#one of the best they’re subtly falling in love and they don’t even know it stories

[filthy-mudeoki]

They were wrong.

It’s been a love story all along

They just didn’t know it

The Consigliere and the Byeonhosa nim

One soul, Two bodies.

[fanfic-obsessed]

Smitten

I had this idea for a JayTim that I want to share. 

Obviously there is no canon here, for the record. 

In addition we have a version of Jack and Janet Drake that do love their son, they just have a really bad grasp on age appropriate supervision and activities. They honestly believe that a nine year old can be left alone with only a periodic check from a housekeeper (Also they are aware that Tim leaves the premises almost every night with a camera, they also believe this is a reasonable activity).  Like the very embodiment ‘they’re confused, but they got spirit’. Believe me when I say this will be relevant later.

We are also bringing Jason and Tim’s ages just a hair closer together. This starts with Jason being 14 and Tim being 13, at the annual holiday Wanye Gala. This particular time Jack, Janet, and Tim are in attendance. 

It starts with some boorish rich asshole, a little too drunk and being stupid about it, making an insulting comment about Janet Drake, heard by Tim. Now Tim loves his mother, and does not appreciate this man who insulted her. 

Thirteen year old Tim verbally eviscerates this man, his voice an icy even tone that everyone around recognized from Tim’s mother Janet. Tim’s diatribe of insults and threats leverages this man's secrets, his fears, and insecurities that he didn't even realize he had.  Ten minutes in, this man begins to cry. Just the complete, public, destruction of a middle aged rich drunk by a tiny thirteen year old.  The Drake family proceeds to exit after Tim winds down, never looking back (it was later in the evening anyway).

Jason, standing off to one side next to Dick, falls immediately and completely in love. Smitten through and through.  The first words out of his mouth, after the Drakes leave, is ‘We’re going to get married on that boy’s 18th birthday’.  This was heard by just about everyone present. Jason did not even know Tim’s name yet.

By the next morning Jason has used the BatComputer to discover that his future spouse is named Timothy Drake, he lives next door, and that he is 14 months younger than Jason.  At breakfast Jason very seriously, though a touch maniacally, tells Bruce that he would be marrying Tim when Tim turned 18, and that before that point they would be telling Tim about their ‘nightlife’ on the grounds that “we should not start our marriage off with secrets”. Jason magnanimously told Bruce that he had until Tim was 17 to get his feelings under control about the reveal (to give a full year before the wedding, in case Tim needed an adjustment period or Jason needed to win him back).  

Bruce is already very tired. 

Jason finds any occasion to seek out Tim Drake, to get to know his future spouse (the entire time Jason Mantra-having gotten some good advice from Alfred about becoming friends with and maybe dating Tim before anything else-is ‘Don’t start talking about the wedding, don’t start talking about the wedding’). Also every piece of romantic knowledge/flirting knowledge that Jason has comes from the regency era/Victorian era romances he reads. 

Tim, for his part, believes that Jason (Tim’s Robin and crush) has figured out that Tim knows Robin’s identity and is trying to subtly figure out how much Tim knows and what he is going to do about it; but for some reason Jason is not asking directly and Tim is enjoying getting closer to the other boy, so he does not admit to what he knows. 

This leads to some painfully stilted conversations and weird interactions, but every so often both will forget to be awkward and it becomes clear, whenever they actually act naturally, that they are very well matched. 

To the Gotham Elites, this is the best entertainment in years. Between Bruce Wayne’s ‘Brucie’ act and Dick’s feral behavior growing up, Jason’s bookish politeness makes him the ‘best behaved’ Wayne and honestly the most well liked one. Combined that with how sweet he is acting with Tim and  that this all started with Tim defending his mother, well this is the love story of the ages, happening right in front of them. 

Bruce and the Drakes are already fielding requests for invitations to the wedding. On a slightly more creepy note they are also receiving offers to be a surrogate for the boy’s to ‘continue the bloodline’ when the time comes. 

Bruce is honestly wondering if everyone forgot that Jason is adopted. Dick comes to Gotham more often, because he is also finding this immensely entertaining. 

A few months in, this leads to Batman, Nightwing, and Robin finding Tim taking pictures on a rooftop in the Bowery.  In Tim’s rush to apologize (he is starting to feel a bit guilty about his picture taking pictures of the Bats now that he has an actual relationship-where he believes that they know he knows who they are-instead of a parasocial relationship) it becomes clear that Tim knows their civilian identities and that they did not know that Tim knew their civilian identities. 

Tim gives his explanation (a quadruple flip that only a few people in the world can do and connecting the dots from there). Jason immediately blurts out ‘Go on a date with me?’ and is quite proud that he kept the ‘Marry me?’ behind his teeth (The earliest they could get married in New Jersey is 17, and only with parental consent. Jason had 4 years to convince the Drakes to let him marry their son, 5 if they don’t like him). Tim turns bright red and squeaks out a ‘Yes’. 

The next gala they enter holding hands.  Dick is quickly sought after by the Elite for gossip. Dick confirms that Tim and Jason are now dating, and that Jason insisted on a chaperone for their dates (Jason is still working off the regency/victorian era romantic relationships) so that nothing would ‘besmirch Tim’s honor’.  There is an entire crowd of cooing Gothamites around Dick as they discuss how these two got even more adorable, all the while watching Jason and Tim surreptitiously. 

At some point Bruce has to have a very surreal conversation with Jack and Janet Drake about when it is appropriate to leave one's children alone and for how long and at what ages. Jack and Janet, upon being convinced that they should not leave their 13 year old alone for weeks or months at a time, rearrange their future plans so that one of them is almost always home (and on the few occasions that they would have to Tim by himself, Tim would stay with the Waynes).

By the way, Jack and Janet love Jason, they can see how much he makes their son happy and are glad to support the relationship.  

Now I see this continuing one of two ways. 

The first way is that this derails Ethiopia. Jason still fights with Batman, but runs to Janet Drake (who is home) and Tim.  He does not discover that Catherine is not his mother until later, but is not missing parental influences and does some digging but does not go to meet Sheila. Tim becomes Oracle’s apprentice.

Alternately, it does not derail Ethiopia. Janet and Jack, on one of the few business trips that required both of them, is woken up by a call from an inconsolable Tim who tells them Jason has been killed by the Joker (both Jack and Janet having been let in on the secret at some point). Janet immediately hires Deathstroke and Talia Al Ghul to kill the Joker (Janet contemplated having them bring the Joker to her, so she could do it and make sure he understood why-he killed her future son in law and made her son cry- but realized that the why would never actually matter to Joker) and paid extra to make it look like natural causes (to lessen the attention on the bastard).  Two weeks after Jason Todd’s funeral, the Joker dropped dead of an apparent heart attack, there was not even enough time to get him back in Arkham. 

The Gotham Elite treat Tim like a bereaved widow, despite Jason never getting to have the ‘let’s get married when we are old enough’ talk with him. Jack Drake gets to have his own surreal talk with Bruce Wayne about accepting help, and therapy, after Jason’s death.  Tim picks up the Robin mantle to feel closer to Jason, and to distract himself from grief. 

Jason (Now 17) is brought back and Talia does find him. In this she does have good intentions (She knows that Damian is going to need to be sent to his father eventually, and hopes that helping Jason will endear Talia to Bruce enough that she can still see her son), plus a connection to Janet Drake and the knowledge that Janet had the Joker killed for Jason. So as soon as Jason’s madness ebbs enough to travel she brings him straight to Janet Drake's door. By then enough time has passed that it is three days before Tim’s 17th birthday.   

Jante takes one look at Jason and goes ‘Hmm, I was wondering what we were getting Tim for his birthday this year’.

[princessbrunette]

you’d always been a nerd, there was no doubt about that — it’s only now you were older, you were known as a nerd who was filling out her bikini top, and jiggling in her bikini bottoms. now, unlike yourself — you sit on a little boat out on the water with the infamous pogues.

it was jj who invited you here. it was always jj — he’d been enthralled to see the sexy little thing you’d grown into adulthood as. he’d spotted you whilst working at the library, frowning over a file book of library card entries with cute pouty lips and reading glasses that he wanted to cover in cum. hed always thought you were cute at school, but now he just had to have you. he’d used his charms on you, and now you were nervously tucked into his side, ‘making friends’ with his friends as he’d described it. “gotta get ya out there, there’s a whoooole life to be lived outside these books, you know that?”

he was burrowing through his backpack, leaning over on the boat beside you to find the weed he’d packed, clearly set on corrupting you for fun.

“its the best of the best— like, perfect for a beginner—” he rambles, dumping things out his backpack struggling to find the small baggie of prerolls he’d prepared.

“jesus, jj do not corrupt the poor girl.” john b bites back the entertained smile, lifting his head from where he lounged in the sun to look at you. “you sure you’re okay with this sweetheart? can totally… you know, stick to what you know.” he shrugs, sympathetically and you shake your head, wide eyes finding the blondes.

“its okay, told jj i’ve always wanted to try. he said he’d hook me up.” you smile politely, still a little shy around the group.

“yeah but he’s being weird about it.” kiara glares at her friend with her nose turned up, nudging him with her foot nearly knocking his balance off. “dont be a creep.”

“look i’m not being a creep, alright! ‘said she wanted to try, and i’m being a good citizen and simply helping this sweet young lady out dabbling in just a lil bit of herb okay so i don’t wanna—” he dives headfirst into another one of his rants, but is quieted by your gasp when a couple of items fall out his backpack, including a gun.

“nice work.” pope shakes his head and your eyes widen, looking around wondering why no one else is concerned.

“why do you have a gun, jj?” you scandalise and he picks it up casually, flipping it in his hands making you shuffle away, jaw agape.

“gotta protect my people, what’s wrong wi’that? look i’m a pro at usin’ this thing— set up a little target practice in john b’s backyard and lemme tell you, i have quite the aim.” he waves it around making you stiffen up, touching his bicep to stop him from being so reckless.

“god, you must be careful with that thing. they’re dangerous jj! i read that these pistols just go off at random all the time, you could seriously hurt someone and i don’t wanna be the person who gets shot by accident! do you even—” you freak, and he turns his body to you shuffling closer and silencing you.

“shh, shh, shh, shh — hey. it’s all good. i would never accidentally shoot a pretty girl. trust me, i’m so careful.” he smirks, bringing the tip of the barrel to your lips making you freeze with wide eyes. to keep you there as he speaks, an arm slings over your shoulder, his clammy hand gently grasping the back of your neck. you know you should be scared, the boy seems reckless and unhinged — and worst of all, his friends seemed used to it which tells you he does this shit all the time — but something about it made your cunt throb, dampening your bikini bottoms and subtly pressing your thighs together as you felt your skin heat up.

maybe it was all the books you read, but you’d always loved a bad boy.

“seriously bro? you’re scaring her.” kiara complains, leaning across and yanking the pistol out his hand and shoving it back into his backpack.

fast forward a few hours, and you’re back at the chateau, the only ones inside in john b’s bedroom. you’re looser, high and relaxed from the joint jj had talked you through smoking — and now you were laying your head on his bicep, his free hand down your panties rubbing your copious juices into your swollen clit.

“cant believe you’ve never been touched like this, mama. been missing out on heaven, right?” he grins, leaning down to kiss at your cheek when your eyes flutter closed, so out of it and blissful.

“mm… wanted this since…” you trail off, lips parting and brows furrowing when he curls his finger inside you.

“nah, go on. since when… tell me how long this pretty pussy’s been horny for papa j.” he dirty talks so well you clench hard around him, working up the courage. it didn’t take much, the intoxication and lust making you brave.

“since you put the gun to my lips.” you admit quietly and his jaw drops gleefully, speeding up his fingers.

“seriously? damn i knew you were gonna be a freak. it’s always the quiet ones, always dude.” he celebrates to himself before staring down at you adoringly. “man, i’m gonna have so much fun with you, pretty girl.”

[pucksandpower]

grid kids : y/n having super bad periods like bedridden and seb try’s to tell the boys they can’t visit and they go into full like code red crisis mode

Grid Kids: The Best Medicine

Sebastian Vettel x wife!Reader x platonic!drivers

Summary: the grid kids do everything they can think of to make you feel better

Series Masterlist

Max enters the room gingerly, holding a steaming mug of herbal tea. “I googled it,” he whispers to Charles, who’s setting up a little essential oil diffuser on the bedside table. “This should help.”

Charles nods, looking at the variety of oils he’s brought. “Lavender for relaxation,” he explains.

From the other side of the room, Lando and George carry in an enormous heating pad. “This helped my sister,” Lando mutters, plugging it in, while George adjusts the settings.

Lance, a bit out of his depth but wanting to contribute, tentatively offers a stack of magazines and books. “For ... distractions?”

Mick, who’s been quietly observing, pulls out a small speaker from his bag. “How about some calming music? Always helps to set a soothing environment.”

While this orchestrated chaos unfolds, you, despite your pain, can’t help but be touched by the outpouring of care and concern. You try to sit up but the discomfort is evident.

“Hey,” Sebastian gently admonishes, propping you up with more pillows, “Let them fuss over you. They want to.”

As evening falls, the room is transformed into a comforting sanctuary. The soft glow from fairy lights, the gentle hum of calming tunes, and the subtle scent of lavender fills the room.

Feeling a bit better from all the care, you whisper, “Thank you, boys. But you don’t have to stick around, you know.”

Lando pulls a funny face, “And miss out on a sleepover? No way.”

One by one, the grid kids, following Lando’s lead, find a comfy spot on your enormous bed, cocooning you protectively in the center. Some snuggled at the foot, some propped against the headboard, and others squished in the middle.

With the soft chirping of crickets outside and the rhythmic breathing of your sons on all sides, you drift into a peaceful sleep, pain momentarily forgotten in favor of burrowing deeper into the love and warmth surrounding you.

***

The morning sun peeks through the curtains, casting a warm glow across the room. you stir, the pain still present but noticeably diminished. As your eyes flutter open, you’re greeted by the endearing sight of the grid kids sprawled all around you, each in varying poses of sleep.

Sebastian, having given up his spot on the bed last night, is asleep in the armchair, a book resting on his chest. George and Lando, squished up at the foot of the bed, are tangled in a mess of limbs, while Charles seems to have created a makeshift fort for himself with every pillow he could find.

The aroma of breakfast wafts into the room, pulling you from your thoughts. Mick, having woken up earlier, stands in the doorway with a tray. “Morning! Thought you might be hungry,” he says, a smile touching his lips.

“Oh, Mick,” you murmur, touched by the gesture. “You didn’t have to.”

He sets the tray on your lap, revealing a spread of toast with bacon and eggs, fresh fruit, and some yogurt. “We all pitched in. Well, mostly Max and Lance. They seem to think they’re on MasterChef or something.”

Laughter ripples through the room as the others start to wake, each stretching and yawning. Max, rubbing his eyes, adds, “Hey, those scrambled eggs were a work of art!”

Lance chimes in, “Don’t forget about the smoothie. That was my masterpiece.”

George, trying to subtly smooth out his bed head, quirks a brow. “If we’re being all domestic, how about a spa day? Right here, right now.”

Charles, still nestled in his pillow fort, chuckles. “In this room? With all of us? I’m sure that will end well.”

Max’s eyes light up, “I’m in! But only if someone does that cucumber thing on my eyes.”

Mick grins, “You mean a cucumber facial? I’ve got you covered.” He dashes out, only to return moments later with a stash of beauty products. “My sister left these the last time she visited. We’ve got masks, scrubs, the works!”

Amused and touched by the turn of events, you announce, “Alright then, let the spa day commence!”

Sebastian, skeptical but game, adds, “I’ve never had a mani-pedi before.”

Lando winks, “There’s a first time for everything, Seb. Give me your hands.”

As Lando starts on Sebastian while Lance gets to work on making more of his famed smoothies for everyone. Meanwhile, George and Charles, having taken over the facial department, start applying face masks, complete with cucumber slices for the eyes.

An hour later, the room is a delightful mess. Mick and Max have somehow managed to get more face mask on their shirts than on their faces. Lando’s meticulous nail painting skills are in high demand, and George is draped over the foot of the bed, a bright green face mask contrasting comically with his hair.

You, through bouts of laughter, look around at the delightful chaos. “Alright, time for the big question. Do you or do you not feel bonita?”

Lance, his fingers spread out to dry the bright pink nail polish Lando chose, grins. “I feel bonita.”

Charles, attempting to peel off his dried mask, replies with a dramatic flair, “I was born bonita but now? I’m radiant!”

Mick chimes in, “Can’t see through these cucumber slices but I’m pretty sure I’m the most bonita of all.”

The room fills with banter, laughter, and the gentle ribbing that only close friends and family can share. As the day turns into evening, the spa treatments wind down and the room settles into a comfortable quiet.

You, heart full, look around at the makeshift spa and the joy it brought. “Thank you, boys. Today was unexpected but absolutely perfect.”

Sebastian, his nails now adorned with a clear glossy finish, adds, “I think we should make this a tradition. Spa day before every race.”

Max raises his own freshly manicured hand. “All in favor?”

A chorus of “Ayes!” fills the room and so a new tradition was born.

[saerins]

⋆୨ chapter seven ୧˚ till forever falls apart

⋆୨ if not for you (masterlist) ⋆୨ previous: chapter six - redefines in every way what love is - end ୧˚

⋆୨ synopsis ୧˚ neither of you want this. both you and sae reluctantly agree to this marriage, although sae’s dissatisfaction far outweighs your own. with hidden agendas and old flames, will this ever work out between the two of you, or will your forced spark be doomed to fail?

