

"Stop glaring, it's rude you know?"

"I don't know… I didn't like how he looked at you."

You frowned. "All he did was smile. I don't think that's a valid reason-"

"That's not what I mean y/n."

A small, mischievous smile spread across your face.

"Jealous?"

His eyes immediately left Namjoon's form and flew to yours.

"No!" You laughed at how loud he was. Looking around and apologizing for his outburst to the other customers, he turned to give you a small scowl. "Why would I be jealous of a random stranger?"

You simply shrugged and kept a smile on your face. He was jealous, you were sure of it.