#only to internally giggle to herself like a school girl

[serpentide]

𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐈𝐒 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐒 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐁𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐒 𝐒𝐏𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑 ▬▬ there is familiarity in the artificial smile that brightens his lineaments with its gentle curvature, for it seems to have been birthed by the same sentimental chasm burrowed deep within her breastbone and that earnestly devours all and any source of warmth and luminescence. serpent listens to his words with the same fervor of a devotee that kneels in front of a stone - wrought saint, for it is in his vocalization that she searches for his true intentions: this is a truth that she has long since learnt, no one is kind to another unless their actions are maneuvered by hidden motives ( after all, what are humans if naught but the will - less puppets in the grip of a rapacious and ever - hungering puppeteer ? ) .

but she smiles, she almost beams amidst the scorching flames of delight. his hand is graciously taken in her own and serpent does ensure that her obsidian - lacquered nails will leave neither bruise nor bite 'pon his skin ; her hold is gentle, there is an unnatural attentiveness in the gesture ( she knows not how to touch another without tearing them asunder, she knows not how to touch another without condemning them to wilt and rot beneath the noxious kiss of her ichorous venom ) . and yet, despite her instinctive antagonism towards physical contact with others, the ophidian jester outstretches her free hand for the unique purpose of languidly brushing the pad of her thumb against the blood smeared across his face: it feels warm under her touch, she wonders whether this is how foolish worshippers feel when holy water is poured 'pon their bare, desert - like flesh.

❝ snakes do not crave the sweet taste of honey as much as humans do, ❞ is the serpentine vixen's first response. there is a change in her demeanor, however, even if she foolishly believes that it will pass unnoticed no matter how keen the gaze of her interlocutor may be: he finds beauty in the monstrous, and the sharp lineaments of her visage are set aglow and aflame ( even the feared crown of thorns may one day flourish and unfurl its petals, if it's given more than just castigation for the cruelty of its thorns ) . her hand finally moves back to her side, lithe fingers curl inwardly almost unconsciously. ❝ this is the first time that i've seen you attending our little show, so your timing must be god - given. who are you ? ❞

even the purest of intentions can turn vile in an instant / innocent curiosity gives way to bloodshed. that is the circumstances that led him here ; perhaps it was nostalgia for days past, a concealed but deep-rooted desire to return to simpler times — he misses the circus. there were monsters where he came from too, but only to the eye of the audience. no one treated any of them like this, he thinks, watching the scene play out from the shadows, out behind the crowds of people departing, the spectacle of lights && great, sloping curtains faded into the background. he is no stranger to the underworld either, dealings that happen in the dark, but the spark of rage in his chest that flares up upon seeing the way the men corner the young women is not tempered by familiarity.

so he does what he does best — emerges, moving swift as a shadow himself. two men thrown prone, landing hard on the ground, another knocked unconscious, && the fourth held tight in a vice grip, an arm locked around his neck ; the young assassin smiles at the two looking up at him in fear as he snaps the man's neck, && they scramble to their feet, fleeing as he watches them impassively.

when he drops the fresh corpse to the ground && looks up, there's a splatter of blood streaked across his face between two deep red eyes.

claire stanfield smiles warmly at the woman as she approaches him.

"it was my pleasure," he says brightly, as if he'd done little more than hold open a door. "not that i don't think you could've handled yourself, but, well, what kinda guy would i be to let them gang up on a lady like that? especially after you gave such a wonderful performance. i was entranced." he offers a hand to her. "your eyes are beautiful, by the way."

[vauer]

𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝟏𝟔𝟏𝟎 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

ꜱᴜᴍᴍᴀʀʏ: a couple of days ago, you found a strange blondie in his room. it's time to act decisively.

cᴡ: porn, age up, obscene language, cunnilingus, Internal misogyny, fem!reader

(English isn't my first language, sorry for any mistakes)

Enjoy 💌

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A couple of paint cans fell to the floor with a thud, drowning out the quiet moans. You insistently pulled Miles closer, wrapping your legs around his hips as his warm hands reverently stroked the curve of your waist.

“Do you like my figure that much?” you giggled as Miles gently squeezed the skin on your side.

"I'm studying the texture for authenticity," his embarrassed murmur touched your lips, parted from lack of air.

You two didn't expect the evening to turn out like this. Actually, Miles did not expect it when he invited you to be a sitter for his graduation work at art school. For you, on the other hand, it was a long-awaited chance. From the first time you met, you knew you had to have him for herself. While their classmates saw him as some silly nerd, there was nothing sexier for you than his craving for quantum physics and drawing.

In fact, you didn't really want to rush things between you, after all, you had only become friends a couple of months ago. But recently you found a girl in Miles's room and decided that it was impossible to delay. You had no idea who that blondie was, but she managed to shake your confidence. You had to hope Miles didn't have a type. You obviously couldn't call herself ugly, on the contrary, your parents' money was doing its job: a couple of years of wearing braces, expensive cosmetologists and hairdressers, and by graduation you could be confused with someone from the Kardashian family. The problem was, you didn't look alike that blondie at all.

You had well-groomed and neatly styled hair when that girl had a hairstyle that was done by either a self-taught punk or an autistic blind man. She dressed in a similar style also. What could Miles possibly see in her?

Anyway, it didn't matter at the moment, because right now his head was between your legs.

The cold and thick paint that you had spilled on the table slowly flowed down your leg. With a quick movement, Miles pulled off your underwear and smeared a purple stain on the back of your thigh. You took a deep breath and gripped the edge of the table. Your whole body was trembling slightly from overexcitation and excess of emotions.

A slight bite on the inside of your thigh sent a shiver down your spine, forcing you to spread your legs wider. You would never have thought that seeing his charming face between your legs could be the most satisfying part of the process.

"You didn't tell me about it."

You arched her back in a sudden burst of pleasure. Trying to calm you accelerated breathing, you swallowed, looking down. With an innocent expression on his face, Miles clamped the curved piercing bar between his teeth. Every little breath he took sent a wave of goosebumps through your body.

"You didn't show much interest in my holes before," you smiled, possessively throwing your legs over his shoulders.

Blushing slightly, Miles looked down again and wrapped his arms around your waist, holding you still. His hot tongue slowly slid along your wet folds, gently pushing them apart and deliberately brushing against the cold metal of the jewelry. You threw your head back, breathing heavily. You could have finish just from the look of his deer eyes innocently looking up at you.

"You're gonna kill me," you muttered, trying to grab onto something to keep from falling off the table under the pressure of the sensations delivered by his soft mouth. In the end, you ran your hand through his soft curls, pulling him as close as you could.

Miles moaned softly, lightly squeezing your butt, his tongue teasingly penetrating inside you as he leaned slightly towards your gentle hand in his hair.

"I think you're trying to strangle me right now," Miles chuckled. His cheeks were slightly squeezed by your thighs, making the whole picture even more adorable.

Feeling the sweet warmth in your lower abdomen, you pulled Miles even closer, moving your hips towards his mouth, rubbing yourself against his face.

Suddenly, he pinned you against the table, holding you by the waist. Unable to move, you threw her head back, feeling even more aroused. Finally, Miles's plump lips found your clit, sucking lightly on it.

He pulled back your piercing with his teeth once again, hard enough to make you gasp in surprise, but not hard enough to cause real pain.

It was too much for you. Just a couple of movements made you shudder and arch back from orgasm, throwing even more things off the table.

With a soft moan, Miles pressed his mouth to your pussy, prolonging your pleasure with a couple of movements of his tongue along your swollen and wet with excitement folds.

You involuntarily pinched his head between your thighs so that he had to forcibly spread your legs apart.

“Have you invited many people to “pose" like that?” you murmured with a note of jealousy and gratitude in voice. Your chest was heaving convulsively from the lack of air in lungs.

“No one,” Miles's cheeks turned an embarrassed blush as he tried to catch his breath, beads of sweat glistened on his forehead. He sat down on the table and looked at your naked body. Awkwardly reaching out, Miles smeared drops of paint on your collarbone, tracing a red line from your chest to hip while admiring your curves.

“Who was that blondie in your room the other day?” you blurted out, not caring how harsh your question sounded, especially after what he had just done to you.

Miles's eyes widened slightly at the unexpected question.

“Do you really want to talk about her at the moment?” He chuckled slightly. “Don't worry, I didn't do those things to her.”

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hope I won't get cursed or wished to die for this (´꒳`)♡

[ohthewh0rror]

WHEN I’M WITH YOU

˚₊ ⋆ ☠︎︎ ⋆ ₊˚ prompt — Professor Slughorn assigns Tom a potions partner— the only problem is that it’s a girl he’s never met before. Will Tom ignore his growing feelings for his new partner or will he give in and accept how he truly feels.

Full Request: HERE

Pairing: Tom Riddle x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 2.5K

A/N: I introduce to you — Tom “she’s not like the other girls” Riddle. Also I’m sorry girl, I forgot to make her sort of weary of Tom and skipped straight to her just being nice. 😗

“When you think of me, is it fondly?”

Tom resisted the urge to rub his hands together to warm them. The frosty January air was unrelenting, seeping its way through the thick stone walls of Hogwarts making the lengthy descent into the school's dungeons more unpleasant than usual.

Eager to get out of the frigid hall, Tom mentally thanked Salazar when the door to the potions classroom came into view. Walking through the door, Tom saw a few of his fellow classmates already huddled along the back wall and talking amongst themselves. He gave them a polite nod as they wished him good morning, continuing to make his way to the opposite end, away from them.

From his spot in the back, Tom watched as the other students slowly trickled in. Girls linked arm in arm, whispering and giggling to one another; boys knocking into one another, speaking loudly about next week's Quidditch match. The sense of comradery left Tom internally recoiling in disgust as he tried to imagine himself acting in such a way.

Tiernan Lestrange came to stand next to him, a little closer than what Tom was comfortable with. Tom side-eyed the boy, but ultimately said nothing to him, choosing to instead focus on Professor Slughorn who called the class to attention as he used his wand to wave the classroom door closed.

Tom began to tune his professor out as he began his theatrics about the point they’d be working with today— befuddlement draught. A potion used to cause the drinker to become reckless, something Tom would take precautionary measures not to spill or ingest in any capacity.

“I will be pairing you off today—” was all Tom heard before he felt the trickles of irritation creep into his mind. Working in pairs was always something Tom hated, preferring to work alone instead of having to potentially be weighed down by some idiot.

“And Mr. Riddle,” Professor Slughorn called out, breaking Tom out of his thoughts, “you will be working with Ms. Y/L/N!”. Slughorn’s arm was stretched out, motioning towards a girl standing on the other side of the class, just out of view. Tom ran the last name over in his head a few times, trying to spark some form of recognition in his mind, but he came up blank.

Slughorn clapped his hands, telling them they have until the end of the hour to finish their potion. Tom mentally prepared himself for what kind of girl he may be working with as he made his way through the dissipating crowd of students to find his partner.

Ah, there she was.

She hadn’t noticed him just yet, so he took those few seconds to give her a once over. It would make sense he didn’t recognize her, she was not in his house. They locked eyes as she finally noticed him just a few feet in front of her, and she swiftly closed the distance between the two.

“I don’t think we’ve met before, I’m Y/N” she said, introducing herself. Her voice, though a bit quiet, was sweet. It wasn’t the same condescending tone Tom was used to receiving from the girls that hung around Lestrange and Avery, and for that he was glad. Giving her a polite smile, Tom guided the both of them to an empty cauldron, “I don’t believe we have, my name is Tom.”

Y/N was not unbearable to work with, much to Tom’s relief. The only hiccup didn’t occur until thirty minutes into making the draught when she unknowingly overstepped a boundary of his. Tom had brought his hand up to drop the scurvy grass into the cauldron when she grabbed him; his eyes immediately snapped to her, surprised that she had the audacity to grab him.

“Wait,” she said, a hint of panic in her tone, “you have to add the sneezewort first.” Their hands stayed locked together as Tom took a peek at her potions book laying out in front of them. As his eyes glided over the instructions he saw she was right, causing him to now feel a little embarrassed at the mistake he almost made.

“You’re right,” Tom cringed on the inside, “it is sneezewort first.” Y/N let go of his hand as he lowered it to switch out the ingredient he was holding. Her grabbing him should have left him disgusted and discreetly wiping his hand against his robes to rid himself of the feeling of her touch But, it wasn’t disgust he felt from her touch; just annoyance and a lingering tingling feeling in his hand that he did not want to think about.

Tom and Y/N had just finished their potions when Slughorn had stopped in front of them. “A perfect brew! Though I expect nothing less from either of you!” Slughorn exclaimed in his usual jovial tone. “Thank you, sir,” Tom and Y/N replied at the same time. Tom and Y/N looked at one another, and he watched, unable to look away, as a genuine smile tugged at her lips.

Tom momentarily forgot they had been talking to Slughorn until the old fool spoke again, telling them they were welcome to spend the last few minutes of class how they wished. The two chose not to speak, something Tom was grateful for, as they put away their belongings. It wasn’t until the bell chimed telling them it was time for lunch that they spoke again.

“I’ll see you next Thursday, yeah?” Y/N looked at him with, what he could only describe as a hopeful look in her eyes. Tom nodded, “of course.” Tom watched as she left, her figure sauntering out of the potions door. He was once again reminded of where he was when he heard Avery’s grating voice ask him a question.

Though Tom did not have another class with her till next Thursday, he couldn’t seem to stop seeing her in some form. He saw her in the halls, a weird feeling gathering in his chest when she would give him a friendly wave as they passed each other by. He saw her in the Great Hall, his skin growing warm as his eyes accidentally caught hers from where they both sat at their respective tables.

Their next potions class together, Tom planned to work alone, but Y/N fell into step beside him, a playful smile dancing on her lips as she asked, “do you mind if I join you?”. Tom, who should have found a polite way to tell her to ‘fuck off’, couldn’t bring himself to turn her away.

“Not at all,” Tom wanted to hex himself. Why would he say that? Tom worked alone, he didn’t want nor need a partner, yet he did not hesitate to let her join him. It was beginning to drive him mad, how out of character he was being towards a girl he’s known for no longer than a week. Tom needed answers for why he was acting this way, for why he was being affected in such a way.

But answers wouldn’t come. For the next month Tom was tormented every time they worked together: sweaty palms, shortness of breath, conflicting thoughts. He was beginning to think she was attempting to bewitch him in some way, casting discrete spells on him. So, he began to pay closer attention to her, trying to catch her in the act, paying attention to her every move.