ೀ series: sae x f!reader | wc 8.8k | ೀ content warnings: fluff/angst, modern au, arranged marriage, rich!sae and rich!reader, jealousy/paranoia, suggestive scenes, mentions of blood/children | notes: we have finally reached the end of infy !! rejoice i will no longer be able to torture you guys with the ending of this hehe but i do hope you all enjoyed this ^_^ & now onto the next !

“I came here to talk to her.”

There’s no speck of kindness left in Sae’s eyes when he looks at what’s left of his former lover. He doesn’t even notice you sauntering up behind him.

“How many times do I need to tell you to leave us alone?” Sae emphasises that last part, uncertain of how else he can possibly phrase it so that she makes herself scarce.

For the first time tonight, Mirin doesn’t even pay attention to Sae. Her eyes look past him, focused entirely on you.

You take your position next to Sae, feeling his hand tenderly grip onto your wrist. At the very least, it gives you comfort knowing that he’s here no matter what’ll happen. Though, judging by the ever slight panic you can make out from Mirin’s face, whatever it is isn’t pretty.

Mirin doesn’t say a word, only stares at you expectantly. Swallowing your ego, you nod subtly. You’re curious.

“I’m sorry,” comes out of her mouth, and you don’t know how to feel. There’s a lot of things she needs to be sorry for, but that’s your personal feelings. Somehow, you doubt it’s related to anything with regards to Sae.

“If that’s all you came to say—”

“Do you know about your parents?” Mirin ignores Sae again, instead looking to you.

Sae’s about to just shut the door in her face when you tug on his hand, stopping him. He’s perplexed by you, but he listens to you just the same.

“Yeah, barely. What about it?” 

Because Sae did tell you briefly about it, about his suspicions on what they’re trying to do. You have to admit, having Oliver and his family’s PI stalk your parents wasn’t on your bingo card this year. And what he’s suspicious of never even crossed your mind. Only because even if they aren’t the best parents in the world, you didn’t think that they’d actually let any harm come upon you.

To think, they would try to take all of the money, not only their own but yours too, in order to save their own asses.

Mirin almost looks like she doesn’t want to say anything, her fingers grasping tightly and desperately on the hem of her dress before opening her mouth and making your heart sink to the depths below.

“The police are coming and it’s my fault and I know I haven’t done anything to earn your trust but can you please let me handle it?”

She says it all in one breath. Hurriedly without pause.

Are the police already that close?

“What the fuck, Mirin?” Sae spits, his grip on you tightening as he pulls you behind him, the vein on his forehead close to popping.

Mirin swallows the lump in her throat and you’re left staring in a daze behind your husband, wondering what you’ve done that was so wrong that you deserved this; your parents, a scorned and jealous ex-lover, legal threats.

“Sae, please,” Mirin’s panicking and you wonder why that is. Correction, you can sense why—it’s plain old regret. Regret caused by rash actions done on impulse. “It’s my fault, I know but we don’t have time. Tabito’s trying to stall them but they’re coming.” Her eyes flicker over to you, and you’d think she’s beautiful if all you’re seeing isn’t just red.

You feel the injustice creeping up inside of you, threatening you to take action. “And why the hell should I trust you?” Your tone is harsher than you ever thought you could go, and even Mirin shrinks back at the venom she senses laced inside your words.

And usually you’d feel bad for it but someone has already called the cops on you for something you didn’t do and that someone is right in front of you asking you for the same trust she wouldn’t have afforded you if the roles were reversed. If you didn’t have any self control, you’d have slapped her by now.

Mirin’s about to say something when she hears seven tight raps on the door. As Sae reluctantly moves away to open the door, Mirin whips her head towards you one last time.

“Please.”

The last thing she deserves is a chance. You know that. Both your head and your heart are in the same place for once and yet why can’t you act on it? Why can’t you just tell her to shove it up her ass?

“Y/N,” Sae calls your name, hushed because you presume he’s just as cautious as you are.

Slowly, you nod your head, signalling for him to open the door. You don’t know what Mirin is planning, or whether all this is part of her evil plot to take you down somehow.

When the door opens, you see Sae’s friend, Karasu, stepping in first before a detective, a dirty blonde with dark circles under his eyes like he hasn’t slept for days. Behind him, two policemen stand guard, watching you cautiously, as though you might try to jump out the window just to run from them.

“Are you Y/N?”

The detective is addressing you, and you’re sure he’s only doing it out of courtesy because these people always do their work before nabbing their supposed targets. Beside you, Mirin steps one step forward, her earlier panic expertly masked by a puzzlingly professional expression. From your line of sight, behind where the detective stands, Sae tries to move toward you, only to have Karasu reach out to grab his wrist and keep him there, a subtle shake of his head as the only signal for him not to make any moves.

“I am,” you respond, because any under or overreaction would only prove to make you look guilty.

“What is this about, detective?” Mirin asks, a casual aloofness donned on her face now. You’re impressed by just how quickly she can change her moods.

“Oh, it’s you, Ms Seto,” the detective says, realising who she is, and you don’t doubt how influential her father’s been to all of Japan with his work. Immediately, his face softens and brightens up, as though it’s imperative that he stay on their family’s good side. He probably assumes that just because Mirin’s here in this hotel room that she’s close to you. “We received an anonymous tip regarding Ms L/N’s family here, as well as her possible involvement. We’d like to take her down to the station for some questioning.”

So that’s what Mirin had done to you. She had tried to pin part of what your parents are doing on you, too. You nearly scoff if not for the fact you know that the two policemen behind are watching you like a hawk. Mirin is the one who scoffs though, crossing her arms like she’s been through these situations a thousand times.

Beside you, any trace of guilt is absent from Mirin’s expression because apparently, and you don’t doubt it, she’s a very good actress. If it’s up to you, you’d say that her talents are wasted since she’s not one. And while your stubborn ego wants to solve this for yourself, you’d never even gotten in trouble with the local police before for anything, and something tells you that Mirin is way better than you are at this, so you keep your mouth shut and let her handle this like she asked.

“So you have no proof of any sort that she’s complicit in any illegal activities?”

The detective chuckles helplessly, like he expects Mirin to be that attentive. “No, not until the anonymous tipper provides us with what they say they have.”

Mirin’s expression falters just slightly for a split second before she’s back to normal. “So no concrete proof, then?”

“No, ma’am.” The detective seems a little laid back around her—are they family friends? Sure seems like it to you.

“Then I’d appreciate it if you don’t treat Y/N here like she’s some sort of criminal. We wouldn’t want anyone seeing her being escorted into a police car and making assumptions, would we?”

Behind him, Sae seems to have relaxed a little, lacking the earlier blind hostility he held. Maybe it partly has to do with whatever Karasu whispered to him right before this. Still, he’s as surprised as you are that Mirin’s committing herself to covering for you.

“Fine, we’ll meet at the station then,” the detective says, the mirth still on his face as he bids a temporary goodbye.

When all that’s left are the four of you, Sae immediately takes his place beside you, his hand possessively gripping your wrist, an accusatory look thrown in Mirin’s direction. “You did all of that just to mess with my wife?”

Mirin’s expression falters when he uses that term again, for you, because deep down, she still wishes for it to be her. She still wishes for that guy she fell in love with and made all those plans with to be hers. Hers, and no one else’s. But it’s evident enough that no matter how much she tries, even if you somehow ended up dead, it would never be her. He’d rather wait for the ghost of you than live with anyone else.

Karasu walks over, settling himself between the divide. He’s the one who seems the most sane, given this has almost nothing to do with him. “Sae, leave it for now,” Karasu advises, blocking Mirin’s line of sight. You presume he’s just doing it as a favour, maybe to simmer Sae’s anger, because you can feel his hands trembling with rage even as they hold on to you. “We need to get Y/N to the police station before this gets any worse for her and her sister.”

Your throat goes dry. “My sister? She’s been taken in too?”

How ironic that you were doing all this just to protect her from the harsh reality that your parents never loved either of you.

Karasu nods apologetically. “My sources say she was taken in about half an hour ago, but discreetly.”

The passive anger that was only settling on the surface seems to finally boil over, and you thank god that Sae is holding you back from possibly harming Mirin. Otherwise, you’d have probably punched her right now.

“I’m… I’m sorry.” Her voice is timid and she’s trembling but you don’t hold an ounce of appreciation for her earlier actions nor sympathy for her current emotions. This was all because of her. Her, and your parents, and you doubt you’re enough of a saint to forgive either parties.

“If anything happens to her, I’ll make sure you regret it.” Your words are a warning, and Mirin takes them in silently.

Maybe you have been too nice, and way too passive. To the point where people like Mirin felt like they could try their best because they had nothing to fear. At the very least, it still comforts you knowing that Sae was never trying to get anywhere with her. If not, it was the very opposite, though you still didn’t appreciate his lack of communication.

“Hey, I’ll drive us there, okay?” Sae tells you softly, his hand tugging yours gently, briefly washing the anger off of you. When you face him and nod, he smiles, his hand coming up to place your head against his shoulder as he walks you to the car, Karasu and Mirin trudging wordlessly behind. You let him lead the way, finding an odd sense of comfort, different from before.

Now, you know that Sae will protect you unconditionally. He’s been doing it up until now, even when you weren’t his favourite person. Despite his shortcomings, despite the fact that he had no obligation to, Sae was always on your side.

And maybe now you can see a glimpse of the future you imagined, the one where you get unconditional love, the one where you can see a happy family who’s not just obsessed with money. A proper one, with its very foundations built on love and not control over another.

When you get to the carpark, you see Mirin getting into Karasu’s car, and you silently thank him for going out of his way to get involved in all of this. The last thing you need is to be able to see Mirin in the rearview mirror of your husband’s car, sitting there as though she deserved any sort of comfort. If you could, you’d stuff her in the trunk and tell her to deal with it.

However, even without her there, both of you stay relatively quiet. Maybe because neither of you have ever been in this type of situation; neither of you know what to say. Even so, as he pulls in to the parking lot of the station, he takes your hand, squeezing it gently, his teal eyes gentle as they fall into your gaze.

“No matter what, I promise you, I’ll protect you, okay?”

You don’t doubt his words. You nod, squeezing his hand back, tightly because you’re more nervous than he is. You’d probably have to face the interrogation alone, or at the most with Mirin, and who knows what she might pull in there?

“Hey, hey,” he calls out to you softly, his other hand coming up to your cheek and turning you to face him, his forehead pressing against your own, eyes still locked on yours, his smile the gentlest you’ve ever seen. “We’ll get through this. Whatever you decide, whatever you want to do, I’ll take your side, okay baby?”

Maybe it’s the way the pet name so easily rolls off your tongue, but you still find your heart skipping a beat at such a simple gesture.

“Ready?”

You take a deep breath, nodding.

“Ready.”

While you’re in the room with Mirin and the detective, Sae finds himself pacing the waiting room restlessly despite Karasu’s attempts at calming him down.

The raven-haired man cocks a brow, amused by what he sees because Itoshi Sae of all people getting restless is always interesting. Usually, he doesn’t even get to see Sae bothered at all. The last time he saw that sliver of emotion was, well, back when Mirin left.

“Dude, relax, your wife will be fine.” That’s all Karasu can offer now, pointless words of assurance. Though he can argue he’s been plenty useful when calming Mirin down back at the hotel. 

Sae shoots him a warning look. “With Mirin in there?”

Karasu sighs, leaning back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. He doesn’t recall knowing when exactly things got so fucked up between them.

“Look, I don’t know what the fuck was up with her, I’ll be honest,” Karasu explains, the only person there with any hint of pity for Mirin. “She fucked up, she knows. And you don’t gotta forgive her, really. If it were me I’d have handled it much less classier than your wife did. But trust me, Mirin’s trying to make up for it right now, okay? We can’t do anything so relax.”

Silence falls over them for a while, the sounds of the landlines ringing and clacking of keyboards the only things they can hear.

“What did you say to make her regret it?”

Because Sae’s at the very least curious about why she was so quick to rescind her punishment for you.

His friend shrugs, “is it hard to believe it could be something as simple as realising she didn’t wanna lose you completely?”

The earlier hostility leaves Sae’s body, only a bitter upset lingering behind. Because he can believe it, because at the core, Mirin’s always been simple. The way she acts out, not so much. She’d already alienated Sae by having been the object of his affection once, and that was not her fault, but she’d exacerbated it by acting completely out of line. On the tip of her impulsiveness was just the last chance to either possibly redeem herself or risk thorough destruction of whatever was left of their entire relationship through the years.

Maybe it’s heartless of him, but he doesn’t care. Yeah, he should’ve handled it better in the beginning. He should’ve just told Mirin that he doesn’t want to be someone who wrecks his own home, even if it didn’t feel exactly like home back then. But you didn’t deserve the anger she placed onto you. After realising his feelings, that was where he drew the line. 

He doesn’t give a shit if Mirin woke up and regretted her actions. He doesn’t care if she’s trying to make up for it and save you. All he cares about is you and just you.

Sensing the tension in the air, Karasu forces a lighthearted chuckle. “What kind of magic does Y/N have to make someone like you so whipped, huh?”

There’s a pink hue to Sae’s cheeks at the mention of it, forcing him to look away as Karasu snickers at him.

“Look… don’t get mad, okay? But… do you think it’s possible she knew about it all?”

Never in his life has Sae’s fingers curled into a fist so fast, nails digging into his palms so hard, and Karasu has to throw his hands up in the air in surrender. Both of them know that if anything happens, they’re going to be recorded—and then the media will see it. And then everything will be taken out of context.

It’s routine at this point.

“She had nothing to do with it, so shut it.”

Does Sae know for sure that you don’t? Of course not. He doesn’t have evidence to support you, except that your parents left you behind. If your family’s really twisted, it could all be a part of some ploy. But Sae likes to think he knows you; you’re not sick or twisted. You’re kind and beautiful and trustworthy that he’s not even going to entertain the idea that you knew anything.

It isn’t long after that Sae spots you walking out of the interrogation room, down the corridor and back out to him. For the most part, at least you look fine. You’re trembling a little, so he clasps his hands over yours, holding you to him and kissing the top of your head.

“Hey, you doing okay?”

You can only manage a weak nod, but that’s enough for him. This situation can be a bit much for anyone. He holds you close like that, his warm body cloaking your own. You hate how it’s so easy for you to calm down when he’s here with you, and even if you’d like to condemn him for making such a whirlwind for your life you know it’s not technically his fault.

It was your parents who forced you into this marriage, or else you’d never have met Sae at all. It was Mirin who took it upon herself to try and ruin everything when Sae had refused her. And it was definitely your parents who took all their money and ran before they could get caught for multiple counts of fraud and embezzlement.

All Sae ever did was save your own money, all thanks to making that joint account. Otherwise, your parents would’ve made off with your money too, leaving you with no cent to your name, all properties seized.

You hold him a little tighter now, the tiff over what you thought was going on between him and Mirin seeming so stupid in comparison. Your own parents abandoned you and your sister, looked at you as just a pawn to get what they wanted. You don’t even know how you’re going to face Sae’s parents now that this happened.

A minute later, Mirin also waltzes out of the room, her feigned arrogance still present because the detective is still there. You gaze at them out of the corner of your eye; things only went so easy there because Mirin played her family’s cards right, and now both you and your sister are free to go.

In normal situations, this is where you thank her. But nothing about this is normal, and this was a situation partly borne out of Mirin’s impulsiveness. So all you manage is not paying her back with a slap.

“If you hear anything—”

“We’ll call you,” Sae cuts the detective off, his grip around you getting tighter.

Even if everything had been rocky earlier tonight, you find yourself comforted by the way you just know that Sae would protect you no matter what. You don’t even have to ask him, and he’d do right by you. For a moment, you wonder if this is the kind of unconditional love you’d always wanted.

“Hey, are you okay? Wanna go now?”

Sae’s voice is softer than you thought he could ever be, and all you want to do is melt into his embrace without thinking about anything but unfortunately the world is never so kind and neither is your mind because there’s a thousand questions running through it.

“Where’s my sister?”

“I got her to wait in Karasu’s car with her boyfriend. His car has more privacy and I thought it’d be best if no one outside could picture us.”

Right, because there are already some reporters who got hold of the news and are waiting right outside to ambush you into answering their questions. It’s all sorts of fucked up but you presume your parents are worse so you can’t really say anything.

Sae starts to lead the way to the carpark, his hand never leaving your side. He makes sure to look around, make sure nobody’s there to ambush you. Behind you, you can hear Karasu whispering things you can’t hear, probably to Mirin.

“That would mean there won’t be any space for her, right?” You ask, your mind still doing flips back and forth between being the bigger person and being petty about it. Because you’d love to be as ruthless as she once was to you, but ultimately, you don’t want to feel like you owe her anything.

As you reach the car, Karasu unlocks it, and Sae opens the back door, your sister sound asleep on the other side, her boyfriend muttering a soft ‘hello’. They both look tired, and you don’t blame them. At least you had Sae to warn you about what was going on, but to them it must’ve been a shock, especially for your poor sister who’s always been sheltered against the horrible things your parents could do.

“It’s fine, she can take the train,” Sae mutters, purposefully loud enough for Mirin to hear and hopefully get the hint.

Karasu’s about to suggest otherwise, but you interject—you’re pretty sure you’re the only one Sae will listen to now anyway. Even if Karasu tries to say anything, there’s a high chance that it’ll go ignored.

“She can sit in the front,” you say, because despite knowing better, it’s always been in you to try and be nice.

“Thank—”

“If she ends up getting pictured, it could blow back on us anyway,” you mutter coldly, because being nice doesn’t mean you have to make it apparent. There’s no one here you have to impress anyway, and Sae probably knows you’re just trying to hold it together for yourself, so you won’t have any regrets.

Like you predicted, Sae’s not all for it, but he doesn’t say a thing, following after you into the backseat, squeezing and trying not to wake your sister. Mirin doesn’t say a thing the whole way back, she only thanks Karasu for driving her back and leaves. Neither does Karasu say a thing, awkward silence hanging in the air as you catch him casting quick glances at you and Sae in the rearview mirror.

“Thanks for taking care of her,” you whisper to your sister’s boyfriend as he carries her out of the car. You didn’t get to talk to her all night, but that’s fine, you suppose she needs a long rest after everything she found out tonight.

He shoots you a helpless smile after he presses a kiss onto her forehead. The way he looks at her alone could make people believe in love, and you’ve never been more thankful that you tried your best to protect it. Among everyone, your sister’s always been good and kind, and even if you’ve never seen her around that much after university started for her, you love her all the same.

“You sure you don’t wanna wake her?” He asks you, quietly so he doesn’t disturb her. “She said she missed you, you know.”

You shake your head. “It’s fine, I’ll call her when things settle down,” you assure him, managing a genuine smile. “Take care of her, okay?”

Behind you, Sae smiles to himself when he figures out he must’ve married an angel, must be the luckiest man in the world. Despite everything that’s happened, you should be taking care of yourself, yet you managed to make sure Mirin got a ride home, and that your sister is in good hands. You’re a much bigger person than Sae can even dream to be and yet somehow, you chose to put all your effort into him and this marriage and even if he can’t tell where this will go from now on, he’s not going to give up on you.

When Karasu pulls out of your sister’s apartment parking, Sae slides over to your side, sitting himself on the middle backseat, putting an arm around you and gently placing your head in the crook of his neck. Then, only then, do you let your tears go, sobbing into his chest because you’d been holding back all this time, and Sae wonders if you do this a lot on a daily basis; put on a brave face as though you need to pretend you’re something you’re not. Though, if this was happening to him and Rin, he would be doing the same thing you are.

In the driver’s seat, Karasu finally understands why Oliver’s been saying Sae is a changed man. Even back then, with Mirin, Karasu doesn’t recall Sae being this gentle. Maybe it’s because he’s older now, or maybe it’s just because of you—the fact that it’s you, that’s why Sae is like this at all, a privilege only for a special person.

“Hey man,” Karasu calls out to Sae after you get out of the car. He smirks when Sae looks over at him, very much like a hopeless man in love because out of the corner of his eye, Karasu can tell that he has his hand in yours, keeping you there. Since when was he ever this clingy? “Congratulations.” Something he didn’t get to say because he wasn’t at the wedding.

But at least saying it now, he can really mean it.

Sae smiles subtly, but your head pops back into Karasu’s field of view before your husband can say anything.

“Hey, Karasu, right?”

He looks surprised, but he smiles at you all the same. “Yes, I am.”

You grin at him, and Karasu can already tell Sae’s a lucky man. Pretty wife, and from whatever Oliver’s mentioned, it sounds like you’re a keeper.

“I just met you tonight but… thank you, really,” you tell him, and he chuckles. 

You’re really something, because even Mirin had mentioned it to him earlier when she was having a full-on breakdown, when he had asked about you. Karasu thinks that it would just be a lot easier to think screw everyone and just focus on yourself, but apparently, not for you. Maybe he understands a little more of why Sae can’t help but fall for you.

“That’s a lot of shit to unload on someone who didn’t exactly steal Sae from you,” Karasu remarked, trying his best to steer Mirin in the right direction.

Mirin clicked her tongue, annoyed because she knew she wasn’t exactly acting with common sense. All she had wanted was to remove you from the picture, through any means necessary. So why? Why was it that whatever she tried would backfire on her? Why was it that no matter what, Sae would never give up on you? Where was the guy that so easily gave in when Mirin had suggested a breakup?

Why did she have to teach him everything only for you to get everything she ever wanted?

“Look, I don’t know what you’re thinking, but if you keep doing this…” Karasu trailed off, sighing as he looked away, scratching his head. “You’re really gonna lose every ounce of a friend you could possibly have in Sae.”

Mirin kept quiet for a while, then, as if she was considering something. Back then, Karasu hadn’t even known that anonymous tip she sent in to the police. If he had, he would’ve definitely acted faster.

“Is that Y/N even that bad of a girl?” Karasu thought out loud, wondering why there was all this trouble over you and Sae.

And for the first time since she got back to Japan, Mirin was completely honest with herself.

“No, she’s not.” (It was so quiet, Karasu had trouble deciding whether it was just the figment of his imagination.)

Because what had you ever done to her except unwillingly be placed in the middle of their by-then non-existent relationship?

“At your service, ma’am,” Karasu responds, grinning at you when he says his next words. “And don’t worry, I’ll keep Mirin in check.”

You still for a moment hearing those words, then pout at him before you slowly retreat out of the car, pulling Sae with you. You’re not even sure why you can find it in yourself to be worried for someone like Mirin who tried to screw you over. Maybe it’s because Sae had told you about her parents, about how she just didn’t have anyone and leaned on Sae for support out of habit. Somehow, Karasu’s words manage to comfort you a little bit; at least you knew that there was still someone else looking out for her. Your empathy is there, but that doesn’t mean you want to forgive her or even think about it.

Karasu laughs at your subtle reaction, rolling down the window, “hey Sae, your wife’s kinda cute,” he teases, and you see why Karasu managed to calm Mirin down back at the hotel. Whatever he did, it was definitely effective. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he oozes sincerity despite his jokes, something you can’t really say for Oliver and Shidou.

Beside you, Sae uses his body to block your line of sight as he flips Karasu off. “My wife, go away,” he quips, and you can only watch as Karasu laughs it off while he drives away from your apartment.

The moment you’re back in the house, Sae sets your bag down slowly on the couch, and you pause right before you enter the bedroom. Everything somehow feels light yet awkward and it feels like you’ve been through so many emotions in the span of one night and now it’s already 2am and you’re tired but it’s not like you can sleep right away with all these thoughts in your head.

You feel Sae’s chest press up against your back, his arms wrapping around your chest. Now that you know he’s never actually even cheated on you, or even thought about it, it’s like a huge weight has been lifted off your chest.

“What’s on your mind?” There’s a strain in his voice, and you can tell he’s gotten a cold just from tonight alone.

You sigh. “I don’t know if I can handle all of this…” you mutter honestly. Everything has just been too much. It was manageable back when you thought your marriage was the only thing in ruins, but to learn now that your parents are wanted fugitives and the fact that they’d leave you and your sister to clean things up and bear the brunt of being damned just for being their kids is a lot to take in for one night.

“You know I’m here for you whatever you need, right?” Sae asks, holding you tighter, pressing a kiss on your temple.

You want to be soft for him so bad, you want to melt into his touch and let him comfort you and hug him to sleep, but can you really afford it right now? Can you afford letting him feel that everything is fine after keeping everything from you and driving you to the point of thinking about divorce?

It’s not normal. It shouldn’t be.

And while you appreciate what he’s done for you in secret, that’s exactly what you’re not so sure about—secrets. You’re husband and wife, and if there’s going to be any hope moving forward, you can’t have him try and bear the burden of knowing alone.

“If you ever keep something like that from me again, I’m not giving you another chance,” you tell him, your voice quivering but he listens to you seriously all the same. It’s times like these where you appreciate that he isn’t the type to be joking around all the time. He’s serious when you need him to be, and that means a lot to you already.

“I promise you, I’ll talk to you, whatever it is,” he says, slowly turning you around, his fingers gently gripping your chin, tipping your head up to face him. “I meant what I said, by the way. I love you, Y/N, and I’m sorry I was being stupid. And I’ll try to make up for it, however long it takes me, okay?”

This is a first for you that it makes you emotional. For your entire life, you feel like it’s been you who’s been the one trying to take care of other people’s feelings and needs so much that you step all over your own. For your entire life, no one has cared about you so much so that they’d actively try and take care of you. Everyone lets you take care of everything yourself without thinking that it’d be nice to offer you help even if you looked like you didn’t need it.

For your whole life, you’d wondered how it would feel like being loved by someone who wants to take care of you just because. And here he is, making you feel like you’re loveable, like you’re worthy of being treated like a princess, like you don’t have to mask who you are to get his love because no matter what you do, his love overpowers it.

“So don’t leave me, okay?” Sae’s lashes flutter against your own, his teeth clenched because he’s thinking of how close he was to losing you and he would’ve never forgiven himself if you did.

And maybe it’s the way you realised he’s loved you in his own way all this while, or maybe it’s the way he keeps you so close to him now, so afraid of losing you, that you feel it’s okay to let yourself go, to let yourself be you, to wear your heart on your sleeve because no matter what it is, Sae will take care of it.

“I love you, Sae,” you whisper, both of you with your eyes closed, breaths mixed together, Sae subconsciously pushing you into the bedroom because he never realised that such simple words from you would ignite such an urgency inside him.

That night, for the first time, you experience Sae’s love for you. The way it’s so subtle, so gentle, a complete opposite of what you initially thought he was. The way he holds you in the palm of his hands and takes care of you completely; a dream you thought you’d never live to see come true. So many people go their whole lives being stuck in a relationship that they find lacking and yet here you are, getting everything you need and want and you don’t even have to ask for it because Sae knows you well enough to give it to you.

In the dim light of the moon that makes it into the slivers of your blinds, Sae marks you as his own, and even though neither of you have been through it, it feels right. It feels so right even when you’re lying in bed together after everything, legs tangled together underneath the blanket, bare bodies enveloping one another as the exhaustion finally kicks in.

Sae watches you as you fall asleep, finger lightly brushing your arms and lulling you to sleep. There’s a lot he still doesn’t understand about relationships, and the only form of experience he had seemingly meaning nothing in the face of his actual love, yet he’s strangely motivated now. There’s no way he’s going to let anything, much less himself, fuck this up.

No, he’s going to do his best to keep you happy, to take care of you and make sure you don’t have to be the one who acts strong all the time just to appease everyone else. He’s going to make you smile everyday because you deserve it, and he’ll do anything to make sure that happens.

Anything.

“She had nothing to do with it.”

Of course, Sae’s parents didn’t take too well to the news. One night isn’t enough for it to blow over, because the moment they got the news, they were here to get to the bottom of it. As expected, you received nothing but accusatory remarks, and unlike Mirin’s, at least Sae’s parents had the right to be upset.

Still, Sae’s standing up to them, a protective arm keeping you behind him, making sure they don’t throw daggers at you.

They’re angry, but they’re not as bad as your own parents. At the very least, his father isn’t throwing a tantrum and breaking silverware. Doesn’t even look close to it. He only crosses his arms in disbelief, the vein on his forehead threatening to pop.

“Are you sure you want to defend her?” He asks his son, scoffing. “You know how bad of a reputation we have now thanks to her parents?”

“He’s right, honey, if you want to divorce her now we’d fully support you,” his mother joins in, and she’s every bit as submissive as your own mother, you bet. Anything for their money bag.

“I’m not divorcing my wife ever, so if that’s all you came to say, you can leave.”

Suddenly you feel guilt for being the one to bring up divorce in the first place.

The argument goes on for a while, and you keep quiet all through it. Only because Sae asked you to. It’s fair; he wants to handle his parents, so you’ll trust him to it. If there’s a need, you’d interject anyway.

Like right now, when you realise that maybe your silence is making things even worse, like your admittance of guilt.

“I’m sorry for what my parents did,” you speak up, bowing ninety degrees because as much as you hate their actions, you want to help Sae as much as you can. He must hate talking to his parents as much as you do, so the least you can do is alleviate that. “I really didn’t know what they were up to, and I didn’t expect it to affect your family’s reputation as well. I can’t even begin to repay you for what my parents did, but I can offer you everything I have now, and I’ll do anything you want me to.”

“Then easy, leave—”

“Except leave your son,” you affirm, straightening up and looking them in the eyes. “We love each other, so we’re going to make this work.” Beside you, a smile tugs on the corners of Sae’s lips at your declaration. Are you really the same person who used to be so meek in front of yours and his parents once upon a time? “As for my parents, I’ll let the authorities do their work and capture them. As far as I’m concerned, they’re dead to me.”

Perhaps it’s because of your strong words, but the Itoshis leave not ten minutes later.

You flop down on the couch, an exhausting morning followed by an exhausting night is entirely too much for you. Sae shamelessly lays himself down on top of you, head resting on your chest. He must still be tired, judging from the bags under his eyes.

“Sorry about that,” he mumbles, fingers absentmindedly playing with your hair. “You were pretty hot, though, sticking it to them.”

You stifle a laugh, though your smile speaks for itself. “Guess we should’ve expected that. They got conned out of their money too, after all. Wonder when this is all gonna blow over,” you sigh to yourself, just wishing that the problem would disappear.

Over the course of the next few days, you received texts from colleagues asking what happened, and Sumi in particular loves to cuss your parents out over text and then apologise for being insensitive afterwards. It carries a sense of normalcy that you needed, though.

It takes a few months before everything completely settles down for you, until your sister has come to the realisation that your parents abandoned you and deserve whatever hell they’re going to get. It doesn’t stop her from saying yes to her boyfriend when he proposes, and you and Sae watch on lovingly as she leaps into his arms and kisses him silly.

“You know what, a family like this doesn’t suck so much either,” you ponder out loud. All you really need is just your sister, and Sae—both of them have never failed you after all.

Sae puts his arm around you, holding you close like he always does. You notice that; that when Sae loves you he’ll crave your proximity everytime. Sumi likes to joke that he’s too clingy, but you like him just like that.

Seeing the scene unfold in front of them, your eyes twinkling as you watch the movie-like proposal in front of you, Sae feels just a pang of guilt.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t give that to you,” he mutters, though he already knows you don’t mind. To you, what matters the most is that the both of you are still together, still happy.

And that’s exactly what you say with your hands wrapped around his neck, kissing him with those perfect lips of yours, pulling him in so naturally without having to do anything.

“You give me more than enough, Itoshi Sae,” you whisper, oblivious to Sae falling even more and more in love with you.

“Have I told you I love you?”

You chuckle, nodding and Sae’s completely taken by your grin.

“We love you too.”

“We?”

And when you break it to him, in a hushed whisper because you don’t want to ruin the proposal, Sae gives you the most lovestruck expression you’ve ever seen.

THREE YEARS LATER

A lot has changed.

Turns out, you’re not as cold-hearted as you thought. Mirin is still on the list of your least-liked humans, for sure, but it’s not like you care enough to harbour any resentment anymore. She’s not worth vexing over, and much less so after that one time years ago when she came over to personally apologise. You haven’t officially forgiven her, but you don’t particularly wish the worst upon her. You’re not even sure where she is or what she’s doing because Sae doesn’t care for keeping in touch with her, but you’re both indifferent about her now.

Reo had apparently met someone special last year when he attended a charity gala. You’ve never met her in person, but from the pictures Reo takes and shares on his socials—all to show her off, no doubt—she looks absolutely breathtaking. He was there with you throughout the whole fiasco too, lending his family’s support to weather you through the tough times. You’re happy he finally found that special someone. From his texts, sometimes it seems rocky, but he’s “pretty sure she’s the one,” and you’re honestly happy for him.

Your parents have been caught—apparently, a year out they’d tried to seek shelter with one of their friends only for them to tip the police off. It wasn’t even like you, but you visited your mother in jail, just out of curiosity, and the only thing she had begged you was to help them get a good lawyer. Not that you didn’t expect it, or that it would make any difference if you did agree. Frankly, you just went there to say “no”, to let her feel the same helplessness she and your father cast upon you. You’ve never visited her since.

Sae’s been busy ever since his career shift two years ago. (His parents weren’t all too happy about it, but ever since their screw up with yours, they weren’t as forceful anymore.) Now, he’s one of the assistant coaches for Japan’s national team, and you’ve never been happier for him. It gives him more flexibility too, getting to spend more time with you back at home, but also getting to invite you with him whenever they travel.

You guess it’s lucky that you managed to land a spot helping the team out with marketing, so more often than not you get to see your husband play some soccer. Like right now, when you’re bent over the railing, watching him coach the two main midfielders and looking completely different than when he’s at home.

For one, it’s definitely the first time you get to see him all intense. With you, he’s pretty much the opposite, going all soft whenever he gets home, and you wonder how you got so lucky to be building a home with someone who loves you so much he can spot you a mile away and give you the gentlest smile you’ve ever seen.

Sae calls for a break, jogging towards your direction looking handsome as hell but you’re not going to tell him that or else he’ll tease you about it.

“How are my girls?”

Oh, and you’ve apparently managed to give him a daughter that looks so much like him. She sits on the railing, your arms wrapped around her to support her as she jumps into her father’s arms.

“She’s been bugging me all day to come and visit you,” you remark.

Yeah, she’s a daddy’s girl—and you smile watching Sae kiss her all over, her laughter ringing in the air, her happiness meaning the world to you.