He noticed everything. From the way she hid behind her hands when she laughed all the way to how she liked her fruit cut a certain way. Every mannerism he noticed, he mentally jotted down— in case it was needed for future blackmail of course (he was sure he could spin the fruit thing into a vicious rumor of some kind).

Everything came to a head on February 26th. It was a chilly Friday night and the Slug Club was supposed to meet for a lavish dinner in Slughorn's office with its usual attendants.

Except, when Tom walked in it was anything but the usual attendants or atmosphere. Instead Tom walked into an office decorated to look far more lavish than usual with trays of food and drink floating about for guests to pick off of. As Tom walked further in, he saw more than just the typical group of boys that met once a month. He saw other students, as well as other adults, whom Tom assumed were acquaintances of Slughorn.

Tom thought of skipping this meeting, as gatherings such as this were out of his comfort zone, until something caught his eye. ‘Sweet Salazar,’ Tom thought to himself, exasperated. He couldn’t believe what he was looking at— or should he say, who he was looking at. It was Y/N, dressed in a flattering knee length, emerald dress. Tom thought of approaching her, but found himself rooted in place.

After a second, he finally found himself moving towards her, but before he could make it to her side, another boy approached her first. Tom slowed his steps as he felt a surge of white hot anger consume him at the sight of this Neanderthal touching her, as if he was worthy of such a thing. He was a plain looking fellow; average height, basic attire, and dull features.

‘As if she would go for the likes of him,’ it was that thought that made alarm bells go off in his head. Why would he think that? If not that boy, then who would she go for? Tom’s mind raced as he thought the question over. He fought with himself as he kept coming back to the same conclusion: Y/N deserved himself.

It was a conclusion he didn’t understand, but it was the only one he kept coming back to; the only one that made sense. Needing time to process what he realized, he slinked off, out of Y/N’s eyesight.

Tom was good at sneaking around and avoiding others, it was something he’d done since before his days at Hogwarts, when he was just a young child at Wool’s Orphanage. So it wasn’t hard to avoid Y/N for the remainder of the gathering, but in trying to avoid her, he ran into Slughorn.

“Tom! My boy! How are you enjoying the party?” Slughorn asked, clapping a heavy hand on his shoulder. Tom, though he wanted to be left alone, faked a polite smile, “I’m enjoying myself well enough, sir, you’ve truly outdone yourself this time.” He hoped a little flattery would help spend this conversation up, as he wasn’t in the mood to deal with him right now. “Good, good..” Slughorn trailed off, Tom hoped that would be the end of it, but the Professor seemed to have one more thing to add.

“I’ve noticed you hanging around Ms. Y/L/N more, and I must say, I like the idea of you two growing closer,” Slughorn confessed. Tom, though feeling embarrassed that his teacher noticed and decided to comment on an aspect of his personal life, played the bashful card. He forced himself to smile and glance at his feet, “I see.”

Slughorn gave Tom a pat on the back, wishing him luck, and departed to go mingle with more guests. Tom managed to avoid both Slughorn and Y/N for the rest of the night as he stayed in the furthest section of the party, mingling with the likes of Mulciber and Nott.

Finally having had enough, Tom decided to slip out of the room and into the empty hallway, intent on going back to his dorm and getting some rest. He hadn’t made it far from the party when he heard Y/N call for him from behind.

“Tom!” Y/N’s voice echoed throughout the hall. Tom stopped and turned to her, unsure of what she could need from him. Once she finally caught up to him, she stopped before him, slightly winded. Tom gave her a moment to collect herself, but a bashful look crossed her face as she seemed to be second guessing herself.

“Yes, Y/N?” Tom gently goaded, trying to get her to spit it out. It was another second before she finally spoke, “will you walk me back to my common room?”. It was a question that took him off guard, as that was not in the realm of what he guessed she could want. The fact that she wanted him to walk her back to her common room made his heart thump wildly against his chest. Giving her a slight nod, he held his arm out to her.

Feeling her hand delicately grasp his arm made him feel sick, having never done anything like this before. “Did you enjoy yourself? I assume this was the first time you’ve been invited?” Tom asked, trying to fill the silence. Well, that’s what he told himself at least. Truthfully, he just wanted to hear her voice; he could listen to her speak all day if she let him.

“Yes, this is my first time going,” she confirmed, “it was alright, a bit overwhelming if I’m being honest.” Tom nodded, knowing what she meant, “I felt the same.”

The two of them lapse into silence, only the sounds of their shoes could be heard as Tom escorted her back to her common room. Tom made sure to take smaller steps to be sure he didn’t accidentally drag her across the castle, but also, to prolong their walk.

Still, the walk was over far too soon as they came to a stop in front of her common room entrance. She let go of his arm, and the two of them faced each other. “Thank you for walking me back, Tom,” Y/N said. Tom gave her a genuine smile, “it was nothing.”

Y/N looked from Tom, to the entrance, and back to him again. She seemed as if she wanted to say something, and Tom, not wanting to be rude (for once) patiently waited for her to gather her courage to say what was on her mind. “I plan to go to Hogsmeade next weekend, would you mind accompanying me?” She asked.

The look on Tom’s face must have been awfully amusing as Y/N’s laughter reverberated throughout the hall. The sound of her laughter making his chest ache with how sweet it sounded. It made Tom wish he could bottle it up and keep it on a shelf; save it for moments when he needed to be reminded that something other than pain and cruelty existed in this world.

“So..” Y/N trailed off, laughter still evident in her tone, “is that a yes?”.

Finding his voice Tom agreed, “that’s a yes.”

Tom and Y/N bid each other goodnight, parting ways as she stepped through the entrance to her common room. As the entrance closed behind her Tom turned to make his way back to the dungeon, a feeling of anticipation filling him as thought’s of Y/N and their future date overrun his mind.

Taglist: @r-a-c-h-e-l

[spnbabe67]

Bruises and Bitemarks

Kinktober Day 5: Marking (J.S.)

Pairing: Jake Seresin x Fem Original Character

Warnings: Smut, PiV, Hickeys, Biting, Spit, Pussy-job

Summary: Tatum promised herself that her night with Jake was only gonna be a one time thing. But can she really resist him? And more importantly, can she keep whatever this is between them a secret?

Word Count: 3208

Authors Note: I know the title is a little on the nose, but its also the title of a song by Good For Grenades.

Tatum was fully intending for, whatever the hell that night with Jake was, to be one time and one time only. She’d kicked him out after the second round, citing not wanting to inflate his ego until his head was so big that he couldn’t get out the door as her reason. That’d earned her a smack on the ass as they were both getting redressed, well, Jake was at least. Tatum had simply crossed her arms over her bare chest, leaning against the wall and unabashedly watched him pull his clothes back on; the infamous Jake Seresin doing the walk of shame for once. She’d sent him out the door with a mocking waggle of her fingers, going to shower only once she took a moment to compose herself.

The next day it was like nothing had happened between her and Jake, not that they’d had too much time to interact. Tatum giggled under her breath as the dark haired man from the bar the night before turned out to be the instructor for this mystery mission, shocking Hangman and a couple of his cronies who had apparently given Maverick some flak after he had to buy the entire a bar a round and subsequently got thrown ‘overboard.’ Karma’s a bitch. It wasn’t like she cared, she couldn’t give two shits about what had transpired between her and Hangman, she could be another notch in his belt for all it was worth. She was worth her salt, she knew it and everyone else knew it. She was the last pilot to be taken out by Maverick in their dogfighting exercise, outlasting even Natasha, and what she did outside of training had no effect on her performance. 

That night she took her fellow pilots, including Maverick out to The Hard Deck, buying them all a round. She raised her glass to Maverick across the bar, giving him a smirk as he flirted with Penny. That man has his work cut out for him. Much to her surprise, Jake hadn’t shown his face at the bar, not usually one to turn down free drinks. Tatum internally shrugged, no skin off her back, and her wallet stayed a couple bills thicker. Tatum quickly downed her glass of scotch, watching Penny refill it before taking Natasha up on her challenge to a game of pool. The raven haired pilot engaged her in some trash talk as she racked the billiard balls and with a loud snap had them careening out of their neat triangular shape, ricocheting against the walls of the table.

“So,” Natasha started, lining up her next shot and narrowly missed knocking the striped ball she had been aiming for into its pocket. “You shacking up with anyone or are you stuck in the barracks with the rest of us?”

Tatum snorted a laugh, walking around the table, the pool cue loosely in her grasp. She was grateful for the easy friendship she had with Phoenix. Growing up, Tatum had always equated the other girls in Middle and early High School to sharks, always moving between friendships and could smell drama like blood in the ocean; she always made it a point to not piss them and their unnaturally dead eyes off. But when Natasha ended up in her class at Top Gun the two became fast friends, neither of them standing the wishy-washy nature of the other girls in their class, and not letting Jake or Coyote give them any shit.

“Is that your not so subtle way of asking me if I’m fucking anyone right now?” Tatum grinned and arched a brow at her friend as she pocketed the ball she’d been aiming for, moving to set up her next shot.

“Maybe.” Natasha’s tone was nothing but sly.

“Well, Ms. Nosey, there’s nothing to report.” The lie easily rolled off her tongue, mostly because in her mind, Tatum didn’t consider the one time thing between her and Hangman to be anything other than a slip in her morals, a way to break her dry spell and work out frustrations. What it wasn’t was a long term thing, not friends with benefits and definitely not an exclusive situation. “I’m single and subjected to the barracks like the rest of you. Unattached and unbothered, just how I like it.”

Tatum leaned back over the table, mindful of how the skirt of the dress she’d changed into rode up against her thighs, the flowy fabric brushing against her mid thighs. She uttered a curse under her breath as the cue slipped against her sweaty hands, sending the cue ball on an errant trajectory. 

“Bagman,” Tatum stiffened as Natasha called out to Jake who’d apparently showed up in the last couple minutes, perched on a stool at one of the high tops by the pool tables. “I was starting to think you weren’t gonna show.”

Tatum looked over her shoulder to see Jake’s gaze already on her, looking her up and down before giving her a serpentine smile. “And miss an opportunity for Ice here to buy me a drink? No way.” Tatum rolled her eyes, moving out of the way so Natasha could angle her shot. “What’re you drinking Hayes?”

“I don’t drink.” Tatum heard Natasha huff a laugh at her blatant lie as she swiftly pocketed one ball, moving to line up another shot.

“Since when?”

“Since now.” Tatum watched Natasha easily sink another ball into its pocket, anything to try and ignore Jake’s eyes tracking her. 

Jake called out his order, and since Natasha was on a hot streak, Tatum sauntered over to the bar putting in his order as well as one of her own. Tatum handed Penny a couple bills in exchange for her Jack and coke, the beer Jake requested, and one for Natasha, thanking the bartender before returning to the pool table. 

“‘Bout time, bitch. I was about to take your turn for you.” Natasha teased.

“Is that so?” Tatum jested back, pulling the pair of longneck bottles back towards her. “Then I guess I’ll just give this one to Jake instead then.”

“Not a chance.” Natasha took the chilled bottle from Tatum, kissing her friend on the cheek in thanks.

“Deal’s a deal.” Tatum slid Jake’s beer over to him, taking a sip of her own drink before picking her pool cue back up and assessing the sorry state of the pool table, Phoenix having nearly all of her balls in pockets. “The fuck is this Nat?”

“Not my fault you suck.”

Tatum flipped her friend the bird, but could help breaking out into a smile as she managed to find a halfway decent angle. Tatum tried to concentrate on her shot but she could feel Jake’s eyes on her. She shook off the feeling, managing to sink a couple of her own into the pockets before she scratched. 

“I thought you said you didn’t drink?” Jake smirked at her as Tatum walked back over to the table.

Tatum took a sip, keeping eye contact with Jake before setting the glass back down on the table. “It’s just Coke.”

Jake narrowed his eyes, the only indication of his suspicion until he reached over, wrapping his hand around the glass and brang it to his lips. Tatum bit the inside of her cheek, not giving him the satisfaction of looking sheepish at being caught in her lie. 

“My question stands. I thought you didn’t drink?”

“Okay fine.” Tatum relented, watching as Natasha successfully hit the 8 ball into a pocket, raising her arms in victory. “I drink, just not with you.”

Natasha pulled Jake in for a match and Tatum migrated over to where Fanboy and Payback were playing darts. From where he was playing billiards with Phoenix, Jake watched Tatum throw her head back in laughter at some joke Payback made out of the corner of his eye. The way her hair was pinned up in a low chignon accentuated the curve of her neck, it drew the eye to the bare expanse of her back put on display by the halter neck of that dress that made her look sexy as hell. As she lifted that damn glass to her lips, Jake was mesmerized by the way her back muscles rippled under her soft skin. He could practically feel the memory of how her body felt under his hands. Jake tore his eyes away from Tatum, turning his attention back to the pool table, ignoring the stink eye Phoenix leveled at him. 

As the night progressed, more and more of the patrons filtered out of The Hard Deck until Penny signaled for last call. Tatum had ended up chatting with Penny as the night came to a close, only a few night owls still hanging around. 

“You need a ride home?” The bartender asked her as she dried the crystal tumblers, setting them back up behind the bar.

“I got her Penny.” Tatum glanced up as Jake walked to the bar, jacket slung over one shoulder. 

Tatum furrowed her brows. “You’re still here?”

“What else am I gonna do? Go back to the barracks?”

Fair. Tatum shrugged her shoulders as Penny gave her an inquisitive look. Tatum knew the bartender had her best interests, as close with her as she was with Natasha. She hopped off the stool, waving to Penny as she followed Jake out of the bar. Tatum knew something smart was about to come out of Jake’s mouth as he grinned either to himself or at her as they both climbed into his truck.

“So,” Tatum internally groaned at Jake’s tone, preemptively rubbing her forehead after she buckled her seatbelt. “Unattached and unbothered, huh?”

Tatum was confused at first, trying to comprehend what exactly Jake was referring to but then her conversation with Natasha earlier, right before Jake showed up.

“Eavesdrop much?” Tatum accused, crossing her arms.

“Not eavesdropping if you are having a conversation in a public place.”

Tatum mumbled under her breath about technicalities as she slid lower in the passenger seat.

“Still waiting for an answer, Ice.”

“Why does it matter?” Tatum countered. “I told you that thing last night was a one time thing that neither of us was gonna speak about again.”