Neither you nor Sae have ever experienced what a good family is like, nor have either of you seen what good parenting is like. But your daughter seems happy everyday, with parents who support her whenever she wants to try something different, so you both take it one step at a time, learning as you go. If it ever gets too difficult for you, Sae steps in, and he’s never let you down.

“Remember what we’re gonna surprise mommy with later?” Sae asks your daughter, and you’re still trying to get used to him calling you that.

You arch a brow, “I get a surprise?”

Your daughter giggles, nodding as she melts in her father’s arms. “Of course, mommy! You’ll love it!”

Her smile is infectious, a grin forming on your face just by looking at her. You shift your gaze to your husband. “What is it?”

All he does is look you in the eyes, smirking. “You’ll see.”

That night, you entertain your daughter by letting her blindfold you and lead you, well, wherever the surprise is. It smells nice, wherever you are because you’d been blindfolded even during the car ride, and you can tell it’s grand because of the way your heels are clacking against the marble and the way Sae had dressed tonight.

By your guess, you’re probably at one of the nice hotels here for one of their signature buffet dinners. Your daughter’s never been, so that could be why she’s making a huge deal out of this. Like father, like daughter, so cute.

But when your daughter urgently whispers for you to take the blindfold off, you find yourself at the entrance of huge double doors, two hotel staff smiling and opening up to unveil a huge ballroom filled with people, most of them you recognise because they’re your friends.

It’s already bringing tears to your eyes when you realise what this must be.

They’re all cheering as they see you, your daughter skipping happily into the room, choosing to run straight to your purple-haired best friend at one of the tables who you thought was still busy abroad. Beside him, his beautiful girlfriend mouths a ‘hello’, but you’re still too surprised to respond.

Everyone’s clapping and cheering and all of a sudden you feel the familiar presence of your husband right beside you, his arms wrapping around your waist as he kisses you on the cheek.

“Surprised?”

Honestly? Yes. Very. And you’re not one to be easily surprised at all.

“I wanted to give you the celebration you deserved,” he tells you, waiting for you to take it all in.

It’s a far cry from the pathetic reception you got from people you barely knew during your actual wedding reception. Sae had been nothing but cold to you back then too, so it felt more like a prison than anything.

Now? You recognise so many faces in the crowd that you can’t help but smile and wave back. You’d always wondered what this would be like, and your husband somehow manages to give it to you without having you ask for it and you’re in love. Because he seems ice cold and awkward and rough around the edges but his love for you has always, always been warm. His love has always felt like coming home and having a safe space and this might be the unconditional love you’d been praying for your whole life.

You almost gave up on it. But you know now Sae never will. And neither will you. You have a family now, a proper one built by two people who never had a stable environment, by two people who never came close to being provided one themselves.

Sae’s your pillar of support, and you begin to see now that you’re his.

Now you know it’s true what they say; you don’t have to beg for someone’s love if they truly cared about you, because Sae has always gone the extra mile for you every single day. You don’t have to act like someone you’re not just to please them so they don’t leave—because no matter how many disagreements you have, Sae is always there to listen to your point of view. You don’t have to beg someone to treat you right if they really love you, because Sae’s been actively choosing you ever since the day you got married, and whether it’s intentional or not, you think you’re the luckiest person in the world.

And now you can’t be happier; you have a wonderful daughter who has two parents who absolutely love her. You have a husband who takes care of you in every single way, loving you in every essence of the word. You have friends like Reo who would burn the world if it was ever unkind to you and dance with you atop their pile of bodies. You have everything you could ever want and you couldn’t have seen it without Sae by your side.

The do-over of your wedding reception is perfect. So, so perfect, and it’s almost hard to believe it’s the product of Sae’s ideas. He doesn’t even particularly like celebrations like this but he did this for you, for both of you, and being able to make your daughter be a part of it is like icing on the four-tiered cake he had ordered.

“I’ll love you forever, Y/N,” he whispers suddenly into your ear as you guys are making rounds at the tables.

You accept the kiss from him, flashes going off as you smile against his lips. “Yeah? What if it falls apart?” you ask, teasing him, though you never thought he’d answer you seriously.

“Then I’ll rebuild it,” he tells you, your lips hovering just above each other and his beautiful teal eyes looking into yours, a small smile on his face. “But with you, I’m pretty sure that would never happen.”

And you’ve always been pessimistic. You’ve always chosen to believe the worst because it alleviates the pain you’d feel when things don’t go as planned. But somehow, you believe in Sae with your whole heart. You’d trust him with your whole life. So you want to give him what he’s given you—everything. (He thinks you already have.)

“I’ll love you forever, Itoshi Sae.”

taglist: @kimvmarvel @mxplesyrvp @yuzurins @futuristicxie @kiopanxp @k0z3me @y-sabell-a @sae1toshilover @xoxojisu @karmatiz @sagejin @minnieminnie00-got7 @hearts4heidi @shiinobu-x @n1uh @prepchuu @leeyzhuo @shidouryusm @tsukishiro-yue2402 @kaiserkisser @pookiebearcave @dcvilxswish @saeskiss @whtflrr @arminseas @raphsimp @saharei @danibxe @lectris00 @comet-kun @ishitam67 @gskill @sweet2wthsblog @scaraslover @beaniedoodz @bersuadikotatua @idk-bro-gay @etoiile @sanzu-sanzu-sanzu @yourstrulyharu @noimnotttt @tinyfurytaco @bxddiebloss @biaonww @kunirayuna39 @sikuthealien @vollereix @notepadgirl16 @zareri @c4ttheart @iovefilled

[angelbarelywrites]

♡ scenarios | dating billy

♡ fandoms; The Boys

♡ characters; Billy Butcher

♡ reader; gender neutral

♡ cw; explicit sexual content

♡ notes; he’s the bane of my existence + love of my life tbh

reader isss implied to be working with Billy and in my mind a supe but i made it ambiguous since i didn’t write a meeting section :v but i love the idea of Billy falling for a supe so much

•┈••✦ ❤ ✦••┈•

I. Kisses/ PDA

> he doesn’t like PDA…or at least that’s what he claims

> Frenchie and Marv give him shit- and Hughie is so supportive it makes him angrier than the others giving him shit

> but tbh they’re all happy to see him happy, and he knows that somewhere under that thick skull off his

> so when you give him a kiss or hold his hand or hug him in the base he grumbles, but he never pushes you away or actually complains

> and sometimes he’ll haphazardly pull you against him without saying a word, cheeks a bit pink as he mumbles something into your hair

> usually a ‘good job’ if it fits the occasion, otherwise a comment about how his coworkers are idiots

> now undercover, it’s a different story

> everyone is a potential threat then- and even worse, everyone is potentially going to bother you

> if he even gets a whiff of someone looking you over he’s got an arm around your waist and a hand not so subtly on his holster

> if you want to get any actual surveillance done you have to shoo him away so he doesn’t scare anyone off

> and even then he’s checking in way more often than he needs to

> it’s hard to get mad at, because it’s sweet in his stubborn, assholeish way

> and if you don’t care about surveillance it’s easy to get him riled by playing into it

> and then he’ll kiss you hard right in front of whatever chucklefuck was eying you

> “hope he’s enjoying the bleedin’ view”

> he’s a big cuddler when you’re alone- another thing he’d never admit

> but he loves when you snuggle up with your head on his chest, listening to his heart and nearly dozing while he goes through files

> or when you’re exhausted on the van ride home and make sure no one is paying attention as you hold with his hand in the front seat, rubbing his probably bloodied knuckles and pressing soft kisses them

> he likes your little late night rendezvous the best, though

> you’re both bad at sleeping, so most nights in the base he’ll find you in the kitchen near midnight brewing chai

> you’ll be sitting on the counter in one of his shirts and smile brightly despite the bags under your eyes

> and then when he comes over and puts a hand on either side of you, you trap him in your legs

> the kisses are sometimes heated, sometimes chaste

> but either way you enjoy the tea, and spend the rest of the restless night together

II. Sharing a bed

> when you’re all living in hiding, space is tight under the pawnshop

> you’ve both got shitty little twin beds, and he’s always complaining about space

> but the nights are getting cold and the heater barely works, so you hatch your evil scheme

> evil scheme might get giving it too much credit. like way too much

> all you plan on is asking to snuggle and never leaving his bed

> but he’s taking forever to get whatever he’s doing done, and you’re tired

> no biggie, you’ll just crawl in and wait for him so you can ask

> the next thing you know it’s two a.m. and he’s nudging you

> “oi. who said you could be in here?”

> you whine and give him the biggest pout, eyes all hazy from sleep

> and not wearing all that much either

> he sighs but you can hear the smile in his voice “c’mon then love.”

> before you can scooch over he’s pulling you on top of him completely, making you feel tiny on his broad chest

> he tried not to seem too delighted when you’re there again the next night

III. Let’s get kinky

> listen. i swear i don’t think every character has a daddy kink. just all the ones i’m super attached to

> but he canonically referred to himself as daddy and that’s not leaving my brain anytime soon. so.

> he refers to you as so many sweet nicknames- and he likes to pair them with a healthy mix of degradation and praise

> “you’re a filthy fuckin’ whore aren’t yah sweetheart?”

> his default is rough. he’s a frustrated man, and he’s been pent up for a while now

> but you can take it. probably.

> he likes choking. and spanking, he loves when you’re a brat and he can bend you over his knee

> mostly because then he can finger fuck you right then and there when he’s done and make you a complete mess

> if you wear makeup he thinks it’s twice as nice with your lipstick smudged and mascara running down your cheeks

> and you look prettiest to him on your knees, already a bit teary and sucking on his fingers until you’ve earned the real thing

> he wants to breed you so bad it makes him look stupid. (tbh not literally, even if it is possible, but god the dirty talk is so good that it doesn’t matter)

> his favorite position is reverse cowgirl- he loves seeing you whine and slowly ease yourself onto him

> and to me- he’s an ass man lmao, he loves watching it as you bounce on his cock

[merrybloomwrites]

I Like to Watch - Harry x Louis x Reader

Summary: When you're boyfriends ignore you on a day you thought you'd spend together, you begin to act out. The punishment doesn't go as planned, leading to the boys taking care of you after.

Word Count: 4K

CW: BDSM themes, dom/sub themes, spanking, punishment, use of safeword, subspace, subdrop, aftercare

AN: This story contains BDSM themes but is in no way a rulebook for these types of relationships. Always do your research before taking part in a dynamic like this. All aspects in play are discussed by the characters and agreed upon prior to the story.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are a fair number of people that know about your relationship with Harry and Louis. Your families, close friends, some lawyers and members of Harry and Louis’s respective teams. 

But no one, not even your best friends, know about that special part of your relationship. It’s a secret the three of you protect wholeheartedly. Because if someone were to slip up and reveal that the three of you were dating, and have been for almost three years, well that you guys could handle. But if the whole world discovered you also dabbled in BDSM? That would be much harder to come back from, and the consequences to both of your boyfriends careers could be devastating. 

So you keep this information just between the three of you. It brings you even closer together, having something that is just for you. 

It started about a year after the three of you were officially together. And it started subtly. Little ways in which Louis would act in the bedroom. It was clear quite quickly that Louis is purely dominant in nature. He never submitted to either of you. You know this need to be in charge comes from years of being told what to do by management. So much of his life is dictated by other people, and this is the one place he can take complete control.

Harry sometimes feels this way as well. Occasionally, he’ll help Louis and the two of them will be the perfect pair of doms for you. Other times, he needs to turn his brain off, and spends a night submitting to Louis alongside you. 

But you always submit. In the bedroom, at least. For you it’s a lovely escape to let the two men you love and trust have control of you. When it comes to your relationship, you’re in charge of most of the day to day life stuff. You do the cooking, the cleaning, the scheduling, all of the at home mental load falls on your shoulders. 

But when the three of you do a scene together, you can just let go and take what they’re giving. You’re aware that technically the submissive truly runs how the scene goes, that if you’re uncomfortable about anything Louis will immediately stop to check on you. 

Due to their busy schedules it’s hard to find time to do scenes together. They take time and planning, and Louis always wants a free day after, in case you or Harry falls deep in subspace and needs extra time to recover the next day. Of course you all have plenty of vanilla sex, but the more intense stuff only happens on occasion. 

The last scene you all did together, in which Louis and Harry tied you up, edged you until you were crying, then made you come multiple times, was almost three weeks ago. Which is maybe what caused you to start acting out. 

You wake up on a beautiful Friday morning, the start of a three day weekend with nothing planned. You’d hinted the night before that it would be a good opportunity for a little extra fun, but you’re not sure they got the message. The bed is empty, no warm body next to you, no fingers gently rubbing your back, no lips meeting yours in a good morning kiss.

So no, not exactly how you’d hoped to wake up.

You decide to get dressed before heading downstairs. If Louis and Harry can’t bother to lay with you in bed on a day off, they certainly don’t deserve to see you in your panties and t-shirt, a sight they both adore. 

The kitchen is empty, no sign of either of your boyfriends. Disappointed by their absence, you grab a banana, a bowl of cereal, and brew yourself some tea. 

After finishing your breakfast you clean up, and try to locate the boys. It’s weird that they’re hidden away; normally days without work mean the three of you doing everything together. It takes a minute for you to find Louis. He’s in the home office, and when you peek in to say hi he holds up a finger, telling you to wait since he’s on a phone call. 

Bothered by the obvious brush off, you keep searching, and finally find Harry in the studio. “Good morning love,” he says. “I woke up with an idea and just have to get this on paper before I forget. I’ll be out soon,” he continues before turning back to his notebook. 

Well, at least he looked you in the eyes and spoke to you. Bare minimum in your mind. 

Feeling very put out, you walk back to the living room. Sitting on the couch, you scan the walls. You thought you had finished decorating this room months ago, but something about it has been bothering you. It felt like something was missing. 

Finally, you decide that it’s the huge blank spot on the one wall. It needs a piece of artwork to fill in the space. For the next half hour you scour the internet and find the absolute perfect piece. Just the right size, color pattern matching the palate of the room, and the art style exactly what you all like. The only issue is the price. 

Not that there wasn’t enough money in your shared account to more than cover it. But technically you’d finished decorating the house already. So anything else that’s considered a big ticket item needs to be discussed between the three of you. 

The first thing you do is reach out to the seller to express interest. At least get the ball rolling until you could talk to the boys. After a few minutes of back and forth emailing, you learn there’s another interested buyer. So now there’s a time constraint or you’ll lose the piece. 

Another hour passes with no signs of either of them, and you make the executive decision to seal the deal. With confirmation that the painting is now yours, you feel slightly better. 

Realizing that you probably need to entertain yourself a bit longer you grab the book you’re reading and settle in. Two chapters later you finally hear Louis voice call out, “Love, where are you?”

Despite your annoyance at being brushed off earlier, you can’t help but smile when he walks in the room. 

“There you are,” he says. “I just got an alert about a purchase for over 6 grand on one of our cards. Do you know anything about that or is it a potential scam?”

Of course. That’s what got his attention. You keep the smile on your face so as to not look guilty for breaking a rule and explain, “That was me. I found a painting that will finally complete this room. Even Harry said it felt like something was missing.”

“Okay, but you’re supposed to talk about big purchases with us first,” he replies. 

“There was another buyer. I had to act fast and you two were both so busy I didn’t want to interrupt.” There. Now you look like a thoughtful girlfriend.

 “Alright, just make sure we can have a conversation before you buy anything else that’s not a necessity. I’ve got a couple more calls to make before I can wrap up for the day.”

Louis walks away, and your good mood leaves with him. How dare he come out just to lecture you? And he didn’t even look at the painting you chose. He didn’t even greet you, or give you a good morning kiss. 

And looking at the clock, it’s actually already afternoon. And you’ve barely seen your boyfriends. On a day that they weren’t supposed to be working. 

Letting out an annoyed sigh you get up to make yourself lunch. You take your time, grilling some veggies and chicken as well as making a dressing and putting together a delicious salad. You eat slowly out on the patio, phone propped in front of you playing your favorite show. 

Eventually the door opens and both Harry and Louis walk out to join you. 

“You ate lunch without us?” Harry asks. 

“It’s almost 2 in the afternoon,” you reply. 

“Shit, is it really that late?” Louis says. 

“Yea, I finished eating a while ago. I’m gonna go clean up. There’s more of everything in the fridge if you want to make your own.” With that you grab your plate and walk inside. You wash your dishes, taking out some of your irritation by scrubbing everything meticulously. 

The boys come back inside and Harry says, “We’re gonna run into town for a little bit, got a couple of things to pick up. We’ll be back by 4.” They each give you one quick kiss, and just like that, they’re gone and you’re left all alone. Again. 

Since they would be gone for two hours you decide to put in a movie to pass the time. Normally you would clean, or organize, do something productive. But you had finished all the chores yesterday expecting to be busy hanging with the boys today. But no, they were too busy for you. 

You grow more frustrated, and by the time the movie is halfway over you’ve come up with a plan. 

See, normally you would never do what you’re about to do. The dynamic that the three of you have is mostly reserved for when you specifically do scenes. But you do have a couple rules to follow all the time, the most important being: your pleasure belongs to them. Meaning that touching yourself without their permission is not allowed. 

And you like that rule. You’d rather get off with them than alone. Masturbating used to be a chore to you, just a means to an end. Orgasms are just so much better when Louis or Harry (or both of them) is the cause. 

But right now you don’t care. If they’re not going to give you pleasure, you’ll do it yourself. Rules be damned. 

You turn the movie off and go to the bedroom. It’s been a while since you’ve done this, and it feels a little silly when you start. But after removing your clothes and laying on the bed you shut your eyes and just do what feels natural. 

You go slow, starting by teasingly running your fingertips along your skin. Time passes, and you’re lost in these touches, hands moving to your breasts, then down to gently rub against your clit. 

But just as you’re really getting into it, you hear a voice next to the bed say, “And what do you think you’re doing?” You startle, not having heard the boys get home. However there’s no denying Louis standing there looking quite serious. Harry is next to him, intrigued and maybe a little excited, like he knows what’s going to happen next. 

“I asked you a question,” Louis says. 

“I’m taking care of myself,” you reply, an edge of sass in your tone. 

“You know you’re not supposed to do that without my permission. That’s the second rule you’ve broken today. Almost like someone wants to be punished.”

Maybe he isn’t wrong. Maybe you were acting out on purpose. Either way, it looks like you’re finally getting what you want: their attention. 

“Lay on the bed, on your stomach, hands holding onto the rails of the headboard,” he commands.

“Yes sir,” you reply before doing as told. You feel vulnerable, laying there naked while they’re still fully dressed. But part of you likes that, thrives on that power dynamic, loves the embarrassment that comes with being so exposed. 

“Harry?” Louis says. 

“Yes, sir?” Harry replies. Okay, so Harry wants to sub today too. The easiest tell is simply how he addresses Louis. Using his proper title means Harry wants to give up some control today as well. 

“You’ve been a good boy lately. Though you did wear a shirt that says ‘I like to watch’ at the ballet last week. Very cheeky of you. Still not enough for a punishment so how about some pleasurable torture? Have you sit on the chair in the corner and watch as I punish our girl and then reward her after. Listen to her sweet sounds and not be able to do anything about it. Maybe tie you to the seat and give you a gag so you’re not tempted to misbehave. How does that sound?”

“Good, sir,” comes Harry’s breathless reply. 

“What’s your color?” Louis asks. 

“Green.”

“For which parts?”

“All of it,” Harry replies without pause. “Green for the restraints, green for the gag. I watch to watch without touching.”

“Very well. Sit on the chair. Clothes stay on.” There’s a lot of noise behind you as Harry does as he’s told. You hear Louis ask Harry if it’s too tight, to which Harry replies, “No, it’s perfect.” Okay, so Harry is now tied to the chair. You could turn and watch what’s happening, but you don’t have permission to and the last thing you should do right now is break another rule. 

“And you still want the gag?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Alright. How do you give your color when you can’t speak?”

“With the clicker,” Harry answers. There’s more movement then Louis says, “Practice your colors. What is green?” You hear one click. “And yellow?” Two clicks. “Red?” You hear multiple rapid clicks, the unspoken signal for red. 

“Good boy,” Louis says, and you hate that Harry is getting praised when you’re getting punished. It’s not fair. 

“And now for our naughty girl,” Louis says, much closer than before but still standing out of your view. “What should I do with you?”

Your belly tingles, with nerves, with excitement, with arousal. It’s always crazy to you, how a scene can fill you with so many contrasting feelings. 

Louis hand gently slides along your bum, this first touch nearly electric after being left alone for so long. “I think we’ll stick to a classic today. A spanking to remind you who’s in control here.”

You’re almost shocked at the simplicity. It’s been a while since you’ve been spanked, the three of you often doing more creative punishments. But you find yourself craving it. You don’t love the pain, since you don’t really have a pain kink. However you do love how perfectly submissive it makes you feel. Laying out, bare ass on display turning redder each time Louis hand or paddle comes in contact with your skin. And the aftercare is always wonderful, soft hand rubbing lotion on your stinging skin, quiet praises of how well you did, and hours of cuddles. 

For all of these reasons you reply with a quick, “Green, sir,” when Louis asks for your color. 

“Very well. I’m going to warm up with my hand,” Louis informs you. 

His hand, which had been resting on you, is removed, and you brace yourself for the first smack. When it doesn’t come for a few seconds you relax. Big mistake. 

Sharp slaps are given to both of your cheeks, and you let out an involuntary gasp. You quickly clamp your mouth shut, afraid you’ll get in more trouble for making a sound. Louis notices and says, “You may make noises, but I don’t want to hear you speak unless it’s to call a color. You can always color at any time, understand?” He’s gentler at the end, slipping out of his dominant persona for a second to reassure you.

“I understand, sir,” you reply, knowing these are the last words you’ll be speaking for a bit. 

He gives no warning before raining a series of smacks, alternating cheeks and making sure to get full coverage so no skin is left untouched. After what feels like hours but is probably only a couple minutes, he stops, hands gently rubbing the skin once again. 

You’re already feeling a little floaty, and it’s nice to sink into this special mindset. You hadn’t realized how guilty you felt about breaking the rules, but knowing that you’re going to be forgiven after the punishment has you feeling lighter. 

“You’re doing well. I’m going to switch to the paddle now. I’m thinking 6 per side for the extravagant purchase this morning, and another 6 per side for touching yourself without permission. So 24 total with the paddle. What is your color?”

“Green, sir,” you reply, your voice taking on an airy quality and alerting Louis that you’re starting to slip. He checks your face and sees no signs of pain or distress, and can tell that it’s the good kind of floatiness you’re feeling. 

The first hit comes, and it’s more intense than you remember. You don’t love the paddle, you prefer Louis' hand since then you can feel him. But you’re not supposed to like it. This is a punishment after all, and once you get through these spanks, you won’t have to feel guilty. And you’ll get a reward. So it’s all worth it. 

A few more smacks come, and you slip further into subspace with each thud of the paddle against your sore bottom. Your surroundings start to blur, all you can feel are the sheets below you and the wood of the paddle, all you hear is the repetitive swing and thud of it moving through the air. 

The feelings of loneliness from earlier start to flood back in. You remember how much you wanted to hear the boys, see them, feel them touching you. And they’re still not there. 

You think they came in the room with you, but now everything is fuzzy. What if they’re not actually there? Did your mind make that up? What if some awful machine is controlling the paddle and it just keeps hitting you forever? 

You aren’t aware of the sounds you’re making, how your quiet grunts turn into gasping breaths, but Louis notices. The swats stop and finally you hear Louis' voice, but it sounds like it’s coming from underwater. 

“What’s your color?” He asks. 

You know you should answer, that one word will make this stop, but you can’t think of what it is. 

“Baby, can you tell me what your color is?” He asks again. 

He turns your head so his eyes can see your glazed, unfocused one. When his face finally comes into your view, all you can say is “daddy” through a broken sob. 

Immediately Louis knows what you can’t tell him: that your color is red. Internally he’s kicking himself, mad and disappointed in himself that he pushed you too far, that he didn’t see the signs that it was too much, that you were slipping too deep. 

“It’s okay baby, daddy’s here, I’ve got you,” he says. 

You hear two clicks from the corner of the room, but you can’t currently remember what that means. Louis knows, and he can’t believe he did such a poor job that both his subs needed to color during the same scene. 

“Baby girl, I just need to check on Harry and I’ll be right back.” There’s a shuffling noise, then a piece of fabric is placed on the bed next to you. It’s soft, and smells like Louis. You clutch the sweater in your arms as he walks to the other side of the room. 

“Harry, what’s wrong?” Louis asks as he removes the gag. 

“Nothing, I’m ok, just please untie me so I can help with Y/N,” Harry replies. 

“Okay. Are you in headspace at all?”

“No, completely coherent,” Harry answers. 

You hear the conversation but it has somewhat of a dreamy quality since you’re still so deep in subspace. A moment later, gentle arms are shifting you, dressing you in clean boxers and an oversized t-shirt. Someone lifts you off the bed, before placing you back down so you’re cradled sideways on a lap. 

“Daddy?” You ask.

“I’m here baby,” Louis replies, letting you know that he’s the one holding you. The bed shifts and you watch with bleary eyes as Harry sits against the headboard next to Louis. He lifts your legs to drape them over his lap and runs his hands up and down your shins. 

“How do you feel?” Louis asks. 

“Good,” you sigh. 

“You sure? You were pretty upset just a minute ago baby,” Louis continues. 

“Yea but now you and Harry are here. I just didn’t like being alone.”

“We’ve been here the whole time, lovey,” Harry says, and you try to focus your eyes on his face.

“No you weren’t, you were both gone and I was all alone.”

“Do you mean earlier when we went and ran some errands?” Louis questions. 

“No. Here. Just now. You both left. I couldn’t see you, or hear you or anything. There was no one here and it just hurt because the paddle kept going and I didn’t know if it'd ever stop because neither of you were here to make it end,” you explain with tears starting to roll down your face. 

“It’s okay baby, we’re here, we’ve got you,” Louis says. 

“We’re both here, we’re not going to leave you,” Harry says and he leans over to gently wipe the tears off your cheeks. 

The three of you stay like that, the boys holding you and whispering reassurances that they’re still there. Finally, you start to come up from your subspace. 

“Hi there,” Harry says, seeing your eyes focus on his. 

“Hi,” you shyly reply. 

“You back with us?” Louis asks, his lips pressed against your hair. 

“I’m back,” you confirm. 

“Are you ready to tell us what happened, or do you need some time?” He questions next. 

“I’m ready. I guess I was just sad and upset that you both were too busy for me today. And then it kind of turned into a sensory deprivation thing when I started slipping. I couldn’t see either of you, and no one was making noise, and then when you used the paddle I couldn’t feel you either. My brain just started spiraling and coming up with all of these crazy scenarios. And then I couldn’t call red because I’d convinced myself no one was there to hear it.”

“I’m so sorry I didn’t notice what was happening sooner,” Louis says. “Is there anything extra you need for aftercare?”

“Just stay with me. I need to know you guys are here with me.”

“We can do that,” Louis says. 

“Absolutely, we’re not leaving your side for a second,” Harry adds. 

They keep this promise all weekend. After a few more minutes of cuddling they start the next step of your standard aftercare, getting you juice and a snack, followed by a bath. Louis gently dries you off and rubs lotion on your bottom to help with the sting. 

They spend the rest of the weekend absolutely doting on you. Harry insists on carrying you almost everywhere you go, and cooks all the meals that the three of you enjoy together. 

Saturday is spent mostly in the living room watching movies. You experience a mild sub drop, feeling cold and small, and the boys keep you cocooned in blankets while they take turns holding you in their laps. They keep reassuring you that you're good, that they’re not mad, that they love you. 

Their constant care helps regulate your emotions, and by Sunday you’re feeling better. Your painting arrives and Harry helps hang it. They both compliment it, and everyone agrees it ties the room together perfectly. 

Even though you insist you’re feeling just fine by Sunday evening, they insist on taking Monday off as well. You all go on a scenic drive, windows down to breathe in the fresh air. Harry and Louis surprise you with a packed picnic lunch which you eat in a lovely meadow. 

Two weeks later, when the three of you have your next scene together, Harry and Louis take turns focusing completely on you. This time it’s about your pleasure, them giving you as much of it as you can take, their hands never leaving you for a second as they worship your body together. 

And when you wake up each morning wrapped in their arms, you know everything is going to be just fine.

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Thank you for reading! I do have two more Harry x Louis x reader stories planned, but requests are open!

[writingseaslugs]

Heartslabyul: When You're Sick

So in light of my physical health declining the past month or so, I decided to just begin writing this. At the time of writing this, I can say the “When They’re Sick” version has been written over a month ago…almost two. Glad to be back to writing though!

Also the very start of the headcanons stay the same for every fic, so once you read it once, you won’t need to read it again.

Disclaimer: All characters in this series are aged up. For more information about my version of this world and the type of reader you can expect, please click the “Au Information” below!

Request Information | Masterlist | Au Information

Heartslabyul: When You’re Sick

The worst thing to ever happen to you while attending Night Raven College had to be, hands down, getting sick. You were alone in the dorm with only ghosts and Grim to keep you company, and as much as you loved them, they couldn’t take care of you when you became sick. This meant you had to make do and hope that everything was alright. Normally if you were under the weather, you’d just suck it up and go to class so as to not worry anyone. This time however, that wasn’t an option.

You woke up with every muscle in your body feeling sore and aching with even the slightest movement. Your stomach churned something fearsome and you had a runny nose and cough to boot. You had no idea what illness you had fallen to. Having so many symptoms…you could only assume it was the flu or something akin to that.

Still, there was no way you were making it to class like this. So begrudgingly you told Grim you weren’t feeling good and needed to rest, and to go to class and get your homework so you could do it later. The demon cat was grumpy about not having his henchman, but eventually gave in, leaving you alone to rest in your room and hope that whatever you had would go away.

Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle finding out you get sick is like hearing about a crisis situation. He is on it. He becomes worried but tries to hide that fact pretty well, but everyone in the dorm knows how anxious he is the moment you are sick. He’s heading over to your dorm right away to check in on you. He’s going to act like he’s calm and collected, but you can tell he’s worried about your health with how he keeps playing with the skin around his cuticles.

Thankfully his mother was good for one thing, and that was teaching him how to care for others while sick. He was forced to read a few medical books, so he knows the basics. Of course he’s going to be checking in on you and looking over your health to see if you need a proper doctor at first, but once he knows you just have the flu, he is a bit more calm about the entire situation.

He’s contacting the nurse the moment he knows what’s wrong in order to get you the proper medications you need. He’s by your bedside the entire time, even after you’ve fallen asleep, making sure to wake you in time for meals and medication. He’s managed to convince all his teacher’s to give him his classwork so he can work on it in your dorm while you’re dead asleep so he doesn’t fall behind. He’ll be damned if anyone tries to drag him away from your bedside until he knows you’re all better.

Once you’re finally better, Riddle’s mood is going to be light and airy. He’s going to be calmer and tell you that you don’t need to worry about thanking him, since you’ve done/would’ve done the same thing for him. He will be asking you the rest of the week if you’re certain you’re doing better, so just do your best to reassure him that everything is fine and dandy.

Trey Clover

He’s rightfully worried the moment he finds out from Adeuce that you’re at your dorm, sick as a dog. He’s going to just subtly ask them what exactly is wrong with you, and sadly for him Ace might play it up like you’re at home dying and make Trey extremely concerned for your health. It wasn’t like Ace had even seen you, but apparently Grim had told Ace that you were dying in bed and couldn’t even stand…so his worry was at least justified.

Trey has a lot of experience in taking care of others while they’re sick, with being a big brother who was thrusted to take responsibility at a young age tends to do that to you. So he’s always on it when he finds out someone is sick, in fact at the dorm normally it’s Trey who’s checking up on sick students instead of Riddle. Normally it wasn’t something he wanted to do, but when it came to you he found himself wanting to make sure you were okay.

Trey is going to be taking your temperature and making sure you’re coherent as he asks you a few questions. After he’s going to make sure you get medication and make you several yummy things to eat. If you can’t stomach food he’s going to try to convince you to at least try some broth. He promises after you’re all better he’ll make you your favorite treat as well. He is more okay with leaving your bedside while you rest, but he is checking in on you before and after classes, and then on his lunch breaks as well, just to be sure you’re taken care of.

Once you’re better, Trey might tease you a bit. Thankfully he does follow through with his promise, and as soon as you can stomach it, he’s bringing you your favorite treat and eating it with you. He’s just relieved to know that you’re all better, but he will be reminding you that you need to take it easy for the next few weeks to make sure it doesn’t come back. He can be a real mother hen when it comes to these things.

Cater Diamond

When he finds out you're sick he is concerned. He is always worried when someone he knows ends up sick, so he’s going to be heading over to your dorm without another thought. He needs to make sure you’re okay and alive first before he begins trying to figure out how to make you better. The moment he sees you his concern only grows and he’s now fretting. You might actually have to tell him to calm down and that you’re going to be okay. He’s not fully convinced, but whatever,

He lacks skills in taking care of others, since normally he’s the one being taken care of at home when sick. So he’s going to actually be asking Trey for some advice on what would be the best course of action. He’s dragging the Vice Dorm leader to look over you as well, to make sure he doesn’t mess up and give you something that he shouldn’t. It’s honestly a bit comical how disheveled Cater seems to be at the thought of you getting sick.

Once he’s given instructions on what to do, he makes for a half decent nurse. He’s good at making sure you’re taking medications on time, and bringing you some simple foods that wouldn’t be too much on your stomach. He even finds himself enjoying it, and when you’re awake and bored, he’s showing you several things online to make you laugh. His best technique is distracting you from the sick feeling you have until you end up falling asleep. Then he’s definitely taking a photo to save and never show anyone. He might make a post about taking care of a special someone on Magicam later.

Literally the moment you’re better he’s going to be asking you to do things with him. Apparently he’s never heard about taking it easy once you’re feeling better. The boy has been deprived of doing fun things with you though, and he wants to make up for lost time. So go ahead and just go out for a walk or something with him. Let him snap a couple of photos of the two of you and he’ll be super happy.

Ace Trappola

He finds out through Grim and originally he acts as though he doesn’t care at all. You’re just a bit sick, so what? That is until Grim starts to over exaggerate things about your health and now he’s slowly getting worried about you. He’s going to be more irritated in class, tapping his foot anxiously on the ground until Trein tells him to stop fidgeting so much. This is going to prompt him to just up and leave the classroom to go check on you, despite Trein yelling for him to sit back down.