“That thing?” Jake gave her an amused look as he pulled into the parking lot. “You mean where I fucked you into a quivering mess with you moaning my name?”

Tatum shivered at the memories his crude words invoked, squeezing her thighs together. “Jesus, Jake. You kiss your mama with that mouth?” His answering smirk had Tatum rolling her eyes and unbuckling her seatbelt and kicking the door open. “Goodnight Hangman.”

Tatum heard Jake slam his own door as he chased after her inside. His hands landed on her waist as she pulled the keys for her room out of her purse. She sucked in a shuddering breath as he placed an open mouth kiss against the junction of her neck and her shoulder. One time. One time was all this was supposed to be. But here she was, letting Hangman lead her by her wrist down the hall to his room. She should have heeded the warnings more, listened closer to the scuttlebutt about him. Because the next thing she knew she was urged inside his room, the door swiftly closed and locked. Then his lips were on hers, harsh and demanding, his hands roughly grabbing at her hips and waist hard enough to bruise. Tatum slid her own hands into his hair, letting her nails scratch his scalp, tugging on the short strands making Jake grunt into her mouth. 

They both stumbled backwards, Jake leading Tatum by the hips until he sunk down on his own mattress, pulling her onto his lap. With the change in height difference Jake kissed a hot trail from her lips to her jaw to her neck until he reached the spot under her ear that he knew drove her crazy. Tatum dug her nails into Jake's shoulders as he sucked and nipped at her neck, feeling each movement of his lips against her skin send jolts of arousal shocking through her. She rocked her hips back and forth against the buckle of his belt, her skirt hiked up high on her thighs from where she was perched on his lap. Jake sucked and kissed every inch of skin he could reach on the side of her neck and down to her collarbone before pulling the v of her neckline to the side, exposing her breast. 

Tatum tipped her head back, grinding her hips onto Jakes as his mouth closed around the skin just north of her pebbled nipple, north of where she wanted to feel him. Her breath came in short pants tinged with desire as Jake finally wrapped that mouth of his around her nipple, the hand that wasn’t wrapped around her waist coming up to palm the other. Tatum was breathless by the time Jake slid his hands under her dress, sliding the garment up and over her head to be thrown to unknown places in his room. 

His pupils were blown wide with lust as he surveyed her naked torso, the only thing keeping her from being fully naked was the black lacy g-string barely covering her soaked pussy. Jake stood, bringing Tatum with him with his hands gripping her ass. That was, until he dropped her back down onto the bed on her back. Instantly he was hovering over her, pressing a kiss to the valley between her breasts, his hand toying with the waistband of her panties, pulling them away just to let them snap back with a biting thwap. 

“Who are these for, huh?” Jake muttered against her skin as he kissed his way between her breasts up to the hollow of her throat where Tatum felt the tip of his tongue in the dip. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you wanted me to find these.”

“You really like to hear yourself talk, don’t you.” Was Tatum’s only answer, though the flush of her cheeks was probably an answer in its own right. 

Jake just chuckled, removing his shirt, hands moving to undo his pants. Tatum sat up, helping remove the article of clothing, his jeans and boxers following a similar path to that of her dress and his shirt. 

Jake put a hand on her belly, pushing her back against the bed. Tatum let him lay her back, lounging on her elbows as she watched him fist his cock in his hand, giving his already hard length a few lazy pumps. He spit onto his cock, using it as lube as he slid his hand up and down his shaft a couple more times before he took hold of Tatum’s thighs, pulling her closer towards him. She bit her lip as Jake pulled her panties to the side, admiring her glistening folds. Her head fell back as Jake guided his cock through her soaked pussy lips, the underside of his shaft sliding against her throbbing clit. She tried to buck her hips up, wanting to chase the feeling but Jake pinned her hips to the bed with a large hand, using the other to guide himself through her slick. 

“Just fuck me already Seresin.” Tatum uttered through gritted teeth. 

“Well, since you asked so nicely.” Jake rutted against her heat one last time before Tatum felt the head of his dick catch against her opening before he slowly pushed himself into her.

Jake tilted his hips back and forth, fucking her agonizingly slow. His hand against her lower stomach added pressure as she felt him slide impossibly deep inside her. He slid in and out of her at a snails pace, it must have been torture for him as much as it was for her. 

“Jake.” Tatum groaned, needing him to go faster.

“I’m fuckin’ ya, ain’t I?”

Tatum glared at him. “Fuck me for real.”

Jake cocked his head at her, running his hand up and down her thigh. “What’s the magic word?”

He couldn’t be serious. Oh but he was, not budging from that languid pace that he’d set from the moment he’d pushed himself inside her.

“Please.” Tatum moaned as Jake added his thumb circling in light, slow circles around her clit.

“Please what?” Jake crooned. “Tell me what you want. Gotta be specific.”

For fucks sake. “Please fuck me harder.”

“Again.”

“Jake, please.” Tatum refused to let her pleading turn to whining. “Please fuck me harder. Please.”

She could have cried when Jake finally picked up the pace, snapping his hips harder, bottoming out into her. Tatum moaned as he hovered over her, changing the way his thrusts rubbed against her walls. 

“What would our friends think if they saw you right now, huh? Begging for me to fuck you harder? What do you think Phoenix or Rooster would think if they heard you begging for my cock, begging me to fuck you like a whore.” Jake growled into her ear.

The pure filth dripping from his lips like honey should not have turned her on as much as it did. Tatum dug her nails into Jake's back, digging her heels into his ass to keep him on this pace. She murmured his name over and over as his cock brushed against her g-spot, the hand he’d slipped between their bodies making rapid circles against her clit with that perfect pressure. Her walls fluttered around him as her climax built and built until she teetered over the edge, burying her face into his neck as she came hard. Her pussy clenched around him, making Jake’s teeth dig into Tatums shoulder as he came with a series of erratic thrusts, his legs shaking.

Jake pulled out of Tatum with a low groan, turning Tatum so they laid with her back to his chest. He lazily placed open mouth kisses to her shoulders as they both came down from their shared high. Tatum hummed, stretching her legs out on the bed.

“I think your bed is bigger than mine.” She muttered, nipping the skin of Jake’s inner bicep with his arm under her head.

“I don’t think so. Feels just as small as yours.” Jake pinched her side, making Tatum squeal and hop up from the bed, discarding her underwear on her way to the bathroom in his room.

Tatum’s eyes went wide as she flicked on the light, the harsh fluorescence highlighting the red marks on her lower neck trailing to her shoulders and breasts along with the indentations of teeth on her shoulder. “Jake fucking Seresin! What did you do?!”

Tatum made Natasha swear her silence when she requested to use her friend's concealer the next morning. She refused to divulge who exactly turned her neck into their own personal chew toy, only relenting the fact that the sex was good, and no, it was not serious. 

When Jake came in a few hours later, his eyes immediately dipped to Tatum's neck and when he passed her in the hall that afternoon, he leaned in, whispering to her.

“Next time, I’ll make sure you can’t cover the marks I give you.”

And some part of Tatum hoped he was right.

[blue-sterling0357]

Hi! If that's okay could i request Ciel with an older sibling reader that has three dogs? Specifically a Pomerania, a rottweiler and a dobermann, and the two bigger ones are also protection dogs.

The dogs are very friendly and the bigger ones are also very protective of both the reader and him (especially the rottie, those dogs are overprotective).

(Ciel deserves a good elder sister, also thank you for requesting this!)

Ciel X Elder sister! Reader:

You have three dogs!

✲ You were Ciel's elder sister and got the luck opportunity to study abroad, you often visited your younger twin brother and spoiled them, O! Ciel and R! Ciel both have good memory of you as were Ciel’s elder sister and had already left for education to a boarding girl’s school by the time the manor was burnt down and the whole manor was rebuilt again, you still couldn’t visit your brother until a few years later. You were devastated by your parents’ death and your brothers’ disappearance! You were raised by Madam Red until you graduated!

✲ You had finally finished your studies, got a good paying job and were living normally when you finally got the chance to meet your younger brother, you were told by Tanaka how things were going on around the house since the moment Ciel returned. He told you about his mysterious and efficient butler, Sebastian and the chaotic trio which ruin the manor from time to time, Mey-rin, Finny and Bardroy!

✲ Things have changed around the household, Tanaka wrote to you, and finally you were visiting with you three fur babies! (I’m naming your dogs because yes) The Doberman, Momo, and the Rottweiler, Zomi, were your two babies and your guard dogs but you had a demon as well!! It was a Pomeranian, coffee…..SHE WAS A BIG DEMON!! But a cute demon!!! But a demon nonetheless, she was in charge of your house…..And boss of Momo and Zomi, they’re boys btw…..

✲ So when you came visiting, Coffee was literally yelling your ears off in the carriage and Zomi and Momo were both hiding their ears under their paws because they didn’t want to hear her chattering your ears off because of how she doesn’t know where she is….And the thing is when you reached the manor, you told Ciel you had three dogs and Sebastian obviously wasn’t happy with the news but had to listen and so when Ciel and Sebastian came outside the manor and you opened the door to the carriage, Coffee jumped out FIRST AND FOREMOST! She always does…

✲ But the moment Coffee saw Ciel, she shut her mouth and waddled towards him and Ciel being the dog lover he is picked her up and the EXPRESSION ON YOUR FACE WAS PRICELESS, coffee HATES being picked up and she never shuts up unless she is sleeping so her shutting up and not caring she’s picked up shows she is a fan of Ciel, you then stepped out and then Zomi and Momo stepped out behind you, they honestly didn’t care much about anything other than the fact that there was another person who smelt like you, they swarmed Ciel closely sniffing him making Ciel giggled as you hugged Ciel tightly, Sebastian backing up because he hates dogs…

✲ Ciel was excited to meet you again and like before you brought gifts to spoil your brother! Ciel not only excited to meet you but also your dogs, he got along with the three very well, especially Coffee who had taken a special liking to him and Sebastian for some reason, Coffee would often go up to him and rub herself on his feet, which not only made Sebastian cringe and shrivel up internally but also entertained Ciel because he knows how much Sebastian hates dogs! You always apologize in place of Ciel and Coffee to Sebastian but he always says while kissing the back of your hand “It’s alright, m’lady, after all if I can’t handle them what kind of butler would I be?” and you’re blushing pink…

✲ Ciel is always babying your three dogs, giving them snacks, even if you and Sebastian stop him, he won’t, he will sneak them snacks and your three dogs are always beside him, cuddling him when it’s his bed time, they no longer cuddle with you and you’re now upset and cold….but then you cuddle with Ciel and all three even if Coffee annoys you sometimes, but it’s bearable you’ve been handling for long now!!

✲ Ciel is also teaching Coffee tricks in trade of treats, something you never thought to teach her or any of your dogs for that matter, you only just wanted to live with them, play with them, feed them, cuddle them (Zomi & Momo), and care for them…Yeah, no teaching Zomi and Momo was something you may have thought of once, but Coffee was out of the question….

✲ Ciel, you, Zomi, Momo, Coffee and (sadly) Sebastian all go around in early mornings or maybe afternoons to play with dogs with all immense energy, and you get some exercise in, have a breather form lives and maybe sun if you’re lucky, I mean it’s England after all…

✲ Ciel with you, his elder sister’s/older baby’s permission, will use your dogs for finding clues, peoples and other things in his cases. He will understand if you say no, but the queen’s guard dog need his own guard dogs as well and Sebastian isn’t enough, Coffee’s angry screeching on Sebastian and Zomi’s warm hugs and Momo’s  kisses are something he apparently needs to survive in his cases…

✲ Okay, but we need to specially mention Sebastian for handling THREE dogs plus a new puppy (you) for his old puppy (Ciel) all without an angry breakdown (at least not in front of you/ciel/any other servants/dogs) or being hostile, so he deserves a pat on the head and a week of un-connecting using his cats...no?

[leodette]

The Greatest Gift of Them All | LN4

fandom: Formula 1

pairing: Lando Norris x OC (not named)

names/faceclaims: -

summary: he gave a 'gift', and because of that she quit; set in between 2021 - 2023

warning: age difference (older woman x younger man), unplanned pregnancy, single mother, mild angst

requested: yes / no

**********

She was hanging the wet laundry outside, letting the gentle summer breeze through her hair. She never used a dryer. Why buy such an expensive piece of equipment, when you have a whole garden outside, with strings tied under the pergola, just waiting for another basket of laundry?

Also, it smelled better. She hated the too-artificial smell of softener, preferring sun and wind against it. That was how she was raised after all.

She took another piece from the basket, shaking it a bit and smiling when she saw what it was. A small dark green T-shirt, with a picture of a red car on the chest. She remembered it when she saw it for the first time - opening a package from her cousin and his wife, taking out that t-shirt and a cat plushie with a big bow around its neck, remembering the tears that rolled down her face when she thanked her cousin for such a pretty gift.

His eyes were green…

She shushed her mind, not allowing herself to walk that path again. Instead, she just hung the t-shirt on the string, making sure it was straight and would require minimal ironing once it was dry when a giggle interrupted her thoughts.

Too high for it to be her father or her brother, she smiled gently as she looked towards a small sandbox under a walnut tree in the middle of the garden. A small boy was sitting there, playing with a yellow plastic ball. His dark curly hair was making a small halo around his head, already growing too quickly and being so unruly that she gave up, his eyes being probably the only thing he got from his mother. Otherwise, he was a carbon copy of his father. His father who had no idea he had a one-year-old son. Who would never know that he had a son if she had anything to say about it.

---

She was always just an average girl from a small town in a small country. There was nothing special about her. She was on the quiet side, didn't like the attention much, experienced bullying all the way through secondary school and high school… and then suddenly, she was at university. And she learned how to fly. How to open her wings and show people around her that she wasn't a scared pigeon, but a beautiful parrot, who found her voice.

And her voice she found. When she changed her job for the second time in two years - claiming one was too stressful and the other too boring - she decided to be bold. Playing the card of herself being outspoken, she managed to send her resume to McLaren while writing another boring article about local politics in early January. Mostly as a joke, a dare, not expecting to hear from them, that email being buried in her sent box, without much more attention.

But, then the answer came. With a request for a video interview.

To say she was shaken would be an understatement. She was. At first? She thought it was a prank, spam, a mistake. But it was not.

And so two days later she connected to a Zoom call with McLaren HR and the head of their communication, being asked about her experiences and about her visions, where she saw herself in five years, and why she wanted to work for them. It was a school book example of a proper job interview for an international corporation. 