Sadly Ace has no skills in taking care of others while they’re sick. He just assumes a little bit of tylenol or something is all you need while sick. He has no past experience in playing nurse, so he’s clueless. Deuce is probably the one who points out that his methods of taking care of you are horrible and you need proper care with medication that’s aimed for whatever is wrong with you at the moment. Only then will Ace actually stubbornly seek out help.

He gets the nurse, because he’ll be damned if he asks Riddle for help. Thankfully the nurse gives him a list of things to help take care of you, and he does his best to follow it. He will be getting food from the cafeteria though, saying that his cooking might end up just making you sicker than before. He is caring though and you will notice his voice softens a bit as he’s taking care of you, almost like he fears causing you a headache or discomfort. He’ll deny it with every fiber of his being, but he really does want you to get better.

He’s going to be a smug little butthead the moment you’re all better, claiming how well he took care of you. You can either knock him down a few pegs and remind him that it wasn’t until Deuce and the nurse intervened that you began getting better. Or you can simply let him have it, and thank him for doing such a good job in helping you out. He might actually blush if you praise him though, so the latter option is probably the best to go with if you want to fluster him.

Deuce Spade

Another boy who becomes so worried about you being sick that he rushes over to your side. He is checking you over and spamming you with questions, wanting to know if you’re hurt anywhere. He might actually make you dizzy or give you a headache, but you know it’s all coming from a place of caring. He just doesn't know what else to do when he sees you laying there, sick as a dog.

Sadly he doesn’t have the best skills, but it doesn’t mean he won’t be asking for help. He’d go straight to Riddle, knowing that he probably would know what to do. After Riddle checks you over and says it’s not bad enough to see a nurse, he’s going to be hounding Deuce on how to properly take care of a sick classmate. Deuce is going to take everything to heart and take his word as law at that point.

After he’s told what to do, he’s not half bad. He might forget a few things and fumble, but he manages to always make it right in the end. He’s going to be a bit bashful when checking your temperature, using his forehead to do so since that’s how his mom always did it. You can remind him about thermometers, or just let him do his thing. Either way, Deuce is doing his best and will be by your bedside at all times, despite really needing to go to class since he’s fallen behind.

Once you’re better he’s so relieved, but he’s not done worrying. He’ll be asking you if you’re certain everything is alright and once you assure him about twenty times he might drop it. Just expect him to be a bit more protective over you for the next month or so after getting sick, since he’s worried you’ll somehow fall ill again.

[sixthwater]

Energy of the Fourth House

When discussing the placements within this post, I’ll be talking about the energy within the home and not what your childhood was like. The dominant personalities that your parents might have had  and the morals that they wanted to teach you. The lessons that have lived subtly within you as you grew up, ones that you might fall back on without realizing when the world gets to be too much. The fourth house speaks more to how your home felt, the energy it gave off, and how your parents presented itself. Your IC will be more reflective of what you experienced or how you were as a kid.

Aries: Active and Independent household (surprise surprise). Those growing up with these elements are usually surrounded by those who want to integrate some sort of outdoor activity in their family time or were encouraged to try out for an extracurricular activity at some point in their adolescence. Things weren’t usually slow in the house and people were usually coming and going; whether that’s just movement within the home or people literally headed in and out to run errands or have fun. The other aspect of this sign is a tendency to flex a ‘selfish’ mindset. The guardians tend to disregard or not immediately listen to what others in the household crave or need for themselves. It’s not always on purpose or it’s from a wounded childhood themselves, but there is a quality of guardians prioritizing activities or things they prefer and assuming others want it as well without realizing. It can play out as them encouraging their child to try out for activities because they believe it’s best, passing judgment on social groups, choosing room styles, etc. Aries energy can be excitable and an initiator, so it tends to be very blunt and doesn’t overthink too much. It expects the other party to speak up, so when it doesn’t it assumes everything is okay. This is where it leads to the opposing Libra energy later on. It also, indirectly, can sometimes help the child stand up for themselves or get them to eventually speak up or become more vocal about things that they want for themselves. It leads to the balancing act within Libra as the overwhelming energy might lead one to be too explosive after suppressing for so long, but that’s another long conversation. With time, if the native can look back and learn to balance their experiences, they will become someone who knows when to listen to others but also speak up when feeling overlooked.

Taurus: When you have Taurus coloring your fourth house, it will absolutely lead to security. However, it will be more of a physical feeling of security and sometimes it won’t necessarily go beyond that. As a family unit, the goal will always be to make sure that everyone is cared for and has a roof over their head. There’s food on the table, clothes on their back, that they’re provided for no matter what. Even when things get difficult, the providers will ensure that those who need to be taken care of get their needs met first. This also tends to make the home and the family look put together during big events or get-togethers. Big ‘get dressed we’re having people over’ syndrome here. On its ‘days off���, there is a relaxed energy surrounding the family and home; it can seem somewhat messy at times or not care as much if the children make a mess playing games. they are either turned on to seem very put together or turned off and natural. The issue here is the influence of Venus and Earth. There is a desire to be among those that are ‘of the elite’, but they don’t ‘try too hard’ to have that lifestyle. It can cause some stress within the family as there’s an unmentioned desire to always be presentable during the right time, but if someone screws it up there is some tension for the next day or so since their reputation can get smudged. The emotional care can also be muted. The guardians won’t necessarily shy away from love, but it won’t be that ‘all encompassing’ love that people associate with families. It can range from long talks that don’t necessarily touch on the actual issue or short ones that end with “well I’m here if you need me you know that” due to awkwardness. Regardless, there is a legitimate and loyal love to be found with this sign, it is the sister sign of Scorpio after all.

Gemini: This home will be very active mentally. The parents will either be very knowledgeable of the family tree and it’s heritage, or there won’t be a trace of it. While they won’t be very proactive, they will also encourage and support the native in all their academic endeavors; traditional or not. The home can seem calm or soothing, but something is always happening. They may celebrate holidays as a way to spend time together, or there just may be many antics within the home. There is just a light-hearted energy flowing throughout the house, but not necessarily an emotional one. Everyone is on the go and they interact, but it’s not necessarily deep. Family members may interact with each other on a daily basis, but they may not know each other’s favorite foods or personal fears even after decades. There is also a possibility for there to be age gaps between siblings, which adds onto the somewhat distant relationship within the home and imbalance between how the parents relate to each child. The native with this sign may end up being the youngest, and sees the home as their own playground; usually metaphorically but it may also be literally. They are more prone to having a somewhat disconnected relationship to their family, and there is an emphasis on questioning many things in general growing up (and they may grow frustrated if there is no answer or they can tell they’re being denied). The guardians themselves can come off as being checked out and very lax. They will always be willing to teach their child informal knowledge like secret recipes, life hacks, silly tricks, etc. Due to the native naturally being inquisitive and dabbling in many things, the parents won’t worry too much about their studies but they will be disappointed if they fail or get a severe punishment from the school. At it’s best, this is an informal, hands off household. At it’s worst it can end up being turbulent for the native.

Cancer: The fourth house is able to shine here, which can be good and bad. The native will experience a very loving and nurturing home. The natives will more than likely experience that of a stereotypical home, what writers first think of when they reference the white picket fence and someone who came from a stabilized childhood. The home will be stuffed with mementos or scrapbooks; the parents will have a bad habit of keeping anything that represents a landmark or loving memory for members of the family well beyond their expiration date. They will be sensitive people; often in-tune with their children and more than likely keep up to date with their interests and current events to the best of their abilities. There is a high chance of having family recipes or emphasis on quality times with this sign coloring your fourth house. The issue is that sometimes these actions can become smothering or possibly cross boundaries for the native. Due to the tight-knit bond that is created, the guardians can become hurt or confused if their child does not tell them everything, which is bound to happen at times. They struggle to completely hide their hurt or sentimentality over changes within the home, but they do their best to adjust to small things like their kids no longer participating in family events, hanging out with friends more, rebelling more, etc. The guardians will not notice if they’re ‘embarrassing’ their child, since their main worry is losing connection with their children. Those who are not well adjusted will have a tendency to lean on their children instead of giving them a place to always come back to for shelter. They see their children as their safe haven instead since this wound has not been healed within themselves yet, and as the native tries to fight back or distance themselves, the guardian might see it as them being ungrateful. They need to heal wounds before this house can shine in the way that it should. Parents who are balanced will always be able to provide a safe and warm home for the native to run back to if they need it, but they will not force it upon them.

Leo: This one will be answered differently since it’s not as stereotypical beneath the surface. It’s split between the guardians behaving like children themselves and avoiding responsibility, or they can be involved in creative endeavors themselves, thus introducing and surrounding the native to the creative field at an early age. A smaller branch is that the native will showcase their natural talents from an early age, and will either have those talents encouraged or seen as an annoyance from the parents. One thing for sure, is that no matter what artistic and honest expression will find their way to the native. The world will find a way to make sure the native is able to express their inner child or is able to get their talents out into the world. They will find a way to protect and nurture what is pure within the soul of a Native with Leo covering the Fourth House when it comes to their inner child. Real world examples would be Danny Trejo; having a childhood that most people would write off as someone who is unfortunate and taken by the streets thus it was too late for him, but has the big name that he has now and, fitting the theme, made the series Spy Kids – causing him to be loved by children. On the opposite end we then have Miley Cyrus, which I shouldn’t have to explain but her relatives are nearly all musicians: Billy Ray Cyrus and technically Dolly Parton, and of course her siblings were involved in the Disney scene so they ended up being musicians between that or having a gift for singing themselves. Miley was usually with her father on his tours if I recall, and her mother Tish managed her during her Disney years. So this is one of the ways Leo can play out over your fourth. It is either all encompassing or the guardians will end up being a bit immature; wanting to live their dreams through their children and not stepping up to the plate of parenthood. Even if their home environment is not secure, the natives will always be guided to a community or friends where they can express themselves sincerely, or simply to the right place at the right time. Whether it’s the native’s subconscious innocence or sheer will, it is impossible to fully extinguish the sun, especially when they’re young.

Virgo: The cerebral energy turns a bit more stable and serious with Virgo over the fourth. The home will look polished, but not over the top. They will have the necessities and anything more will be seen as a treat to celebrate big events or achievements. The main energy is that what happens in the home is consistent and reliable. The parents make sure there isn’t much chaos or upheaval within the household so the children aren’t upset or distracted by what goes on. There is dedication to the house and they make sure that either party has their life balanced so it doesn’t disturb everyone else, and any issues are dealt with behind the scenes. Importance is also placed on formal education. There is a high chance that the parents will do their best to get their kid into the best school that they can, or they will be very involved in their academics and extracurriculars. The success rate of this depends on the native; the household may be stable, but the household may end up being very stale or boring in the eyes of the native as a child. There isn’t much external stimulation, so the native may either go through the motions and be a dutiful student, or they may completely ignore their studies to dive fully into a passion that excites them. The parents will not be very vocal with their expectations but the native will catch on quickly what behavior is acceptable and what isn’t. While every placement is capable of creativity, this is a sleeper agent of incredible artistic ability. It is usually covered up by the practical energy the native is first introduced to and it takes some time for them to find it, and usually the native is quite critical of themselves. There’s also a decision on what to focus on and struggle to balance both academics as well as their passion, but with time the native will be able to shine in both areas.

Libra: Reminiscent of a Taurus fourth house, but the focus is shifted elsewhere. It is all about presentation with this house – in more ways than one. The house will more than likely be presentable or everyone knows to pick up behind themselves and to not make large messes. Manners are taught and enforced at an early age, but the guardians will not be overly aggressive. They will usually try to be fair with punishments and encourage communication. This extends to the community around you as well, so the relationship or ‘care’ can feel a bit empty at times since it’s stretched so thin. Emphasis on being connected with those around them and building relationships is very important with this house. As a kid, you probably saw your parents interacting with your neighbors a lot, or possibly engaging with your school activities if they needed help. Generally, the guardians will try to be involved in their kid’s lives as well as the community – sometimes it can become unbalanced, sometimes it’s too much, but it’s out of love). However, they still worry about presentation and how others perceive their family. They might get on their kids about how they dress or their speech, to an annoying degree. Ironically, this isn’t the main source of tension, it’s the slightly detached energy in the home. There is love, support, and fun within the home, but at the same time, deep talks, connection, or bonds don’t have anywhere to really grow. None of this really causes a problem until something needs to be discussed and the person wonders when or if there’s ever a right time for it. Discussions will attempt to go deep, but they will always be open and try to be fair about the topic – attempting to give helpful solutions while being understanding of how the person is feeling. The issue is getting past the first step of pointing out the elephants in the room.

Scorpio: The natives with this fourth house can experience a protective childhood. Not in the stereotypical sense, but the native’s experiences will be controlled in a way. Their guardians will let them have fun, take risks even, but under their control and watchful eye. Think about it as if Saturn is overseeing them. If the guardian doesn’t believe their child will be safe or can handle events at a certain age, then they’ll be denied until the time is right. There will be times that they’ll let their child go out and explore the world in their eyes, but in reality stepping stones and barriers are still in place. AKA, their child can be quickly protected at a moment’s notice either by them or a relative that is within reach, or they’ve already made rough plans for their child’s success. There can also be an air of deep connection or bonding within the family home. They want to know or understand their child and can possibly be hurt if this is interrupted or doesn’t go as planned. They don’t really place emphasis on what the home looks like, but there will probably be family dinners or game nights – something that will give space for conversation or a feeling of safety or openness between family members. There is a chance that if the bond is not as deep as the guardian craves, they can react negatively depending on how mature the person is. Regardless of if it’s out of love, the parent can either become overbearing or slightly distant or cold as a means to cope with what didn’t go ‘according to plan’. However, there is always a sense of connection and relativity. The guardian will always feel the need to be there for their family despite what is presented on the surface.

Sagittarius: Natives with this fourth house will usually hear things like ‘moving around a lot, street or life knowledge over book knowledge’ etcetc, which is true! There’s more to it though. There is a high chance that the guardians will have a career that requires them to be away from home most of the time, or to travel constantly. If not, there is a chance that the family will move around a lot either to follow different career or school opportunities. They do not want to be constrained by the idea of meeting a goal and stopping there, they want to see what life has to offer and aren’t afraid to go after it. On the other hand, some parents aren’t too keen on the constant adjustments, but it’s expected of them. This leads to the family building a strong and close bond with each other, and not worrying too much about external bonds. The desire will be there, but they are used to being on the move and short lived friendships or connections. So relying on the family becomes a theme. This might also lead some natives to yearn for a stable adulthood even if they enjoyed the constant movement as a child. The guardians won’t enforce strict household rules, but they will want their children to uphold strong morals or stick by a certain ethical code. This, along with the slight loose hand of the parents, will lead to the native learning more about the ways of life as opposed to book knowledge. Their upbringing can bring attention to them, positive or negative, but it also means that they interact with a larger walk of life. This quality can give a weird blend of knowing your parent is your guardian while they also feel like a best friend, making lines a bit blurry and having the chance to either feel like there was no structure within the home or you ended up having to parent yourself at times.

Capricorn: Natives with this energy over the fourth usually experience a ‘tense’ household. By that, I mean that all things associated with domesticity are muted or subtle. Guardians will usually focus on raising the native responsibly or instilling strong morals, but can sometimes forget to bring the emotional aspect into the mix. The parents will believe in their children to an extreme degree, which can put stress on the child to feel like even a B can be seen as a failure. The issue is usually that the parents communicate or deal with issues in such a serious manner that, when young, the native cannot differentiate when their parents are truly disappointed in them and when they’re not. Affection will usually be shown by example as opposed to verbally. There can be instances where the Guardian is more focused on work, but it can also play out with them pushing the native to be perfect due to their belief in them. A double-edged sword basically. There will be a lot of rules implemented or the native will usually attend a private, charter, all girls/boys or high profile school. The parents want nothing but the best for their child, but tend to go overboard and end up dropping a lot of pressure and giving their children forms of performance anxiety by accident. Due to pressures or how strict the household is, the native will learn how to sneak around their guardians at an early age. If you know someone with a Capricorn fourth house, there is a high chance they know various tricks and have snuck out of the house more times than they can count. They may not be rebellious by nature, but the restrictions that are placed on them give the native a chance to get creative which may help them later on in life.

Aquarius: The natives who will end up maturing themselves without realizing. When you have Aquarius sitting in the fourth house, there will always be a quality that makes you stand out from those around you. You could either be a foreigner, your traditions are unique, the familial roles within your home aren’t the standard, etc. It can relate to Sagittarius in a way, except where people will either be enamored or flock to Sagittarius, they will point or stare at Aquarius. The way the home operates does not disturb the native necessarily, since they were raised within it and grow used to it over time. This can also manifest in smaller ways such as one guardian working night/erratic shifts, not celebrating holidays, different displays of affection, etc. Regardless, the native will soon become aware of how different they are to their classmates. The native will react in two ways: to avoid attention and keep their head down, or not be bothered and simply normalize their lives as much as they can, answering any questions that come their way. Despite the assumptions, the home can be very receptive and loving. It takes on the Aquarian qualities quite literally; the guardians will be a bit hands off but their love will be felt in other ways. You have to find it in other ways. Due to this combination, the native will subconsciously mature quickly. They will more often than not need to have their own special cove for themselves since they are prone to feeling out of place and out of body within themselves until their middle or late teens.

Pisces: Those having Pisces over their fourth house might have a loose grasp of their childhood memories. There’s a very caring and soft energy to be felt for natives that have this sign here. There’s a possibility that they could have been coddled in their younger years in some way as well. Caretakers will view the native as someone who is very sensitive or they will have their own made up perception of them. So the native might be someone who isn’t excitable but still sociable, however that will be twisted into being shy or closed off when described by their guardian. For those who are sensitive, the side effect of them being sheltered is very high. If the native doesn’t go out of their way to experience life themselves, breaking free of their parent’s grasp will happen later in life. This doesn’t create much conflict outwardly as it does internally; the family will seem very mellow and loving, wanting what’s best for the child. However, the child will also not place too much importance on what they might want since they also tend to be adaptable, not very fussy, and care about their guardian’s happiness. Due to this misunderstanding, the guardian’s can sometimes push their will onto the native — which usually is never ill-intentioned. This is what causes the rose-colored glasses view of their childhood. There are memories that they might throw away or emotions they could suppress whenever revisiting their childhood. They could be well aware of the difficult circumstances of their past but still wash over them with a ‘it wasn’t so bad’ smile. There is a martyrdom that comes with Pisces where if their family is happy, then they’re happy. These kinks will be worked out at some point in their later teenage or adult years when they can no longer outrun the beast.

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[claudemblems]

Never Change | Alhaitham

Summary: You've been subtly trying to change things about yourself to become the "ideal" partner for Alhaitham. However, you didn't take into account that maybe there wasn't anything you needed to fix, and it's up to Alhaitham to reassure you that he loves you just the way you are.

Notes: Fem!Reader. Established Relationship. This didn't turn out like how I imagined in my head ig and it's pretty short (compared to what I usually write), but I hope the Alhaitham fans enjoy this fic nonetheless :)

Despite how intelligent Alhaitham is, there are still many things he doesn't fully understand. Or, rather, it's hard for him to grasp how the majority of the "normal" populace thinks.

This is why he couldn't figure out why you'd been acting so strange as of late. It wasn't until Kaveh explained to him in an exasperated tone that your behavior stemmed from feelings of inferiority. "How can someone as smart as you be so dense to your own girlfriend's feelings?!"

Alhaitham had let Kaveh's insult off the hook that time because he was right. All that knowledge in his brain and yet the Scribe needed extra help to come to the right conclusion. 

Now that he knew what was going on, it was his responsibility to make things right.

"You needed me?"

Leaning against the doorframe of Alhaitham's office, you watched as your boyfriend poured over the piles of paperwork that no doubt came flooding in due to the recent removal of several sages. His body relaxed as soon as he heard your voice, and he quickly abandoned his work for the more important task at hand. "Yes, I'd like to discuss something with you. Just the two of us."

You nodded in response and entered the room, quietly shutting the door behind you. Once you made your way over to an empty chair in front of his desk, Alhaitham locked his gaze with yours, a tell-tale sign that whatever he was about to say was of great importance to himself and to the other person involved—in this case, you. 

“Something’s been bothering you, and you’ve done an impeccable job at keeping it hidden, even from me. Honestly, I couldn’t figure out what it was until Kaveh brought it to my attention.”

“O-oh? Like what?”

“Don’t play coy, [Name].” Alhaitham sighed, though his frustration wasn’t directed at you, rather at his own incompetence. “He told me that you’ve been trying to change yourself, to become someone that’s ‘Worthy of my love.’” 

Embarrassment surged through you, tinting the tips of your ears red. He’s caught onto my problems, huh? You switched your gaze from his eyes to the floor, too ashamed to even look him in the face. But even if you wouldn’t meet his eyes, Alhaitham was determined to get his feelings across to you.

Heat bloomed into your hand as he took it in his, squeezing it tightly. “I don’t know who gave you the idea that you needed to change for me, but they’re completely wrong. I didn’t develop feelings for you out of pity or in the hopes that you could become something “better.” I was attracted to you because of all of your good qualities. You’re quick-witted yet gentle, independent yet considerate. You wear your heart on your sleeve, something that I’ve never been able to do.”

Alhaitham stroked your knuckles, a brief smile appearing on his lips. “I never considered the factor that I might actually one day fall in love with someone. I thought all I needed to be content in life was to devote myself to knowledge and try my best to go about things alone, but then I realized that I’m still human and that I’m prone to emotions. It’s not wrong to choose feelings over logic or love over knowledge. You changed the way I view the world. Now it’s not just about getting by and being satisfied with how things are. I want more. I want to explore these affections that I harbor in my heart. I want to discover everything that makes you smile. I want to know what I can do to make you the happiest person in all of Sumeru—no, in all of Teyvat.”

Alhaitham had gotten up from his desk and cautiously approached you, careful to not overwhelm you in the moment. His free hand came to rest on your cheek, and you let him lift your head up to meet his loving gaze that sent butterflies into your stomach. Had he always looked at you this way and you’d just never noticed? When he looked at you like that, with so much adoration, you wondered how you’d even allowed yourself to doubt just how much he cared for you.

“You were definitely an unexpected variable in all of my plans, but I’m thankful that you found a way to enter into my life. Now that I know what it’s like to love you, I can’t ever be persuaded to let you go.”

Tears brimmed at the edges of your eyes as you stood and wrapped your arms around his torso, your head pressed so close to his chest that you could feel his very heartbeat against your ear.

“Thank you, Alhaitham. I’m sorry that I made you worry.”

“There’s no need to apologize. I’m the one that should have figured out what was going on sooner.” He nestled his head on top of yours, placing a chaste kiss to your hair. “As you can see, I still have a long way to go when it comes to understanding other people.”

“It’s okay. We have all the time in the world, don’t we?”

At this, you felt him smile against you, hugging you a little tighter. “That’s right, and I’m determined to use that time to make sure that you know I love you just the way you are. Don’t let anyone tell you differently. They’re fools if they do.”

Your laughter echoed throughout the room as you melted further into Alhaitham’s embrace, neither of you quite yet ready to let go.

[cierraonline]

not gonna lie sometimes i get pissed when i find books like yours and they’re not done cause then i have to wait for the individual chapters instead of binge reading all at once. that being said don’t stop writing i love your work.

at first I thought I was in trouble. plus wheres the emotion and anticipation when you binge read.

No Honey Without Peaches 

chapter two: no honey without peaches 

Masterlist | previous chapter | next chapter 

Three years later

VANITY FAIR INTERVIEW

SALT LAKE, UTHAH

OCTOBER 18 2017

What is your name?

"My name is Storm Siren," the white-haired girl smiled at the camera, revealing her perfectly imperfect pearly whites. She subtly licked her teeth, ensuring there was no trace of her crimson-red lipstick left behind. "It is October 18, 2017."

How old are you?

"I’m thirteen, but almost fourteen. Fun fact—my birthday is on Halloween."

How many Instagram followers do you have?

"Oof," Storm gave the camera a nervous laugh. "Actually, I don’t have social media. I think it's too consuming and makes people compare themselves to strangers. I’d rather not fall victim to that."

How many Google results for 'Storm Siren'?

"2.3 million," she said, glancing at her name on the search engine. "Well, that’s kind of scary."

Most liked photo on Instagram?

"Can I call a friend?" Storm laughed, genuinely clueless since she doesn’t have an account. With a nod from the producers, Storm’s best friend stepped into the frame. "This is my best friend in the whole entire world, Honey…but you might know her as Billie Eilish," Storm introduced her with a smile.

"Her most liked photo is this black-and-white one from the Lovely video shoot behind the scene," Billie said, flipping her phone to show the camera the image.

Who’s the most followed person who follows you?

"If she had Instagram, it would be Chloë Grace Moretz, who actually asked for it, but I had to text her that Storm doesn’t have one," Billie answered, as Storm wrapped her arms around her waist. Billie leaned back, chuckling. "Peaches, you need to get Instagram already."

"I don’t want one," Storm pouted, shaking her head.

"Watch—by next year, she’ll have one," Billie laughed, making her way off-camera.

Who is a famous person in your phone?

"To me, it’s Anna Clyne, an English composer," Storm said, trying to contain her admiration. "But I guess, by pop culture standards, it’d be Khalid. By the way, Khalid, if you’re watching this—you still owe me a pack of sour Skittles."

What’s the largest audience you’ve performed in front of?

"I’d say at The Crocodile in Seattle, about 500 people. It was terrifying—I have terrible stage fright and usually have a complete breakdown before performing. Honestly, I don’t know what I’ll do if this music thing goes further."

How often do you get recognized in public?

"Quite a bit, but it depends on the music scene," Storm paused to think. "For my work with Billie and Finneas, probably once or twice a week, and for composing, maybe three times a week by classical musicians."

What advice would you give yourself a year from now?

"Don’t let something that happened when you were five stop you from living your dream."

Which artist inspires you the most?

"My Peaches, obviously," Storm laughed. "She’s a total bad a-word, even if she doesn’t see the spark in her own voice. I sometimes wish I were more like her, even if she thinks I’m better off. After her, it’d be Tyler, The Creator—his artistry is wild and so creative."

Have you met Tyler?

"Ugh, don’t even ask," Storm pouted, rolling her eyes. "One of my friends who’s currently working with him tried to set it up, but I fell asleep from rehearsal exhaustion. Tyler, I’m sorry!"

Biggest thing to happen in your career?

"Honestly, nothing yet," Storm shrugged. "And that’s okay. I know it’s because I’m not the face of the brand—it’s Billie’s time to shine, and I love watching people see her in the same light as I do. My time will come one day."

How often do you talk to your family?

"Pretty much every second of the day," Storm smiled. "I don’t have that many friends, so my family is my rock. Especially my mom, who’s currently non-verbal; talking to her fills me up with joy, even if she can’t respond."

What’s your favorite movie?

"Easy, Dirty Dancing."

Why is your hair white?

"Yes! I was waiting for you guys to ask so people would stop wondering," Storm straightened up in her seat. "I was born with a mutation that gives me no pigment in my hair, so it’s naturally white. And no, it’s not a wig—I promise. And my white eyes are just contacts...I like the look."

Do you feel pressured?

"No," Storm answered truthfully. "Everything is actually pretty calm right now. It’s nice—a comfortable pace."

Do you have a boyfriend?

"Nope," Storm shook her head. "It’s not my focus right now. But if I’m honest… I think it might not even be a boy—it could be a girl. I don’t have feelings for anyone, so I’ll just see what happens."

What’s your biggest regret?

"My biggest regret was being ashamed of loving classical music and the West Hollywood aesthetic since they’re not popular with my peers. Before I found my small group, kids would tell me I was trying to be 'white' or that I was 'whitewashing' myself. One girl even said I shouldn’t praise those things because Black people weren’t included back then and were often disrespected. I feel like, when people hear ‘classical music’ or ‘Hollywood glamour,’ they only picture white faces instead of seeing the beauty of the era itself. Like, Black people were amazing then too, despite the politics. Just look at Sugar Shack paintings or the singers from the Cotton Club—they went through tough times but had such beautiful energy."

What do you hope to take away from your first tour?

"I hope it reminds me I’m special and that everything will fall into place. I’m usually positive, happy person, but lately… I don’t know, it feels like my spark has dimmed. Maybe touring will bring it back."

What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned?

"It’s okay to be… not okay."

Craziest fan moment?

"These girls showed up dressed exactly like me—white hair, white contacts, preppy outfits, and red lips. It was like that Spider-Man meme where everyone’s pointing at each other!"

Who’s your dream person to perform with?

"Oh, easy! I have it all planned. I’d perform with Lana Del Rey, under a starry sky. We’d sing a song I wrote called 'Young and Beautiful,' with this grand orchestra behind us. And the crowd would be totally silent, just experiencing the moment. It’d be… perfect."

Can you sing a little for us?

"Ah!" Storm let out a small squeak, laughing nervously. "Okay… here goes."

Hot summer nights, mid-July

When you and I were forever wild

The crazy days, city lights

The way you'd play with me like a child

"That’s all you guys are getting."

Country you’d love to visit?

"I would love to go to Berlin. If you’re a classical or orchestra music lover, then you know the biggest venue for classical music is in Berlin—the Berlin Diana Art Hall. It’s three times bigger than Madison Square Garden! For some people, selling out Madison Square Garden is the ultimate dream. For me, it's selling out the Berlin Diana Art Hall. I only want to go to Berlin if I’m performing a sold-out show. If not, I’d rather wait."

Favorite artist at the moment?

"Melanie Martinez. I love the storytelling in her music."

What’s your favorite color right now?

"Dark crimson red. I’m completely fixated on it, and it’s kind of becoming my signature. When I wear it on my lips, it makes me feel powerful and confident."

How do you define your style in three words?

"Beauty… is… death," Storm laughed.

How do you feel about the music industry?

"I’m a little scared of it. Someone once told me the industry preys on the young and talented until they’re dried up and hate what they used to love," Storm shrugged. "I just don’t want that to happen to me. I can’t picture a world where I hate creating music."

What’s your philosophy?

"Stop fearing the unknown and let it drive while you sit in the passenger seat."

What’s the best approach to songwriting?

"Let yourself feel everything. Go through the five senses around a topic, and write it all down."

What do you want to say to yourself in a year?

"Do everything you dreamed of, shawty. Who cares about fitting in? You weren’t born to fit in." 

With that, the questions were over, and Billie dashed back on camera, wrapping her arms around Storm from behind and resting her chin on her friend’s shoulder.

"And older Billie and Storm better still be best friends forever, or I swear, I’ll build a time machine, go to the future, and beat their asses!" Billie said, pointing at the camera.

"What she said… but maybe less violent," Storm smiled. "Like a stern talking-to over fruit snacks… or maybe plant-based chicken nuggets."

"Nope, we’re sticking with ass-kicking," Billie laughed, shaking her head. "Because there’s no Honey without Peaches. We’re best friends forever and ever."

"I see you, Honey," Storm said, reaching up to gently pat Billie’s head.

"I see you, Peaches," Billie replied, holding her even tighter.

taglist @billiesrighthand @bilswildflower @bilsluckyheart @billiesgoodgirll @billsvip @billieshrry @dandelions4us @factsbybriggs @rhearipley-69 @cierraonline @amberg1998 @crystalblue88 @mercurylvd @saffsblog @ihavenoideayimhere @umadirectioner @harajukub4rb1e @sun81rise @jamiemundy7773 @cyberdreamlanddeer @steampunkprincess147 @zendayasredbottoms @efemerous @lady0ftheflowers

[spaceagebachelormann]

alright. Maybe I am attracted to black and white classic monsters. Maybe I did read your Adam Frankenstein fanfiction even though I don’t quite know if he’s the monster or just some other guy related to the scientist. Maybe I’ll request something.

I notice you don’t have any Jekyll and Hyde fanfiction. I can help with that. Maybe falling in love with both Jekyll and Hyde? Like, being in love with both and not knowing who to choose? Don't know if you can write something like that, but man am I thinking about it.

✧.* 𝐅𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐃𝐑. 𝐉𝐄𝐊𝐘𝐋𝐋 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐌𝐑. 𝐇𝐘𝐃𝐄

╰┈➤ MASTERLIST. NAVIGATION.

╰┈➤ CARMILLAS NOTES: black and white monsters are so hot bbg nobody is blaming u 🙏 also if it helps adam frankenstein is a name for the monster given by the fandom because the creature/monster feels rlly mean. also if u have any other jekyll and hyde or frankenstein requests, i’m your girl

╰┈➤ WARNINGS: mentions of murder (its jekyll and hyde)

oh you poor soul

falling in love with them both is a horrible, horrible, mistake

jekyll is pretty oblivious to it, he just thinks you’re being nice, but he is suspicious because you’re being a little to nice

but for the most part he doesn’t overthink it

hyde, though, knows almost immediately

and it really amuses him

will start kinda rudely flirting with you and affectionately bullying you simply because he finds your reactions funny

will very subtly compliment you in some way and have to stop himself from laughing when you turn bright red

when jekyll finds out about this he is extremely embarrassed

embarrassed at the way hyde is acting and embarrassed he didn’t realize sooner

he begins thinking, and it really explains quite a lot

it explains the way you act around both of them, how you go out of your way to do things for them, how you switch up when your alone with them than with other people

jekyll is both honoured and terrified that you actually like him

it puts both of them at an impasse because they can’t agree on what to do

hyde wants to keep tormenting you and messing with your mind into thinking he likes you (he’s not even sure if he does or not)

but jekyll wants to either politely reject you or ask you out in a meaningful way

the main issue is they don’t know if they really do like you or not

hyde is mainly just surprised and almost disgusted you actually like him, but he’s too interested to not be more curious than anything

because, honestly, him?? of all people??

jekyll is sure he also likes you, but he’s also refusing to admit it because of hyde

he’s mainly concerned of what he’ll do to you if your feeling for him are one sided, he doesn’t want you to end up hurt

he’d rather die than be the reason someone else is hurt (that’s why hyde is there, but in this case he doesn’t even want hyde to do it)

they accidentally avoid you while trying to figure out what they’re supposed to do

hydes urge to kill you (if he ever really even had one) is gone almost immediately, he just thinks your very stupid and amusing now

he almost. almost adores you

the situation is much worse for you in your perspective

you like both a murderer and a sociopath, it’s not great for you

even worse you’re convinced you have to choose just one

and they’re also both kind of avoiding you which is really horrible

they don’t even realize they’re doing it, which is the worst part

so, while you’re trying to figure out who’s the best option for you, they’re trying to figure out if they both even like you

well actually they’re sure they do, they just can’t agree on a way to move forward

once their little era of avoiding you is over, they’re both very nice (hyde is nice in his own way)

jekyll invites you over and gives you a long meaningful talk about their feelings and where they are in figuring it out, and he also gives an apology for accidentally ignoring you for a week or two

hyde is still pretty much himself, but you find him looking at you more often and offering to kill people you mentioned not liking before

he most likely does it, even if you don’t want him too

he goes back to his regular affectionate(ish, you can’t tell if he’s being really serious or not) and slightly crude flirting

but now you know he really does mean it

you all take your time in finding out how you’d like to proceed, until they both just confess to you and you use hydes idea of just moving forward and figuring everything out as you go along

[deancaspinefest]

Faking It?