In the final, two other people connected, and she was introduced to them, asking her own questions, and then promised to be let know about the results. Which came in another two days.

We are informing you that McLaren Racing would like to offer you a work contract…

She still remembers the words to this day, she even printed the response and put it on her fridge after she stopped jumping around and screaming with excitement.

And so she left her hometown, her home country, and went to the UK, to MTC, to start working for one of the biggest companies in motorsport.

And that was where she met him.

… green eyes and freckles and your smile In the back of my mind…

Is that how Taylor sings it? Probably. But that was how she felt when she was first introduced to him. He was young, only in his third season in Formula 1, but he still took her breath away.

Looking back, she had it coming. She always had a thing for either boys that were younger than her, or much older than her. The same age? Not interested, thank you very much.  (Her therapist said one day that maybe it's the result of her being bullied by boys of the same age. If it was true, she would never know.)

But there she was, seemingly unnoticed easing her way into Lando Norris's life, being the one who kept track of his timeline, who was looking after his things - his passport gave her a number of headaches and few missed flights - and who sometimes had to confiscate his phone.

But otherwise? They were good. They found a common ground.

She was three years older, and sometimes their relationship resembled younger brother and older sister. Or maybe a babysitter. But they were good, having a very similar sense of humor, and few similar interests, and he seemed to enjoy when she talked about her home, about how her country was different from his. He hated it when she spoke her mother tongue, not being able to understand a word she said, and she soon learned to provoke him with it, on purpose calling her parents or her siblings when they were stuck in a car or waiting for like a driver's meeting or for media day. And he hated her for it but still seemed curious. Sometimes though, there was a palable tension. She knew he looked at her as a man would look at woman. She knew that look. But in that time, she wouldn't ever dare to jeopardize her job with something like a mild feeling of a shared attraction.

They managed that for some time until Sochi came. Looking back at it, she should never have gone into his room to check if he was okay. Looking back, she was berating herself for being stupid.

Because the tension that was building between them for the past few months snapped that fateful evening. Some people say that there are two best ways to let the frustration and anger out - punch it out, or shag it out. That evening, they did the second.

She sneaked out of Lando's room in the early morning, her hair a complete mess and her bra missing as she wasn't able to locate it in his messy room. He secretly put it in her back later that day, together with a teasing smile, that she returned with difficulty. They never did it again, and they never spoke about it.

The tension between them changed since that day, especially from her side. It became weird. Yes, she sometimes slept with younger men. But never with those she worked with. Even Daniel seemed to realize something shifted. And when almost two months later she ran out of her hotel room in São Paulo in desperate need of find pharmacy, she knew she was in trouble. Especially when two lines appeared on a cheap plastic stick, changing her life forever. She was scared, freaking out in her hotel bathroom, having a horrible reality check, and on the outside presenting herself as if everything was all right.

She couldn't tell him. He was with Luisa at that time already, the girl being an absolute darling, stunningly pretty, a perfect match to Lando's still-in-my-teenage-years personality.

So she waited. Suffered from nausea in private, kept to herself, no longer mingling around the paddock, going out only when she had to.

She watched together with the rest of the world how the young Dutchman snatched the championship from the more experienced Brit, throwing the world of Formula 1 into controversy that would not stop in the upcoming years.

After that, she handed in her resignation, never telling anyone her true reasons, stating homesickness and never-ending traveling as the main reasons.

She hugged Lando in the privacy of his Adu Dhabi hotel room, wishing him well, He looked sad that she was leaving but promised her that they would keep in touch.

They never did.

Throughout the upcoming weeks, there wasn't a single message from no one of her former co-workers. Not to mention Lando himself. And one evening, her patience reached the limit. She deleted her Twitter and Snapchat, went through her followers on Instagram and threw out everyone who even slightly could connect her to Lando, then put it in private settings. Similar to her Facebook, where she deleted almost everything, keeping it mostly for texting with other people through Messenger.

She, seemingly without care, cut off the last year from her life.

But, well, she did care. She grew angry more and more throughout the following months. She didn't delete Lando's number from her phone. But he didn't call, didn't text, and she wasn't the one who would kick the conversation out. It was like they never existed for one another. Yes, she knew he had a busy schedule. But even in his daily calendar, she knew he spent an ungodly amount of time on his phone.

And as her anger grew, so did her stomach. Her parents never asked anything, just accepted the fact that the father wouldn't be in the picture, not even to pay the child support. She didn't want it. Her grandparents left a small inheritance to their three grandchildren, and she soon found a remote job for a PR company in her hometown. Her mother accompanied her to her ultrasounds, crying softly when she saw the small form of her first grandchild on the screen.

She asked the doctor not to tell her the gender. She wanted to be surprised. And she was, when in the middle of July of the next year, a small form of her son was put on her chest, his dark curly hair still wet with blood and fluids, and her being sweaty and her voice hoarse from screaming in pain.

She named him after her own father, a person who supported her without fail throughout those past seven months, and in his birth certificate she left the space under name of the father blank.

Her baby boy got her surname, and after recovering, she moved with him into a small garden house at her parent’s property, just a few steps away from her family. Besides his looks, he got nothing from his father.

She never told anyone beside her parents who the father of her son was, not even the father himself. He stayed in the darkness, blissfully unaware of that fact.

---

Her mother asked her one evening when she put her son to bed, if she ever planned on telling Lando the truth. She just snorted. She was twenty-six, had a one-year-old child, had a job, and he never once reached out to her. Not a single time.

If she ever had anything to say, he would never know he had a son. Once her boy was a bit bigger and started to ask after his Dad, then she would have to come up with some explanation. But for now? She could keep him blissfully in darkness, enjoying the feeling of being the most important person in his life.

Her and Lando's lives didn't align. They weren't compatible. They were like Sun and Moon, like Heavens and Hell.

Maybe it wasn't her plan - being a single mother, still living at her parent’s property, considering her own mother as her best friend and biggest help. She had imagined her future. But, as she always said - if you want to entertain God, tell Him your plans.

[mochinek0]

The Al Ghul Family

Lila glared at the evidence in front of her. She quickly wet the papers she had in her hands and threw it in the trash.

'Dammit! If only I had never heard her say the name 'Al Ghul'.'

Lila gripped the sink in the girl's bathroom as hard as she could. She glared at her reflection in the mirror as if it could turn back time. It wasn't her fault that she heard Marinette talking on the phone to someone and calling herself an Al Ghul. Lila had searched up the Al Ghul's and learned they were tied to a dangerous lineage of killers in the past. There wasn't much about them; it was almost as if they were ninjas. The only thing she knew about Marinette was that had some type of Asian heritage. Sure, if she asked around she'd probably know, but she didn't really care.

She felt like she only closed her eyes for a second, as she sighed. When she opened them, Marinette was standing behind her, smiling.

'Speak of the devil.'

"I hope you enjoyed your little game, Layla." Marinette smiled.

"What are you talking about?" Lila questioned, peeved by hearing that name.

"You figured it out by now, right?" Mari continued, cornering Lila like she had done to her long ago, "You were never a threat to me. You do realize that don't you? Gabriel Agreste has always said yes to me. You have to manipulate people to get your way. I could have had you murdered at any moment, but I chose for you to live. I wanted to see what a toy could do when the thought they were in charge. Step out of line again and an accident will happen."

"I'll tell everyone!" Lila hissed.

Marinette stepped back and giggled, "You-You think they'll believe you!"

Lila smirked, "They already do."

"It wasn't hard to find out about you Layla Agetha Vincourt Rossario."

Lila froze and took a step back. She felt the color drain from her face.

"When I show everyone the mess you made at your last five schools. I mean, Audrey Bourgeois wants me as part of her staff. She may not love Chloe, but a national security risk? She'll make sure everyone knows." Mari ranted off, "Think of all the problems you would cause for Gabriel: stocks would plummet and all the recalls. Poor Adrien will be drowning in photoshoots to make up for the publicity. Not to mention, them blacklisting you. To a thief, a liar, and a murder in the eyes of the boy you want."

"I didn't-" Lila began.

"The evidence stands for itself." Marinette shrugged, "Maybe it was an accident that you poisoned the Minister's nephew, but all the people they talked to. All those people who heard you pull the same shit that you do to me? How you cried about being bullied and how his girlfriend was hurting you for just being friends? Do you really think the Minister of Italy won't catch the first flight over to arrest you when he hears you're doing the same thing to a poor baker's daughter. Imagine how much news it will make when people learn about you and your doing the exact same thing in Paris! It'll make international news! How a murder was trying to gain the attention of a famous model and lied her way into is father's graces."

Marinette smiled, "All it would take is one little phone call to the Minister of Italy for him to know where you are now. I don't even have to be the one to make the call. Your poor mother, losing you and her only source of income. Your father is in America with his new wife and new family. I hear his new daughter is everything he ever hoped for."

"Shut up!" growled Lila.

"She's a straight A student, popular, dating a musician that her father approves of."

"Shut up!" Lila repeated.

"You're just jealous of your little sister because she's everything you're not. Too think, she's only one year younger than you? I heard she took after her mother, but you took after your father. He cheated on your mother didn't he? He lost his job because he was employed by your mother's family. Then, he married into his mistress's family. Of course, none of it is his money; it belongs to his wife and daughter. If he doesn't behave, he doesn't get an allowance. Smart of her to make him sign a pre-nup. He cheats and he's back to being broke." Marinette laughed, "Your mother would hate you if she knew you were just like him. She has sole custody. Your father didn't even want you."

"Shut up!" Lila screamed, before charging after Marinette.

Marinette yawned and easily flipped her onto her back.

"You're nothing, but a disappointment." Mari hissed, "Weren't those his last words to you?"

Lila laid there and sobbed.

"You truly are disappointing; I expected more of my so-called bully." Mari sighed, "Make sure you behave from now on and if you decide to make me your bully again, well, Mommy will find out just how much of a Daddy's girl you really are. I'd be careful with my next move if I were you."

Marinette walked out of the school and smiled. I was great to see a familiar face

"So?" Damian questioned, as Marinette towards him.

Marinette smirked, "Mother always did say innocence was my best look."

"Think the liar will listen?" Damian asked.

"Eh." Mari shrugged, "I'll call you if she doesn't. Just forward everything to her mother and let me know. I don't want to miss the fall out."

"What about Gabriel?" he asked.

Marinette smiled, "He has two years to change. If not, I'll burn his company down or buy it out; I haven't decided yet."

"What about Junior?" her brother questioned.

"I've already convinced him to give up modeling and Agreste Senior agreed, but that bitch doesn't know that." his sister commented.

"Sometimes I wonder if I should be convinced how much you think like Mother, but look like Father." Damian stated.

"A female isn't needed on the throne." she shrugged.

"That was Grandfather's mistake." Damian growled, "Mother was just as deadly as him. What about coming to the manor?"

"Not yet. Father is still adjusting to you." Marinette declared, "He may know of me, but that doesn't mean he views me as his. I don't want his legacy and that's all he cares about. He thinks I'm 'safe' so we'll keep it that way."

Damian smirked, "Gotham would likely be destroyed in an instant if we both took it on."

"You know how to reach me if there is ever anything you need." Mari commented.

"I gave Todd your number for emergency use only." Damian declared, "If I can't call, he will."

"You better be dead if he calls me." Marinette frowned, glaring at her brother.

'Just as dramatic as Mother.'

Damian noticed someone walking towards them and changed his demeanor.

"Thank you." he spoke and began to walk away.

Marinette watched, confused, at least until she heard some footsteps.

"Who was that, Marinette?" Adrien questioned.

Marinette blushed at his sudden appearance by her side.

"T-Tourist." she smiled, "Um, lover. NO! I-I mean louve. He wanted to know about the louve! Where, um-"

Adrien chuckled and listened patiently, as she explained the stranger's presence.

"Think I can walk you home?" he asked, taking her hand.

Damian watched as Marinette turned red and looked away from the blonde.

'Adrien Agreste, hmmmm. I'll still never get over how scary like Mother she is. She always knows what she wants and how to get it. I doubt she'll slip anything into his drink, though.'

"Welcome to the Al-Ghul family, Agreste." Damian smirked.

TAG LIST: @animeweebgirl @a-star-with-a-human-name @meme991001 @vixen-uchiha @abrx2002 @alysrose-starchild @fandom-trapped-03 @dood-space @moonlightstar64 @saltymiraculer @marveldcedits20 @09shell-sea09 @icerosecrystal @animegirlweeb @insane-fangirl-of-everything @blueblossombliss @nickristus-dreamer @megawhitleycalderonpaganus

[expecto-kedavra]

HL Girls react to smelling M!MC in their Amortentia

Professor Sharp’s potion lesson has the class brewing the love potion, Amortentia, and writing their thoughts.

Including Poppy, Natty, Imelda, Samantha, and Anne.

Poppy Sweeting

She recognizes the smell immediately, however the fact that it’s in her potion, a bit more surprising. She’d know the earthy tones, the sandalwood, the soft smell of clean forest breeze anywhere. It was….him. But why? She didn’t have romantic feelings for him. All the nights they spent huddled together in a hollow log, pressed against each other to avoid poachers, that was just platonic. The way she felt when he’d smile at her after clearing a poacher camp, and brush her hair out of her face and wipe the smudged dirt and grime off of her forehead and cheeks. The way he would always hold her close when she’d get worked up about all the creatures she couldn’t save. The way she would always get sad when he’d leave….oh. Oh shit.

Natsai Onai

She smiles to herself, and breathes in the deep, comforting scent. She’d been considering the way she feels about him for a while, yet hadn’t known if it was real yet. This only confirms what her heart has told her. She writes down what she smells. A clean, aromatic smell, like cinnamon and vanilla. The way he would always smell. The smell she breathed in when she was sitting in the hospital wing after taking down Harlow, enveloped in a deep hug.

“What do you smell Natty?”

She’s snapped out of her trance by her table mate, Cressida Blume. She smiles.

“I smell home.”

Imelda Reyes

Nope. Nope nope. She brewed it wrong. She must have. She must have brewed the potion that makes you smell what you despise. No way. Her face grows hot as she internally searches for why the hell this damn cauldron smells like that. Why does it smell like….like mint…like freshly washed clothes, like lemon zest, a pie cooling on a windowsill on a hot day. Why does it smell like him??? She thinks hard, realizing how many times she’d sit behind him in History of Magic, breathing in the comforting scent. The times she could just focus on him without his smart ass knowing. Without HER smart ass knowing. How far buried in her subconscious was this?

“Well, what do you smell?”

Violet McDowell breaks her concentration, and the forehead vein retreats back into her face.

“Uh, oh, um, broom polish, and uh, the smell of the grass in the quidditch pitch.” She lied.

Violet raises an eyebrow. “Why are you sweating?”

Samantha Dale

She frowns at her cauldron. She was expecting the smell of fresh soil, maybe the smells that blow through on a hot summers day as she works in the garden. Not….this. What is this? It smelled of fresh parchment, and lavender. Slight tones of…what broom polish? She doesn’t even fly! She barely cares about flying and doesn’t even know anyone who does. Except…oh. Except for him. He flies. He’s really good at it. He looks really good when does it. He also always offers her spare parchment when she forgets it in charms class. And he always…smells like..lavender. She looks up and sees him across the room, working on his own potion while chatting and laughing with Sebastian Sallow. She feels her face grow red and a slight giggle come from her throat. She’ll explore this later. She needs to write down what to say to him, and how to say it. It’ll take a while. At least 21 rough drafts.

Anne Sallow

Potions has been hard. Since MC cured her, catching up in class has been a lot. But she’s always despised potions. She sits at her cauldron, pondering what it is she’s smelling. She smells green tea, honey, and a tiny bit of a more earthy undertone, like soil. Then like eucalyptus? She recognized the smell, but why is it here? It’s the room of requirement to be sure. But why? It doesn’t smell bad but it definitely isn’t attracting her. He showed her the room once she returned to school, saying it helped him get caught up. He showed her around, made her a cup of tea, and told her to brew as many potions and grow as many plants as she wants. Then he hugged her. He hugged her and she breathed in the smell of his robes. He smelled like…eucalyptus. She frowns. She’d always dismissed the thoughts of him as simply gratitude for removing her of the pain. Maybe it was more? She looked up, and found his table. He was just finishing his potion. She found herself admiring him, the contour of his jaw, his thick hair, muscular broad shoulders. She felt her face heating up, her mouth forming a hard line. As she watched him work, it melted into a smile, ignoring Sebastian as he poked her. “Why are you staring at him?” She shoved him off, and began to write down her thoughts on her parchment.

Him

He smelled roast chicken.

[hail-brod]

Bold Little Softie

Girlfriend!Uraraka Ochako x FReader

Masterlist

Uraraka Ochako, always the shy one between the two of you. Though, it was bound to shift at some point and you're liking where it's headed.

You can see it.

You can clearly make it out across your peripheral vision, and you only pretend as you tried to focus on your note that was laying down your desk. You know she’s doing the same. Her tiny little fingers slowly crawling towards your own. With such shyness you’ve always known her for, like a new-born butterfly going out of its cocoon. Her peeking actions showed how her emotions was leaking out of her fingertips, wanting one single thing.

Your warmth.

And you don’t reject. The moment you felt her touch fizzle something inside you, you try to fight the growing smile on your lips. You then sneak a glance at the girl in front of you.

Like the normal school girl she is, her tinted cheeks was there, her other hand was under her chin which is likely covering the other side of her cheek. Her chocolate brown hues intent on her own notes, trying to conceal any bit of embarrassment crawling up to her.

Cute. Adorable. You want to burst.

How did you even manage to get a girlfriend like her? You have no idea but you’re glad you did. You can’t help but coo even more inwardly as you press your lips together. Eyes back to your own notes, you try not to crumble in a blushing mess as you finally moved your fingers to connect with hers, caressing them softly. So delicate and warm, your heart skips a beat.

Once you did that, the brunette shifted her chin to bury her face on her supporting palm, evident that you’ve managed to embarrass your girl. You finally give out a small smile.

You know Ochako is easily swayed by intimacy and compliments but it only works better if it’s you. The moment you became more than just friends, she was almost often covered in a crazing blush once she catches sight of you. As if you had tremendously changed her whole personality around you and became too much of a beaming ball of shyness. Not that you disliked it, she was definitely Ochako if she acted out like she did. You can’t blame her for that since it was a newly mended relationship and you know there’s time to warm up in each other’s feelings.

A few months then on, she clearly became much more open and bold.

Pulling herself out of her little internal panic, Ochako brought her face back up avoiding your stare, blush not yet extinguished. “Could we- take a break? It’s been hotter than before, summer is near and we- we could…go out together.”

“You wanna go on a date?” you tease.

“Well, y-yeah that. Right?” She jolts up with frantic blinks, her flushing face making her look eager for a time spent with you. You bask in on her reaction, smiling. “Wait. You’re enjoying this again.” Your girlfriend states as she realized your teasing look and tone, she brings out a pout.

“Sorry.” You chuckle. “But admit it, you want to hang out with me and not in a boring study session way and more of a- “

Closing her eyes shut, Ochako turns away from you. Her rosy cheeks were more vibrant than usual. “S-Stop, [Y/N]….”

You just giggle. “Alright, alright.”

Next thing you know, she makes a move to close her notebook and with a peeking glance to you, she shyly stands up and leans next to you. You watched her with confusion, wondering what she was up to as you dumbfoundedly stare her up with round eyes. She could just be reaching out for something behind you or-

Face a few inches apart, she leaves out a passionate kiss on your cheek.

What.

She just kissed on you on the cheek. And you can only freeze on your seat, taking time to process.

She hasn’t done that before. She wasn’t one to initiate those kind of gestures, but she already proved it to you a few moments prior the kiss. You were always the one teasing her, showering her with compliments and warm touches—you were clearly caught off-guard.

You were so caught up in a second of daze that you didn’t realize how much it affected the girl as she only leaned in to you again, burying her head on the nook of your neck.

She lets out a muffled squeal. “I’m sorry- I just- I had to. I just had to. I know I’ve never done it before b-but I’ve always wanted to. Gosh, I’m so embarrassed…”

Just like she stated, she clung onto you like a lovesick lover who just want to become one with you. Her warmth automatically relaxes you down as you snap back up, relishing in her welcomed affection. You bring up a hand behind her and pat her soft hazel locks. You’d love to pinch her cheeks at this moment but you resist, pulling her head closer to you as you rest your cheek against her.

“Don’t be. I like it.” You assure softly. “You should do it more often. Maybe, aim for the lips next time.”

She buries her head further.

[xueyuverse]

A Heart Of Ice

🥒 Prompt by @/colbygege (twitter)

🥒 For: @/SVSSSAction (twitter)

🥒 Short-fic

Hair, okay! A cute and pretty braided hairstyle that’s eye-catching in all the right ways.

Makeup, okay! Marked eyeliner and black eyeliner, dark red lipstick.

Clothes, the best they could be while in uniform. Black leather corset and jacket, belt with silver chains. Plus: that long, pointed red nails, decorated with small swords and stones.

Right! Today it's impossible to continue being ignored. At least a second look I should get.

Sha Hualing glared at herself in the mirror, taking a deep breath as if she was about to step into a fighting ring, picked up her backpack and left for school.

***

If the ring scenario was real, then Sha Hualing has already received a K.O.

As usual, Sha Hualing confidently arrived at school, believing that her new strategy would work, sat at the table next to Liu Mingyan and “ignored” her as she twirled a strand of her hair around her finger and crossed her legs to bump into the other girl's legs, pretending that it was by accident.

“Sorry~” she said in a playful tone.

Liu Mingyan glanced at her from the corner of his eye with a frown and said, “Mn.” And she ignored her again.

Gongyi Xiao, across the room, could hear Sha Hualing breaking down and didn't feel guilty about laughing.

She ignored me again?! Liu Mingyan, how can you be so cold?! So I make a point of looking beautiful just for you!!!

Sha Hualing was always vain and had a punk style that made her stand out from the majority, the whole school was already used to her style, and yet, in recent months she has been receiving more looks than usual, whether appreciative or judgmental.

Everyone looked at her, except Liu Mingyan who continues to ignore her as if her existence were worth the same as that of a cockroach!

Why did she have to fall in love with the girl with the hardest heart in the galaxy?!!

“A-Ming…” she whimpered. Liu Mingyan glanced at her from the corner of her eye, because, of course, Sha Hualing never deserved to be looked at with dignity, as an equal.

She really felt like a cockroach.

“Mn?”

“A-Ming, do you think I look pretty today?”

After two minutes of being evaluated, Liu Mingyan finally shrugged, turned away and said nothing.

Liu Mingyan turned to look at her properly, which made Sha Hualing scream victory internally, her expressionless eyes sized her up from head to toe and her head tilted slightly to the side. Her cheeks were pink, but when it came to Liu Mingyan, it was difficult to tell what that meant.

Sha Hualing broke again. She hit her head on the table.

If she had paid more attention, she would have noticed that the blush on Liu Mingyan's face had not only deepened, but also spread to his ears.

The next day, Sha Hualing already had another plan and was eager to know what would come out of it.

As she sat at the table next to Liu Mingyan, she didn't even bother to look at her crush before picking up her cell phone, opening the chat she created with herself and starting to send messages, smiling as she pretended to exchange messages with someone else, letting out giggles every now and then.

Liu Mingyan was restless beside her, glancing at her from the corner of his eyes every now and then and fidgeting in her seat. Sha Hualing smiled more upon realizing this, feeling that she was very close to victory. However, it was obvious that Liu Mingyan wouldn't say anything even if she wanted to, so Sha Hualing turned off her cell phone, placed it upside down on the table, and stretched out like a satisfied cat after a feast.

“A-Ming, have you ever been in love?” asked Sha Hualing in a provocative but at the same time honest tone.

Liu Mingyan tapped her fingers on the table and nodded. “Why? Have you ever?”

“Of course” she smiled. “I’m in love right now.”

Liu Mingyan smiled, but it looked forced and bitter. “Are you seeing anyone, then?”

Sha Hualing's smile grew to the point where it reached her ears. “Yes! It’s been a while, we want to take it slow.”

“Hm, I believe that was the person you were talking to just now.” Sha Hualing nodded, so seriously that she would have believed it herself. Liu Mingyan looked away, sighing, still tapping his fingers on the table. “Is this someone I know?”

Sha Hualing shrugged. “I don't know. She goes to the school next door.”

Liu Mingyan: “Hm.”

Sha Hualing: “…”

Please don't tell me that's all it is... Well, even if it is, I can consider it a victory, she never spoke to me as much as she did today.

“How is she?” asked Liu Mingyan after two minutes of uncomfortable silence. Sha Hualing smiled radiantly and said: “She is beautiful. A little cold and distant, but I somehow always get her attention. In fact, her being cold is one of the things that makes her attractive, it makes me want to melt her with my touch.” Liu Mingyan fidgeted and lowered her head, hiding her face with her hair. Sha Hualing continued: “She is so smart and talented too. She learns anything very quickly and I never need to repeat myself 'cause I know she pays attention and understands everything I say, even if she disagrees. She likes to dance and her dance is so enchanting that it makes me want to see her every day, every time, all the time…”

“Hm, got it.” Liu Mingyan interrupted her. “She looks really amazing” she continued acidly, put on her headphones and played the music at full volume.

Sha Hualing looked at her some more, but Liu Mingyan already acted as if she were a cockroach. She leaned back in her chair and smiled slightly, understanding that the one who had been K.O. now was Liu Mingyan.

***

Later, when Liu Mingyan left the dance studio alongside Gongyi Xiao, she walked down the street grumpily and kicking some pebbles, muttering the thoughts she had about Sha Hualing's girlfriend until she heard her friend laugh beside her and say: “Is this all 'cause of her?”

Liu Mingyan sighed and, without bothering to pretend that she didn't know who he was talking about, nodded. Gongyi Xiao laughed again: “What did she do this time?”

“You should already know.” She kicked another rock, a bigger one and harder this time. “She is dating.”

“Dating?! With who?"

She shrugged. “I don't know, she's a girl from another school. ‘Beautiful, talented and intelligent,’ as she described it.”

Gongyi Xiao raised an eyebrow. “What else did she describe?”

“...Well, this girlfriend is cold and distant, but she always pays attention to her and listens to everything she says without making her need to repeat herself. She likes to dance and Sha Hualing always wants to see her dancing… What is it?!”

Liu Mingyan stopped himself because Gongyi Xiao couldn't seem to stop laughing as he tried to hold back his laughter. He said: “Sha Hualing has no face when it comes to you.”

“What do you mean?”

“A-Ming~, did you really not realize that Sha Hualing described you? Although you don't seem to pay much attention to what she says, actually, but she can dream.”

Liu Mingyan blinked: “...What?”

Gongyi Xiao: “She always tries so hard to get your attention and you don't even notice. I thought she was stupid, but you get over it.”

Liu Mingyan: “...So what do I do?”

Gongyi Xiao: “I don’t know, maybe… call her? Ask her out?”

When she gets home, that's exactly what Liu Mingyan does, without even thinking too much. And Sha Hualing’s response is: “Ah, finally! It took a long time, don’t you think?!”

Liu Mingyan, unable to stop smiling: “So, is that a yes?”

Sha Hualing: “Hmm, I don’t know, you made me wait so long that now I wonder if I should accept you so easily.”

Liu Mingyan seriously: “I understand. Take…"

Sha Hualing interrupts: “No!! None of that!!! I want you to conquer me! Now!! I don’t need any time!!!”

Liu Mingyan laughed: “Jiejie, you are giving some mixed signals.”

Sha Hualing took a deep breath on the other end: “'Jiejie'? Is that what you’re going to call me now?”

“Mn. Some problem?"

“No way! But keep calling me that, A-Ming, and maybe our relationship will escalate really quickly.”

“Is this a threat, jiejie?”

“Yes, it is, and one of the most dangerous.”