Author: GhoulsnHalos | Artist: king-of-moose

Posting on Saturday April 13 

Actor Dean Winchester's career has hit a roadblock and the offers for a juicy lead or series regular role have dried up. In contrast, Castiel Novak's acting career is struggling to get off the ground. Despite critical acclaim for his latest part as the angelic lead in an upcoming urban fantasy show, offers aren't flooding in. What happens when the pair agree to their managers' scheme of a three-month fake relationship to push them both further into the media spotlight? It is only three months of public appearances together pretending to fall in love in front of the cameras, right? They’re both actors. They play at make-believe for a living. It can’t be that hard to pull off, can it? Besides, what could possibly go wrong?

Keep reading for a sneak preview!

“Speaking of the next three months, have you seen the schedule the Sasquatch and the Demon made?”

“It appears designed to put as in front of as many cameras and gossip columnists as possible, while subtly making use of those times when one or other of us already has something scheduled. It’s well-researched.” Dean lifts his eyes skyward.

“That’ll be my brother—the king of research and best-prepared boy scout that never was. Has its uses, so I shouldn’t complain. Don’t tell him that.”

“Why would I? There are parties on there,” Castiel says unable to keep the unease out of his voice as he makes the non sequitur. “Beginning next week.”

“Right. Not a fan. Cozy nights on the couch in pjs, I got it. Don’t worry, I’ll be with you, Sunshine. I’m certain I can show you a good time.”

For a second, Castiel thinks the million-dollar, boxer-dropping grin that follows is for him. Then reality hits again.

“Thank you.”

He doesn’t know what else to say without making an even bigger assbutt of himself than he already has.

An unrecognizable emotion flashes across Dean’s features.

“Besides, we don’t have to do what they’ve scheduled all the time. We’re big boys, we can do whatever we like.”

“True. But they’ve gone to so much trouble pulling—”

Dean holds his hand up to stop Castiel talking.

“Maybe my offer isn’t so altruistic as it came across. Look, if either of is uncomfortable with what’s been planned, then chances are that’s going to come across in our, um, performance?” Dean sounds hesitant about using that word, eyes darting around the room. “We won’t have a second, third, or fourth take at any of these things, unlike in our day-job.” Castiel has barely registered that he’s had the thought before he’s blurting it out. “We could meet up for breakfast early next week before I start the promotional tour, go through the list and iron out any kinks, so to speak.” Dean stares at him. “You asking me out on a proper date, eh, Cas?”

(continue reading on Ao3 on Saturday April 13)

[oddberryshortcake]

Jamil and Kalim have an inherently tragic relationship

Twst is full of a lot of unique relationships and interactions. A lot of the characters aren't friends in the traditional sense. What was the most compelling to me was the story of two boys tied together and torn apart by the society they live in. 

Jamil's family are servants to Kalim's family. Jamil was born a servant and expected to remain a servant. He was tasked with taking care of Kalim when he was a child himself.

I see a lot of people misinterpreting the reason behind Jamil's overblot, both not having sympathy for his past or not liking him because he's mean and Kalim is nice. It's not that Jamil necessarily wants to be mean; he's an entirely different person when he's allowed to enjoy himself or engaging in something he loves- 

But 99% of the time, he's trapped, and he knows he's trapped. 

He's been in servitude since he was born. His own parents command that he always let Kalim win in everything they do- competitions, grades, everything. They ask their own child, who is incredibly talented and brilliant, to purposefully fail. They drill into him that Kalim is more important than him, and he gets punished for even daring to ask Kalim to play something else while they're literally children. 

All the adults around him echo the same sentiments. They know Jamil is talented and smart, but he isn't important. He should be giving Kalim every victory that belongs to him; he should put his line on the line for Kalim constantly. 

He almost died for Kalim's sake, and with the constant assassination attempts, it's likely that one of them might just be enough to do him in. 

The main point of conflict for him is not only is he meant to suffer in silence, unable to communicate with anyone how he feels because no one cares. He's not able to do what he wants to do or be what he wants to be…and Kalim unfortunately didn't see this until it was too late. 

Jamil has tried to communicate with Kalim subtly or even telling him up front "Please don't do this" "Ask me first before you do something like this" and it always falls on deaf ears. Not because Kalim doesn't care, but he doesn't notice, and his upbringing has shielded him from noticing stuff like that. 

Jamil resents Kalim for him, albeit unintentionally, being a big part of the reason why he isn't free. Jamil's one shot of getting to be himself by going to school overseas was diminished as soon as Kalim followed him, and so his job continued and never ends. 

With Kalim, it's an entirely different story that's just as sad. Kalim definitely has more power in the relationship, but he's just as powerless in the life he lives up to this point. 

Kalim suffers from multiple kidnappings and multiple assassination attempts. He's been poisoned as a child repeatedly, even poisoned by family members that want him dead just to get closer to his father's wealth. 

He didn't do anything except be born as the eldest son and heir to a fortune. 

If he can't even trust his own family members not to kill him in painful and violent ways, then who can he trust? 

Jamil was all he had. He was the only person who never attempted to poison him, who always did everyone with him (He was forced to.) Jamil always takes care of him, and always helps him (he was forced to.) Despite everything that happens to him, it is Jamil's near-death experience on his behalf that he takes to heart. 

How is a child supposed to grapple with the fact that people want him dead? Some of his family wants him dead. Jamil was probably the only person he could trust unconditionally (and even that wasn't true) 

When Jamil left for school, he likely had no one. He was left with his family members, some of whom he couldn't fully trust, even with his optimism and desire for happiness. He wanted to be with his best friend (who was forced to be his best friend and didn't want him there)

Even when Jamil betrayed him, Kalim was willing to just take his word for it and let it go because he would've believed him regardless if he knew he used him. Because Jamil wouldn't do that. 

Kalim was kept in the dark about so much. There's a chance he doesn't know who's been trying to kill him; he wasn't told that Jamil was forced to give him his accomplishments, and he didn't know his position of housewarden was bought for him. All he knew was that Jamil was his friend and that he loved him.

They're stuck together, Jamil wants to have freedom, and Kalim doesn't want to let go. It's neither of their fault their lives turned out this way. Their home has strict hierarchies. 

I'm sure when they were young, very young before Jamil's parents and other adults started enforcing certain rules, these two could play as normal. Their positions as rich heir and servant wouldn't have mattered until it did. 

Kalim can treat Jamil as a friend, he can love him with all of his big heart, but Jamil still has an obligation to take care of him. They aren't equal as they are, so Kalim isn't the same as a friend in Jamil's eyes, and that's so sad. 

I always hope, if twst as a story gets to this point, that Kalim will set Jamil free like Aladdin freeing the genie, so that Jamil can experience a life owned by only himself. 

Maybe someday he'll come back, and what kept them apart as children won't be there anymore, Kalim can have a friend, and Jamil can live his life, and they can both get past their trauma. I have so many thoughts about them, this is too long. Just manifesting any development (because Chapter 5 did have some and I love it but I needed MORE)

[bunnydayss]

╭─────────────.★.. ─────╮

✰ Random Skz–Pair Headcannons: ✰

╰───── ..★.─────────────╯

————————————————————————

(Please note that I do not actually ship them in real life, this is for pure fun and giggles. — It might also not be realistic lol).

Pairs included: Minsung, Jilix, Seungin, Chanlix, Hyunlix, Hyunsung

(might do a part two based on feedback/pair requests)

Listen along while you read :)

————————————————————————

. . .

::🪻 Minsung 🪻:: ( Minho & Jisung )

• Minho would see Han watching other idols’ fancams and secretly learn the dance to show him during practice, just to impress him.

• Jisung would also go out of his way to try and learn difficult dances to subtly flex his improvements to Minho, cause he looks up to him.

• Minho bridal carries Jisung sometimes, or just generally manhandles him to fit his wants (Jisung gets flustered every time).

• Jisung acts like a brat for attention and Minho teases him for it every time and purposefully avoids playing along to rile up Sungie.

• If Jisung is having a bad day, even if Minho already planned/prepped for another meal, he’ll go out to the store to grab ingredients for Han’s favorite food.

• Minho proposes first, Jisung was too shy to do it himself.

• Minho is a silent affectionate, meaning he does things to better Jisung’s mood silently. Jisung is a loud affectionate and is extremely proud of himself when he can return the favor. (“Hey look what I did for you! Aren’t I the best?”).

. . .

:: 🌻 Jilix 🌻 :: ( Jisung & Felix )

• Both would be cuddle-bugs, but Felix would be more confident asking for them, and eventually would rub off on Jisung who would slowly become more vocal about his needs.

• Both are good at switching between the one talking and the one listening. (They’re both great at actively listening and communicating.)

• Felix apologizes first but Jisung is the first one to initiate physical contact after a fight.

• They don’t fight often but if they do it’s usually due to exhaustion or pent up stress, and it’s a short lived fight (they both immediately regret it).

• Felix fondly watches Jisung fall asleep to assure his sleep schedule betters itself during a comeback (Jisung spends too much time in the studio).

• Felix proposes first but Jisung saw the ring a week ago, but didn’t mention it to not stress out Lix.

. . .

:: 🪷 Seungin 🪷 :: ( Seungmin & Jeongin )

• Rather quiet affectionates, but can be loud when it’s a special occasion or when it matters most.

• Both propose at the same time ong.

• Seungmin drags Jeongin around and Jeongin fights back but eventually relents. (Jeongin melts into Minnie’s touch and ends up whining when he moves away).

• Morning cuddles, and refusing to let Seungmin leave the bed to start the day (“impeding morning” being I.N’s worst fear lol).

• Jeongin king of denying affection but secretly loving it (Seungmin knows).

• Seungmin puppy behavior ong, and he’s soft for all Innie’s wants, in order to please him. (“I kinda want cake”, “Innie it’s 2am”, “I know…”, “What’re you waiting around for? Let’s go-”).

• Seungmin likes to tease Jeongin by purposefully being distant from time to time, just to see Jeongin seek him out for attention. (Jeongin thinks he’s sneaky).

. . .

:: 💐 Chanlix 💐 :: ( Chan & Felix )

• Chan workaholic, Felix fighting for his life to throw him out of the studio. (He probably kisses him silly to get his attention).

• Felix has Bang Chan lap rights and sits in his lap, otherwise Chan rests his head on Liz’s thighs and let’s him play with his hair.

• Hand size difference 🗣️🗣️🗣️ (Chan lives for holding both Liz’s hands in one of his).

• Chan plays his Lix’s legs when they watch movies, he traces his fingers in random patterns while Felix giggles and buries his head in his chest.

• Chan proposes first but only because Felix knew he’s a huge closeted romantic and wanted to let him have his big moment.

• Felix displays love through physical affection and quality time, Chan through acts of service and gifts.

• Chan and Felix have a great comedy dynamic, both knowing the same references from Australia.

. . .

:: 🌷 Hyunlix 🌷 :: ( Hyunjin & Felix )

• Drama queen Hyunjin and Felix plays along fondly. (It flusters Hyunjin when he does—e.g. Hyunjin stubs his toe, fake cries about it, Felix acts worried and kisses his finger better, Hyunjin blushes).

• Both love when the other has long hair that they can play with. In fact their favorite way to go to sleep is facing one another with each others hands buried in their strands of hair.

• Poke and teases each other, even when the other is in a bad mood. And if they live for draping themselves over the other, putting all their body weight on the other to lightly annoy them.

• Felix proposes first, Hyunjin got so flustered.

• Big spoon Hyunjin and little spoon Felix, but they also switch and Hyunjin finds it so cute how his hands fully wrap around Felix and meet, and Felix’s can’t with the broadness of Jinnie’s torso.

• Hyunjin loves getting Felix flowers 24/7, replaced them in the vase every morning before Lix wakes up.

• Hyunjin paints while Felix finds TikTok challenges to do. (Hyunjin also paints Felix…)

. . .

:: 🌹 Hyunsung 🌹 :: ( Hyunjin & Jisung )

• Loves play fighting, an absolute must especially with their own past.

• They’re the type to provoke one another into affection: “You wanna kiss me sooooo bad”, “I dare you” etc.

• They fight but immediately regret it due to their relationship pre-debut, so they’re scared of big arguments. They apologize at the same time, but refuse to admit it when confronted about it (“I’m so—”, “I shouldn’t have—”…“What were you gonna say?”, “Pft. Nothing”).

• Messy and messier, with Hyunjin’s artistic hobbies and Jisung’s chaotic nature, they dedicate days to clean the house together while playing music (shared playlist on shuffle).

• Jisung doesn’t like to admit it, to Hyunjin of all people too, but he loves being held and complimented. His ego (and heart) grow at Hyunjin’s small compliments, although Jinnie makes sure to tease Jisung about his like for them.

———————

Feel free to request any other pairs! (SKZ, TXT and maybe some other groups but it depends on my familiarity with them).

Don’t forget to eat and drink water :)

[annoyinglandmagazine]

♦️▪️for the ask game - the sons of feanor? (don’t feel pressure to talk about all of them 😅)

Thank for the ask! You’re right all 7 of them might be a bit much for one post and i don’t want to take too long but I think I’ll start with Maedhros and I’ll try to add to do some of the others later? I was going to do more but the Maedhros stuff got way out of control and I didn’t want to take too long on it if all of them turn out this length so I thought I might post it as it is and if there’s anyone in particular you’d like me to do please feel free to send a follow up ask!

He has always had a huge interest in politics. Like he’s not just good at it, he finds it fascinating the way that there can be so much hidden beneath the surface of every interaction and how much can be said and implied while remaining perfectly civil. He he spent of his youth and adolescence just watching the way people go about things and keeping up with everything that went on in court and he absolutely loved it. He spends days in the library reading diplomatic correspondence in the archives and trying to read the political climate from between the lines. He also learns by the time he’s almost of age that there are kinds power and influence that you can’t get with a title you were given at birth. For some situations the best kind of power you can have is for people to actual like you and want to help you. This is conveniently also around the time he’s coming of age and beginning to grow out of that gawky stage of being all limbs. So as well as his Prince Nelyafinwe mannerisms of extreme political awareness and intelligence he also learns how to lean into the fact that most elves of varying genders find him absolutely stunning. He doesn’t flirt exactly and never goes beyond a fairly innocent dance but he knows that aesthetic appreciation is a pretty big thing for a lot of elves and they can definitely be more inclined to cooperation when focused on his wide, pleasant smile. And one of the particular habits he picks up from this is that, since one of his most admired features (so much so that one of his name is based around it) are his waist length copper curls, he often subtly draws attention to them while in social situations. A little stray lock tucked behind an ear, tightening some braid work, pulling it over a shoulder, whenever he’s trying to make connections at some kind of function his hands will always run through his hair. It’s not even conscious at some point, he begins to find it reassuring because he subconsciously associates it with being something to fall back on when he doesn’t like where a conversation is going. He still finds himself doing it in Beleriand and he hates it. Partly because as soon as he feels hands in his hair he thinks of it being grabbed and stroked to taunt him in Angband but also because the reminder of the elf he used to be hurts, how small his worries were in comparison that something like a pretty smile would ease the things he considered tense discussions. The idea that something like that would mean anything to the Sindar ambassadors was laughable and he got frustrated with himself every time he slips into that particular mannerism though no one else sees it, except perhaps his brothers.

I feel like in Himring Maedhros has the most impersonal chambers out of any of his brothers. He’s paranoid about revealing too much and he hates the idea of extravagance mainly because of the fact he has an excessive fear about appearing weak so he overcompensates by making everything needlessly unpleasant for himself. There’s a constant draft and the stone floors aren’t carpeted so it’s even colder. He has fireplaces but he rarely uses them only really when he has visitors, which he doesn’t often do in his private rooms because of aforementioned paranoia, so we’re mainly talking about his brothers and Fingon who worry about his wellbeing in such temperatures even if they’re fooled into thinking he normally has a fire going. He receives gifts of things like blankets, rugs, wall hangings and paintings but never puts them in his living quarters out of a reluctance to attach personal value or sentimentality to material things (is this about the Silmarils? Probably.) Caranthir has more than once visited his brother in Himring and seen one of his embroidered blankets hung in the banquet hall like a tapestry. And he knows that he couldn’t possibly express offence, it was a very respectful place for a diplomatic gift, but it hadn’t been a diplomatic gift. He hadn’t spent some politically calculated sum of money to buy it for the Lord of Himring as some show of his loyalty, he’d knitted that with his own hands for his brother because he’d heard it was going to be a cold winter. It hadn’t been meant for the Lord of Himring it had been meant for Maedhros. Caranthir was beginning to worry his brother couldn’t tell the difference anymore. So he’s not offended but he is hurt, though he never shows it. He keeps sending them but knows deep down none will make it past that wooden door.