[champi8n]

witch in love | kit walker

sypnosis: kit walker’s girlfriend is… a witch!

warnings: none it’s just happy!

you knew you were different to other people from a very young age, of course, you weren’t exactly sure what made you different until you turned 16 and after an argument with your dad you made everything in your room float for a split second before everything fell down and broke, causing your mother to sit down with you and have the talk

no, not the talk about sex, the talk about witches and how you were a direct descendant to one of the witches of salem or something like that, you weren’t paying much attention since you got stuck on the part where said “you’re a witch” but you kind of got an idea of what she explained

however, your mother had the option to send you away to learn more about those arts but she refused it, deciding it was better to homeschool you and teach you herself to control and expand your abilities

you didn’t complain, you quite liked it at home and you loved being the only student, apart from that you led some sort of double life, witch in secret and a normal student on the outside

you knew you couldn’t go around showing your abilities and screaming to everyone “i’m a witch, i’m a witch” but you also were good at hiding your little impulses

no, you weren’t a bad person and you totally wouldn’t use your powers to get your own way, but you couldn’t stand seeing injustice and bad things happening in front of you without being able to do something about it

so you began to act, you first made some boys who went to your school and bothered a poor girl in your english class with mean comments pay for their rudeness, you hated the way they made that girl cry by laughing at her hairstyles and her shoes, so after learning how to control people you made those boys slap themselves every time they opened their mouth towards that girl

you giggled in the back of the class as they looked at each-other confused, wondering what was happening as they felt the burn of their own slap on their cheek every time they tried to talk

that was the beginning of a new period of your life and boy, anyone who thought they could mess with you without any consequences were in for a complete ride

as you got older you graduated with top grades which came from pulling all nighters to study, not from using your abilities, and you decided to pursue a career in fashion

many people laughed at you for that choice, saying you should go for a career in healthcare or look for a job as a book keeper, but you were ambitious, you wanted more than the typical jobs women could get at the time

you managed to find an intern position in a small fashion magazine, however, you were treated poorly by your male co workers and it drove you mad, how thought multiple times about casting a spell to make their lives miserable yet you stopped yourself, knowing better than to waste your skills for those dumb boys

every time you had a hard day you would go to a diner that was near your work and would order yourself a chocolate milkshake with extra cream and unfortunately for you, today was one of those days

the cling of the bells as you opened the door of the diner and the sound of your thigh high boots as you walked to your usual table resonated in the place, catching some attention but that wasn’t unusual for you

you were very pretty and you knew it so you weren’t exactly surprised at heads turning to look at you when you go out, however you’ve rarely been out on dates as nobody has caught your attention

you twirled your hair as you looked through the menu even though you were gonna order your usual you still wanted to roam through the food in case you get hungry later

but you were surprised when one of the waiters in the place came over to your table and placed your pleasure chocolate milkshake in front of you even though you haven’t even ordered yet

“you must be mistaken, i didn’t order anything” you said, batting your eyelashes as you smiled to the person serving you

“we know miss, this is from the guy over there” they pointed over to a man sitting in the counter having a sip of what seemed to be a strawberry milkshake

his brown eyes met yours and he smiled at you, giving you a small wave with his hand to then look away and keep minding his business

you had no idea how he knew that was your favourite milkshake and you also had zero clue who he was as you haven’t noticed him before in the place yet the gesture did make you a little bit happy

but you didn’t want to make the guy pay for your order, you weren’t that type of person so you stood up with your milkshake in hand and walked towards the mystery man

you tapped on his shoulder to get his attention and you saw the way his expression went from surprise to a smile “yes?” he said

“did you send me this?” i looked at the milkshake in my hand and he nodded “thank you but i couldn’t possibly accept this, let me pay you back” you reached for your wallet but he immediately stopped you

“please, there is no need for that, pardon me m’am but you just looked like you were in a bad mood and i wanted to be nice” the man replied, brushing his hand through his hair as he continued to smile at you with courtesy

you blinked, amused at the stranger’s nice action “well, thank you…” you paused, your eyes wandered off to the man’s shirt, he seemed to be wearing a uniform and you managed to spot a name tag “thank you, kit” you smiled, taking a sip of your paradise on earth aka your milkshake

he smiled back at you and said nothing back, you sat down next to him expecting him to try and initiate a conversation with you yet you were surprised by how he kept minding his business, letting you enjoy your milkshake in peace except you weren’t exactly in peace, you were bothered as you wondered why he isn’t speaking to you

you glanced at kit multiple times and every time he would look back at you, you quickly turned away until he would go back to drinking his strawberry milkshake

after doing that for a few times you heard him laugh, making you wonder what he found so funny “what is it?” you said, frowning at him

“i’m sorry, you’re just funny ma’am” he replied, looking at you as he tried to regain his composure

his response left you even more confused and slightly offended, what exactly did he mean by that you didn’t know “excuse me?” you said, sounding mildly angry

“do ya think i don’t notice you keep glancing at me?” he said, a big smile on his face as he seemed to find the whole situation funny “if you wanna tell me something just do it” he said, looking at your blank expression as you’ve been caught

you didn’t know what to say exactly, you were slightly embarrassed but you didn’t want to make that obvious “well, that’s what i should be asking you!” you replied, deciding to be honest

kit raised an eyebrow as it was clear to you he had no idea what you were trying to say “i mean, you buy me a milkshake, you obviously wanna ask me out so i’m waiting for you to speak” you say bluntly and also realising how self cantered you sounded

this time both of kit’s eyebrows were raised as his face was filled with surprise, he chuckled for a second to himself as he was completely gagged by your words “wow, big ego there…” he said looking away from you, making you even more flustered

“no! i didn’t mean it that way it’s just-“ he interrupted you

“it’s just acts of pure kindness don’t exist anymore, i guess” he said, taking a big sip of his milkshake as you felt slightly bad

“well, i don’t know!” you replied, you didn’t know what to say, you were blushing as you felt helpless and then suddenly you said it “go out with me… on a date”

kit began to choke a little bit as he didn’t expect the words that came out of your mouth “excuse me?” he said, a small playful smile on his face

“you know you wanted to ask me first don’t act coy” you rolled your eyes, smiling a little bit

he sighed, feeling defeated “yeah you’re right i did…” kit admitted

“fine so, tomorrow 8pm this diner?” you asked, finishing your milkshake

“o-okay, but what’s your name?” he said a bit desperately as he realised you were getting ready to leave

“you’ll figure it out tomorrow” you winked at him before deciding to head out, swaying your hips as you walked away from him and turning your head for a last smile as you opened the door and left

kit was left flustered and charmed as his eyes were frozen on the door, he smiled to himself as he began to count how many hours until tomorrow

…

the next day you got off work and decided to head straight home for a shower, you then chose to wear a white miniskirt with a black fitted turtle neck, an outfit perfect to match your favourite white high heeled boots

you then sat in front of your mirror and did your eyeliner the way you liked it, applied your lipstick and fixed your hair, being ready to go

you were unsure why you were so nervous about this date, you told yourself it was gonna be just another boring one multiple times yet something inside you kind of hoped it wasn’t

as you got to the diner, you found kit waiting outside the door and you smiled at him as you walked

he looked at you up and down as his mouth slowly opened in surprise “you look gorgeous” he said, making you blush a little

he opened the door for you and you both sat down opposite each other at one of the tables

to your own surprise it wasn’t uncomfortable at all and in fact you discovered you quite enjoy kit’s company, you learned he works as a gas station attendant and how he loves to dance and he listened to you talk about your ambitions and even supported it, saying you should start your own brand

as it got late it was soon time to say goodbye but not before you decided to break the obvious rule and do the most impulsive thing a girl can do, you kissed him

“good night, kit” you said as you walked away, leaving him frozen in his spot completely shocked at the fact that you had given him a kiss

when you got home you replayed the events of the date and you wished that everything would continue to go great with kit and lucky for you, your wish came true

you and kit went out on a few more dates as time went by and they were perfect, you used to believe boys were stupid and untrustworthy but with kit it was different, you liked him and you sure did hope he liked you too

soon, kit’s relationship with you took the next step as he asked you to be his girlfriend on the prettiest night of september and you didn’t hesitate to say yes

you wanted to be with kit forever, you would do anything to have him by your side always and so it was no surprise when you began to have worries about kit finding out the fact that you’re a witch

the last thing you wanted to do was to scare him off and you were sure telling him who you were would definitely do that but you also felt bad as you believed shouldn’t be hiding that part of you to the man you love

you were keeping that detail to yourself until suddenly the world caught you by surprise and decided to stop being in your favour

kit had mentioned to you that he has been struggling with his energy at work and how he feels extremely overworked by his boss, you suggested to him to confront his boss about the unfair amount of hours he has to work for how little he gets paid but he refused to do so, making you have the great idea to cast a spell for kit to make him be less tired and remove his fatigue

you gathered all the materials you needed and you lit a few candles in front of you placing them in a circle, you then followed what the spell book which you had opened in front of you said and focused a little bit too hard since you didn’t realise that kit had gotten off work earlier and now he was home, looking for you

you had given kit a spare key to your home and it wasn’t a surprise for him to come see you after work so it was stupid of you to not lock the door of your room

“baby, where are ya?” it was too late when you heard him because a moment later he had opened the door of your bedroom, revealing yourself in a very sketchy and hard to explain situation

he frowned as you were frozen in your spot, his eyes staring deep into yours as you blinked twice, blowing the candles off slowly

“what are you doing…?” he asked, walking towards you slowly

“nothing” you replied almost immediately, standing off the floor and giving him an awkward smile

“it doesn’t seem like nothing” he said “what were you doing?” he asked again, standing in front of you

you sighed, the time for the truth had come and you were scared shitless, you’ve never told anyone besides your mother about your abilities and the thoughts of kit leaving and exposing you were lingering in your mind, however, you knew you had to trust him

and you also knew there had to be some sort of erasing memory spell

but besides that, you took kit’s hand and sat him down next to you on the edge of the bed “you’ve gotta promise you’re not gonna freak out, okay?”

“what?” he said, still not catching on completely on what you were saying.

“kit… i’m a witch” you said… staring deep into his eyes searching for a hint of any negative emotion behind his eyes but on the contrary all he did was frown.

“um… okay…” he said in a whisper, his face being completely blank “sure, whatever you say suga’” he said, slowly caressing your elbows and giving you a reassuring smile

it wasn’t hard to tell that kit didn’t believe you but you had no clue what to do now, you already had told him so what now?

“kit…” you spoke slowly “did you understand what i said?” you asked

“um… kind of” he replied, making you sigh “you’re trying to tell me you’re high, right?” he spoke cautiously slow, almost as if he’s speaking to a toddler as he didn’t know how to act

you broke into a smile, you couldn’t help but think he was adorable “no!” you lightly hit his arm as you giggled “i’m not high you dummy! i’m a witch!”

his expression was still confused but he began laughing with you, causing you to laugh even harder as you didn’t understand why he was laughing with you

“kit, why are you laughing!?” you asked between giggles

“i don’t know, why are you laughing!?” he replied, you both looked so stupid laughing at nothing but you loved it, he was way too sweet

you obviously knew kit was never going to believe you were a witch so you had no other choice but to attempt to do a demonstration when you and kit managed to calm down the laughs

“okay, kit, i’m a witch and i’m gonna prove it but you can’t freak out… okay?” you said as you began to use telekinesis to slowly lift kit off the bed, almost too slow making it hard for him to realise what was happening

“honey, don’t call yourself a witch, you’re just a stressed lady okay, there’s no need to… woah wait” his attempt at comforting you or whatever was interrupted as he realised he wasn’t sitting down on the bed anymore, instead he was floating above it

you smiled at him with reassurance as you kept making him float higher and higher above the bed, he looked at you in utter shock as he muttered some surprises noises yet all you could do is smile in hopes he wouldn’t panic too much

kit had no idea what was going on, all he knew is that he kept going up and he muttered an “ouch” when he felt his head boink against the bedroom roof

you immediately panicked as you completely forgot about the fact he was going to hit his head and in your moment of worry you accidentally dropped him, making you scream as you forgot he was going to land on the bed and thought he could get badly injured

“are you okay?! kit?!” you asked, climbing more towards the centre of the bed where his head was resting and slowly caressing his head

he had his eyes shut as he was obviously afraid of the landing and still didn’t quite piece together that he didn’t fall on the floor “i’m good, baby” he replied, opening his eyes a little and looking at your face over him, you’re worried expression making him want to kiss you

you helped him sit up on the bed and after a few moments of silence, you decided to ask the question that was eating you up on the inside “so… do you hate me?”

“what?! no!” his response was almost instant as the last thing he wanted to do was to make you feel bad “i don’t completely understand what’s going on but something like this would never make me hate you! hell… i don’t think anything would ever make me hate you…” his hand reached for your face as he tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear “i thought stuff like that only existed in movies but hey it’s kind of cool… my girlfriend is a witch!” he chucked to himself

your eyes were slightly teary as you felt relieved and also moved by his words, you felt thankful to have someone that cared about you so much and the feeling of being accepted by kit made you wanna break down and cry for love

you felt kit’s lips press against you in a soft kiss, you could feel his lips curving into a smile, making you do the same, the only thing you could think of as your kisses escalated was how grateful you were to have him in your life

…

“so what type of thing were you doing down there… you know with the candles and stuff” you felt the vibrations of kit’s voice as your head was resting on his chest, his shirt was off (like yours) after the make out session you guys were having turned into something more

you looked up at him through your eyelashes and you bit your lip, your fingers tracing meaningless patterns on his skin “a spell…” you said in a cheeky manner

kit frowned slightly, his hands caressing your hair as he gave you a confused look “what kind of spell?” he asked, curiosity killing the cat

“a spell for you…” you replied, aware of how bad it sounded as he could obviously misunderstand what you were saying and he could take it the wrong way “but it wasn’t a bad spell, i just, i wanted to help you” you added

“oh baby, like a love spell? cause if it was then i think it’s pretty clear you don’t need to do one of those on me” he said with a small smirk resting on his face “unless you’ve already done one of me and i just haven’t realised…” he said in a playful tone, obviously kidding

you rolled your eyes at him “very funny, kit, ha ha ha” you said sarcastically “it was a spell to help you have more energy at work… you told me you were feeling burnt out and i wanted to help” you looked away from him, suddenly feeling shy

he went quiet for a few seconds making you doubtful of what he could be thinking, but you knew it was fine when all of a sudden one of his hands went to your chin in order to lift your face and give you a soft kiss

“you’re the sweetest girl i know” he said in a whisper, making you blush slightly “so can you fly?” he changed the tone of the conversation swiftly, making you giggle at how dumb he sounded to you

“you’re so stupid sometimes kit…” you replied, a bright smile on your face as you rolled your eyes

…

ever since you told kit the truth about you being a witch he’s insisted on trying to learn as much as he can about it in order to help you and support you, you’ve told him plenty of times it wasn’t necessary for him to burden himself with all that knowledge but he won’t listen

you didn’t hate it though, if you were being truthful, it was nice to have someone you can talk about that stuff that isn’t your mother and not feel judged

however, ever since kit learned about the horrible things people have tried to do to witches such as burn and murder them even if they aren’t causing harm, he’s began to be slightly more protective of you and you haven’t failed to notice

you thought it was cute so it didn’t bother you, plus you knew he really is just trying to do what he can to be there for you when it comes to stuff related to your abilities

but when you were surprised today in the middle of your at home date night with kit by one of your neighbours that’s where you really noticed how much you liked it

the lady that lived next door from you was a very religious woman, you had no issue with that whatsoever since even though you didn’t agree with her beliefs you still respected it, yet you didn’t fail to notice how she’s been acting odd towards you throughout the past month

you were used to saying good morning and maybe stop for small talk when you left for work early yet recently she’s been giving you a strange look when she does, and she also used to bake you pies often since she insisted she must take care of you since she was in her 40s and you’re just a “baby dove in your 20s” according to her, but lately she has failed to do so and so you could clearly tell something was wrong

you liked to pretend like you had no idea what could’ve affected her perspective of you but unfortunately, you do

on a late tuesday around a month ago you were almost by your place when she spotted you since she was sitting in her porch sewing, you cordially said hello to eachother and she iniated small talk when suddenly she accidentally stabbed herself with the her sewing needle

when you heard her complain about the pain in her finger you went up to her and checked it, making the dumb decision to use some of your abilities to heal it quick as it broke your soul to see the poor lady suffering, you brushed a hand past the stab and suddenly it was gone

after that you arrived home and since then the havoc started upon her demeanour towards you

“may i help you, miss thornhill?” you asked after opening the door, smiling kindly to the woman in front of you

suddenly the woman invited herself into your home and pulled some garlic out of her purse, pointing it at you “this must stop now! what are you creature?!” she screamed erratically, loud enough for kit who was waiting in the kitchen with a glass of wine for you to come running towards you

“what’s going on?” he asked, observing the scene in front of you

you sighed, you hated this “miss thornhill, i don’t understand what’s going on….” you replied, backing off from her a little bit

“you are not god’s creature, you must disappear!” the woman once again screamed, making kit get in front of you, worried about you

“garlic, really? does she look like a vampire?!” he said, slightly joking around but immediately regretting after realising it wasn’t the time “ma’am you need to leave” he said

“son, you don’t know her, she’s not what she looks like!” the woman said this time to kit, almost as if you weren’t even in the room “she’s different from you and me” she whispered to kit, making you want to roll your eyes “the devil…” she continued

kit sighed “lady, you need to leave immediately” he asked in a gentle manner, trying to avoid a bigger issue

the woman however seemed to take it the wrong way, getting offended “fine! i will leave, but i will accuse you with the church and with all the ladies in this town and expose what you really are!” she screamed, raising her finger at you

“which is?” you asked, regretting it instantly but you couldn’t help but be carried away a little bit by your emotions

“a witch!” she shouted

“hey! my girlfriend is not a witch!” kit replied, lying obviously but trying to do what he can, “how dare you even think of accusing my girlfriend of that…” he pretended to be mortified by the woman’s blabbering

it was a serious moment but you couldn’t help but to find it a little bit amusing, you never took kit for being an actor or at least a good one at least but boy, you were wrong

he gave you a quick glance obviously signalling to you he needed your slight support “yes, exactly, how dare you say that about me, ms thornhill! i’m shattered” you acted hurt, leading a hand into your chest and closing your eyes

kit stood next to you as he gasped, pretending to be in distress about your pain as he held you “oh, suga’ are you okay?” he asked, looking at you with worried eyes

the woman just stood there, here eyes following every action you both did

“look at what you’ve done! she’s sick and you’ve made her worse” kit said as the woman’s mouth opened in disbelief, obviously falling for the trick

“oh, lord, i’m so sorry i didn’t mean to-” she struggled to find the words to say, obviously being conflicted wether on to carry on her point or not and that’s when you got the perfect opening for a little… trick

“you’re going to leave now and forget every single speculation you have about me, including the accusations of sorcery” you spoke in a confident tone, staring deep into the lady’s eyes as you felt kit looking at you unsure of what was going on but still not saying anything

not even a minute later the woman was looking around as if she was lost, you immediately approached her, a sudden worried expression painted your face

“miss thornhill, are you alright?” you said, doe eyes looking at the lady with care, kit still stood in his place wondering why your demeanour was changing

you gave him a quick glance, widening your eyes and mouthing to him to act like nothing happened

he didn’t get exactly what you were meaning to say at first but he attempted to, walking towards you while running a hand through his hair

“oh my… what am i doing here?” the poor woman asked, clearly confused

“you slept walked all the way here and began knocking on the door, i was extremely worried but i think you’re awake now” you replied, sounding way too believable “right, kit?” you gave him a tense smile

“oh, uhm, yeah, we thought something was going on” he said, quickly frowning at you before going back to acting coy

“christ… i’m so sorry about this, darling, please don’t tell me i interrupted anything with you two” she said, genuinely worried

you quickly gave her a reassuring smile “don’t worry about that, miss thornhill, please, let me walk you home next door” you replied, holding her arm and guiding her towards the door

she kept apologising as you were leaving but right as you were exiting the door you turned back and winked at kit, making him smile

he was still not sure what just happened, kit felt proud of how you handled the situation and managed to defend yourself and he could assume you used some sort of magic but if he was being honest, he did get particularly scared at the thought of that lady trying to hurt you

but all of those worries disappeared when he saw you wink with a cheeky smile on your face, reassuring him that you were fine

kit walker’s girlfriend was a witch but he knows it isn’t a bad thing, ignorant people will try and tell him it is but he knows he wouldn’t trade it for any normal thing in the world.

[brandstifter-sys]

Sink or Swim

@dukexietyweek 2024 Day 3 - Music + Dreams

Word Count: 2489 (Ao3)

Rating: T

Pairing: Dukexiety

Characters: Remus, Virgil

Warnings: Genderfluid!Remus (Reina on fem days), self depreciation, songfic, high school, confessions

Virgil has a good life and a loving spouse, and he can't help but dream about the day all the pieces fell into place

---

It was late in the evening when Virgil got home from work. He was tired and needed to unwind quietly without waking the kids and his genderfluid partner. 

He found himself on the couch looking through old photo albums, wistfully getting taken back in time. It was hard to imagine that high school ended twelve years ago. It was even harder to imagine how much he changed from those days. Not only could he grow facial hair, but he was taller and less of a twig. 

Virgil stretched out on the couch and closed his eyes, laughing internally at some old memories, like the day he joined the baseball team, or when he finally got to dye his hair. But nothing compared to one of the best days of his life. 

That memory brought a smile to his face as he drifted off.

Hey kid, just give it a shot 

Virgil was a mess of nerves, hiding in his old, oversized hoodie as he traveled from class to class. Aside from his spot on the baseball team, he was a nobody, a shadow in a sea of teen drama. 

He flipped his dark sidebangs from his face and clutched his backpack straps tightly. He just finished Trigonometry and he was headed straight for Film History, where his pulse always skyrocketed. 

He could admit that his hormones were on the fritz, but he knew that the real cause of his nerves was one person. Reina, or Ree, as she preferred, could very easily give him a heart attack. And this was the day he would risk it all. 

It's a chance you'll never get back, like it or not 

It was spring, the perfect time to get ice cream and hang out in the park. Virgil already had a plan, and a couple back up ideas. He just had to get his ass in gear before he missed his window of opportunity. 

But that was easier said than done.  

He rounded a corner and his heart sank. Ree was surrounded by her friends just outside the History classroom. They were mostly girls, chatting away about stuff Virgil refused to listen in to. 

He curled into himself and bit his lip. How the hell was he supposed to ask her out with an audience? 

You have to hold your head high and put those fears aside

And then one of her friends noticed him approaching. She spoke in a hushed whisper and giggled. Reina had the nerve to blush adorably. 

Virgil hated that he had to go to that exact classroom. He hated how pathetic he looked. 

What chance did he have with her? He was just some queer weirdo. He didn't even have jock status despite being on the baseball team. 

You think she'll walk away, ignoring what you say

Reina wasn't super popular like her brother, but she had friends and enemies. She was friendly, kind, and quirky. She could spend time with whoever she wanted. She didn't need to waste her time with him. 

It would make more sense for her to ignore him, to surround herself with likable people. Hell, it was a mistake on her part for considering him a friend, if at all. He really wasn't worth her time. 

It's kinda funny how she gets under your skin��

But then she broke away from her group and approached him. She had a certain bounce to her gait that drew attention to her. Everything about her was adorable from her wry smile to her wily wavy hair. 

Virgil hated how he just wanted to hold her and kiss every freckle on her face. He hated how he could crumble from a silly little glance. 

You tell yourself to run, when she gets close enough 

“Hey Virge!” she greeted him, restraining herself from hugging him. Virgil was glad she could respect that boundary, since he was likely to faint if she hugged him out of the blue. 

“Uh, hey,” he stammered, cringing internally. He didn't like how her friends were giggling. He was making a fool of himself and he wanted to get away from the situation, his legs were itching to run. 

“So, you know how Mr. Tanner is going to give us that partner assignment today? I was thinking that we could be partners!” Reina chirped and swayed her shoulders shyly. Virgil would have agreed in a heartbeat if her friends weren't giggling like crazy behind her. 

“I, uh,” he winced and rubbed his neck. He couldn't stop from glancing over her shoulder. 

“Don't mind my harem,” Reina said and glared over her shoulder. Some of her friends rolled their eyes, some snickered, and one blew a playful kiss. But they all stopped paying attention to them. 

This is your chance to sink or swim  

“So, do you want to be partners?” she asked him again, a bit more sheepishly. 

“Yeah—uh—yeah, I mean we'd have to work on it after practice so if that's a problem—” 

“Nope! I'll meet you on the field after practice and we can get started!” Reina beamed and grabbed his hand, “Let's sit together this period!” 

You've got me swinging from the ceiling

And all I know is I never want to come back down

It shouldn't have been so easy for her to make him feel like he was walking on air. With just the slightest touch Reina had the power to turn the air in his lungs to helium. Just the thought that she reached out to him for something so mundane has him giddy on the inside. 

He wanted to scream at the top of his lungs on top of a mountain. He was thrilled and terrified, all because of one gremlin. 

He would be on this high for a while. 

--

This is the time to open your eyes  

Virgil’s day was a blur. He could remember the stuff he learned, and what he would have to do for his film history project, but he didn't really recall anything else about the day, or how he found himself manning left field, not that he was paying attention.

He was too busy internally panicking. He still had to ask Reina out while he still had the courage, and he wasn't sure if he could. They were working on a project for a grade, and he couldn't risk fucking that up on top of rejection. 

It was too risky. 

“Alright guys, bring it in!” the coach shouted from the dugout. Of course, Virgil joined the rest of the team, ready to hear all the complaints and when their next game was. He already knew his own flaws and when he would have to showcase them, so he barely paid attention. 

“And remember, it's not safe for your girlfriends to sit on the field and watch. That's why we have bleachers,” the coach said and eyed the outfielders. Virgil’s blood ran cold. Why was the coach starting at him so much? 

“Who was on the field?” Toby, the pitcher, whispered to Gus, the catcher. 

“Your ex,” Gus whispered back, “Reina.” 

“She never came to practice when we were dating, what the hell? I'm not taking her back.” 

“She didn't even look at you. She was probably eyeing Seth,” Gus scoffed quietly. Virgil didn't need to hear any more. 

As soon as the huddle broke he packed up his bag and made his way to the bleachers. Maybe he didn't have a chance. Seth was good looking, played third base, and he tried so hard to be like Toby. It would make sense for Reina to focus on him. Meeting with Virgil was the perfect excuse. 

Of course, Reina was on the bleachers, waiting for him and swinging her legs. She beamed at him when he came over. 

“Hey, you ready to go to my place to watch a few movies?” she asked, “Or did you want to walk around for a bit?” 

“Shouldn't I shower first? I'm pretty sure I stink,” Virgil asked, making sure his arms stayed down. 

“Nah! I kinda like how you smell. And I kinda wanna talk to you about something, nothing bad, I just need an opinion from someone who isn't interested in roshambo without the rock and paper.” 

Virgil's heart went out to her. She was nervous and clearly distressed by this thing. 

“Let me put this in the locker room and change, and then we can walk around the track and talk,” he ceded. Reina smiled at him and nodded. Virgil refused to take longer than he needed. 

  So he took a quick shower before going back. At least Reina was still there waiting. She looked relieved to see him in his hoodie. 

She hopped to her feet and skipped to meet him part way. 

“So, what's up?” Virgil asked as they made their way to the track. 

“What would you do if I was a guy?” 

“Uh, stop calling you Reina and stop using she/her pronouns.” 

“You wouldn't think I'm weird in a bad way?” 

“No, not for that.” 

“What if I was a guy, but only some of the time?” 

“I would use the name and pronouns you prefer. I don't think being genderfluid or bigender is weird.” 

“Do you think anyone would want to date me if I was gender fluid?” Reina pouted up at him with the saddest green eyes. 

You better spill your guts 

And never let her leave your side  

Virgil grabbed her shoulders gently and nodded. 

“I know I would date you if you were any flavor of trans. I would date you if you were cis. I have the most obnoxious feelings for you, they make me a nervous wreck because I can't bear to make a mistake in front of you. I don't care what name or pronouns as long as you're you.” 

“Virgil—” she said with a distant look in her eyes. 

“Even if you aren't interested in me like that, I know that there's a lot of people who would want to date you,” he relented and dropped his arms. 

Just give it some time, let it sink into her mind

They continued to walk around the track in relative silence. The soft wind and warm sun couldn't calm Virgil's nerves. Reina wasn't talking or making noise. She always made noise. He fucked up and ruined everything. He couldn't even look at her.

She'll be coming back for more  

“Remus.” 

Virgil glanced at Reina. She was looking at him with glassy eyes. 

“My boy name is Remus,” she said. 

“Remus,” Virgil repeated, “it suits you.” 

Reina smiled at him and hugged his arm. 

“You're the first person to say that name to me. It feels good to hear it,” she giggled and rubbed her cheek on his arm. 

You've got me swinging from the ceiling

And all I know is I never wanna come back down

Virgil couldn't fight the blush rising on his face. His heart decided to play Metallica’s “One” against his ribs, slamming in his chest. Reina had to realize that she was sending his feelings into overdrive. She had to realize that she was teasing his heartstrings after that confession. 

“I would date you too,” she hummed, “You're the sweetest guy I know, even with that tough shell.” 

You gotta pull yourself together now

Before your time is running out 

“You would?” Virgil asked and stopped walking. Reina squeaked and caught her balance, grinning up at him. 

Virgil took a deep breath. He could do this.

You better make your move before she goes again

“Will you be my girlfriend and/or boyfriend?” he asked and rubbed his neck. There was still a chance she'd say no. He didn't even ask her on a date! 

Reina immediately pounced, jumping to wrap her arms around his shoulders. Virgil caught her and stumbled a bit, but he was able to hold her up by the thighs while she squealed and nuzzled his neck. 

“Yes! Of course I will! I'm your boyfriend today!” Remus said and leaned back to look at Virgil’s face. He was blushing adorably and chewing his bottom lip, hoping for something more, something Virgil could provide. 

You gotta pull yourself together now 

“Does that mean we can kiss?” Remus asked and wiggled his eyebrows. 

Before your time is running out 

You better make your move before he goes again 

“Yeah,” Virgil said, completely red in the face. He had kissed dudes before, mostly on dares, but he was absolutely flustered at the thought of kissing Remus. 

He leaned in and let his eyes flutter shut, praying Remus would meet him in the middle. Then their lips met and Virgil could hardly contain the sheer joy filling him. It was short and sweet, but it left Virgil giddy and unable to fight his smile. 

“Wanna get pizza and make out while we do our project?” Remus asked when they pulled apart, “If it gets you to smile at me like that, I I'll let you touch my boobs!” 

“I'll smile like this without doing that,” Virgil chuckled, “Just don't get pineapple pizza.” 

Remus laughed and hugged him, pleasantly surprised that Virgil was still carrying him with ease. 

“Anchovies it is!” he teased, expecting Virgil to drop him or get grossed out. 

“You read my mind,” Virgil hummed and carried him off the track, excited for what could come from this.

---

Virgil woke up to the pleasant sensation of lips on his own. He blinked away the sleep from his eyes when those lips pulled away, and he was met with vibrant green eyes. 

“Mm, Ree?” he mumbled. 

“That’s right big boy, and you left your Trash Bat all alone last night!” Remus purred. 

“Sorry about that. I didn't want to wake you up.” 

“That's sweet! But I had to save you from getting covered in stickers and glitter before the kids went to school!” 

“What time is it?” Virgil grunted and sat up. It was already bright, so he had to have slept until late in the morning. 

“Time to order lunch and make out while we watch scary movies.” 

“Just like our first date. Funny, I was just dreaming about that.” 

“Oh! Was that the day I ogled your butt, came out to you, and you carried me all the way to my house? Roman thought I got hurt!” 

“Yeah,” Virgil smiled up at him, “And all these years later you still got me swinging from the ceiling with everything you do.” 

Remus giggled and kissed him again. 

“You say that as if I'm not up there with you!” 

Virgil huffed and pulled Remus on top of him, flopping on his back again. 

“The pizza can wait, I need to hold you for a bit.” 

Remus kissed his neck and snuggled up with him. Moments like these reminded him that he had to thank his 15 year old self for choosing to swim and not sink.

--

Song: Sink or Swim - Close to Home

[edogawa-division]

Ding Dong Merry Christmas! It appears that both Kaoru Shinozaki and Kanra Akemi received not one, but two gifts!

Let's start with Kaoru! Opening up the presents reveals to be...

...A new pair of headphones and a red skull Hawaiian shirt.

Not only that but there's a card with a note inside which reads...

'Merry Christmas, babe!

I hope you're having a blast of a Christmas pookie bear! I'm doing great, it probably won't be long until Lyall comes and kidnaps me to spend Christmas with my ma and his folks, wish you can be here but never fear for I have sent you gifts to compensate! When all the holiday hubbub is over, we definitely need to get back on our 10 hour voice chats, we had some good times doing those. Anyways, Happy Holidays, I loooooove youuuuu!

- Joey.'

Moving onto Kanra, opening up her presents reveals to be...

...A bag full of lollipops and brand new, bright red baking supplies.

There's no card or note however, but there was a familiar smell and a small doodle of a green spider on one of the boxes.

What's this? Oh there's more! The Shinozaki siblings have also received a few gifts!

Let's start with A.D.A.! Opening her gifts reveals to be...

...A beautiful sapphire and diamond butterfly and heart necklace as well as...oh my! A very skinny blue butterfly thong!

There was no physical note but A.D.A. received a message nonetheless, feeling a phantom nip at her ear and a familiar devious chuckle. "Merry Christmas, Princess."

Moving onto A.R.K., opening his gifts reveals to be...

...A men's hygiene kit including a shave kit for "down there"

Again, no physical note was provided but A.R.K. got a message nonetheless.

'Merry Christmas, Big Bro A.R.K.!'

'You're welcome by the way.'

Finally, moving onto A.M.U., opening her gifts reveals to be...

...A Hello Kitty CD player and blue bunny headphones to plug in the former gift with.

Like her siblings, A.M.U. received no physical message but she did receive one in her internal inbox.

'A.M.U.-chan, Seizou wishes you a "Merry Christmas".'

Merry Christmas! 🎄

…with Kaoru 

Kaoru threw herself on her bed giggling like nothing else as she read the letter from one of her boyfriends. It was like she was a high school girl getting a gift from her crush. Even now Kaoru couldn’t believe that she had 2 boyfriends especially ones like Lyall and Joey. It was something out of her wildest dreams sure she could get kisses from them but at the same time, she could get them to kiss in front of her and hear the pretty little whimpers coming out of Joey’s mouth. 

Speaking of Kaoru smirked as she thought about a certain gift she had given Joey. She was counting the hours down until she could head over and put it on for her boyfriend. The amount of teasing she was gonna put him through. 

“I hope you’re ready Joey because the next visit is going to be so much fun.” 

…with Kanra

Kanra stood in the middle of the kitchen using her new utensils, her hands moving automatically to measure her ingredients while her mind was elsewhere. She was glad that she had been able to get out of Yuriko’s & Kaoru’s questions about who had given her a present by rushing to the kitchen claiming she was gonna make some cookies with her new baking set the moment she saw that green spider. Kanra wasn't sure she wanted to see their reaction if they learned that she had been given a gift from the woman many people called heartless. 

Placing the tray of unbaked cookies into the oven Kanra sighed. That was the problem, wasn’t it? No one would ever understand her desire to know Ritsuko Okada. They’d all try to convince her otherwise but Kanra was dead set on having a conversation with her and she’d get it even if she had to burn a few bridges to get it. 

“I’m important to you in some way. I’d like to know why but most of all I’d like to share a strawberry shortcake with you one day.” 

  …with the Shinozaki Siblings 

A.D.A blushed a deep red as she shoved the thong back inside the gift box hoping her siblings hadn’t seen it. Thankfully A.M.U was too entranced with her gifts to notice what her older sister had gotten. Sadly A.R.K had seen the gift. 

“A.D.A you freaky motherfucker!” A.R.K gagged looking at his twin with an unreadable expression.

“How was I supposed to know Mal was going to send something like that?” A.D.A retorted back her face still blushing. 

“Look me in my eyes A.D.A and tell me that you didn't expect something like this from him.” 

“Shut up!” A.D.A huffed throwing a ball of wrapping paper which A.R.K. easily dodged. “What did you get anyway?”

“Some good shit so that I can finally stop smelling like a damn Bath and Body Works,” A.R.K smiled full of teeth. “I refuse to use the shit already in the bath anymore.” 

A.D.A rolled her eyes at her twin’s words again used to his vulgar self. She turned to her A.M.U who was sitting on the floor still messing with her new CD player from her twin best friend. 

“Having fun Sweetheart?” A.D.A smiled at A.M.U who blinked turning her attention to her older sister. 

The black and violet haired android nodded as she pushed another button on the CD player. Even if she could not see him on this holiday the gifts she had gotten from Seizou were the highlight of her day. It made her feel something. There was nothing in her database to explain how she felt but if A.M.U had to describe it she would say she was…happy. 

“Merry Christmas A.M.U now come here,” A.D.A kneeling down to bring her sister into a hug. “You too A.R.K. It’s family hug time.”

“Fuck…” A.R.K started before getting silenced by A.D.A’s glare. “...fine.”

A.D.A’s face brightened when she pulled her brother into a hug with her and A.M.U. “Isn’t this nice? Don’t answer that A.R.K.” 

“Ugh…” 

[yurinekanzaki]

"Talking"

"Thinking"

Emphasizing

All of the above but in all capital - Shouting

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

Kafka x F!Reader, has curse words

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

"Again... I've been caught again.."

Y/N sighed in frustration as she was tangled up in Kafka's webs. A trap. Y/n was once again (foolishly) trying to infiltrate the Stellaron Hunters' base all by herself.

"I need to escape before she comes-"

"Oh? What do we have here? Hm~?"

"Shit."

Kafka hummed in a teasing tone, smirking at the 'prey' that got caught in her trap. Watching her struggle and try to wriggle her way out.

"Struggling like that won't help you, darling~ You'll just tire yourself out~"

Kafka giggled at Y/n's unfortunate position, much to Y/n's annoyance.

"Shut up! I just need to cut these stupid webs. Now give me my dagger!"

Y/n grumbled while glaring at the woman. Kafka, unfazed as always, chuckled at Y/n's frustration. She slowly approached her and took out the dagger from a sheath on Y/n's back.

"You want this~? Why should I help you when I'm enjoying this moment right now~ Even if I do help you... What will you give me in return~?"

Kafka whispered the last part beside Y/n's ear. As Kafka is enjoying the moment, Y/n is all tied up and vulnerable. Flustered and blushing like a middle school kid sitting next to her crush, all just from Kafka's teasing. Kafka smirked from seeing the reactions Y/n was giving her.

"This woman is testing me. I'm not giving in! Heh. And why should I have to give you something? Let me free and I'll consider stopping with infiltrating your base and disrupting your plans"

Y/n smugly said while keeping her head as high as she could. Kafka just smiled while staring at her smug face, enjoying every expression on Y/n gives her.

"Oh~ but then I'll get bored~ I quite enjoy this, you know~? You, always looking for me.. chasing me and trying to catch me... I can't help but think you're just making 'capturing a Stellaron Hunter' an excuse to keep seeing me~"

Kafka leaned forward to Y/n's face and caressed her face with her right hand.

"Am I wrong~?"

Kafka's voice became sultry. Y/n on the other hand was struggling to keep her tough girl, unaffected act in a poor attempt to save face.

"Y-you're wrong! It's just a coincidence that we keep running into each other!"

Y/n struggled to make a convincing argument but Kafka knew she was lying. Kafka simply chuckled and finally loosened the webs binding Y/n and dropped her dagger in front of her.

"How about we make a deal. We will duel right here, right now. Whoever wins gets to make the loser do whatever she wants~"

Kafka took a couple steps back so Y/n could stand and get ready.

"This is my chance to get her! Fine. If I win, you're coming with me to the IPC and turn yourself in! This is what I want.. I'm sure of it."

Y/n stood confidently, positioning herself in a stance with her daggers.

"Hmm..~ Such a boring request.. Fine...~ if you win, I'll follow you and surrender myself to the IPC~"

Kafka smirked.

"But if I win... You're going on a date with me~ and you will listen to everything I say and do whatever I tell you to do~"

Y/n stared at her dumbfoundedly. Jaw dropped, eyes wide, heart racing.

"Date...? A date.. with.... Kafka..? A FUCKING DATE!!? Shit. No.. Calm down! This must be a trick so I would get distracted. Damn it stupid heart..!"

Kafka smirked at seeing Y/n internally panic. Her thoughts were written on her face.

"Hehe~ this girl is so easy to read~ she really does wear her heart on her sleeves~ Alright~ now that we have our deal settled... Let's begin~"

Y/n immediately charged at Kafka, trying to strike her with her daggers. Kafka calmly dodged and evaded Y/n's continuous attacks. Kafka mostly dodged and blocked her opponent's attacks, only hitting back a couple times. Y/n tried to kick Kafka's legs to make her stumble, but that only caused her to get a fist to the stomach.

"Ackk-"

Y/n stumbled a bit, trying to regain her foothold. Kafka only smirked at this as she knows Y/n was getting tired. Y/n charged at her again doing the same thing she did before. The only thing she knows when it comes to fighting. To fight head on. Don't hold back, no matter who your opponent is.

Kafka just kept dodging, reading Y/n's every move while stealthily moving her fingers.

"Hmm~ so predictable~ Oh well.. it's about time we end this~"

Kafka continued dodging, setting up her trap perfectly. After she was satisfied with her work, she feigned a mistake. Pretending to not being able to dodge one of Y/n's kicks on time and falling on her back. Seeing this, Y/n immediately rushed towards her and pinned her down before she got up again, thinking she had won. Little did she know, she fell for a trap... again....

"Hah! I won! You're gonna follow up on the deal, right?!"

Y/n panted tiredly with a mix of excitement. Finally being the victor of the two's unending squabbles.

"Oh~ are you sure that you've won~?"

Y/n stared at her in confusion. That's when she noticed a bunch of lines around her, even feeling some of it tightening around her wrists and waist. Y/n's eyes widened but before she could move, Kafka snapped her fingers and all the webs she set up during the fight tightened. Lifting Y/n off of her and tying her up once again. The webs attached to the nearby wall were tied around her wrists as it was held up over her head as other webs were attached to the ground and keeping her waist in place while she was on her knees with her head hanging low.

Kafka stood up and dusted herself. She approached Y/n while smirking in victory. She knelt down to Y/n's level and lifted her head up by her chin.

"You were so focused on defeating me that you've neglected observing your surroundings~ You didn't even notice that the more you moved, the more you got yourself tangled up in my webs~"

Y/n couldn't do anything but just glare at the woman infront of her.

"Looks like I've won~ Hehe~ You'll follow up on the deal, right~"

Kafka repeated Y/n's words back to her as Y/n just sighed in defeat.

"Damn it! I lost again... This is the 12th time I lost to her and fell for her traps. How stupid.. I should train more.. Hmp of course I'm gonna follow up. I have honor you know"

Kafka giggled as she let go of Y/n's chin and made her webs disappear. Y/n stood up once again as she dusted herself and sheathed her daggers.

"I'll go on that date with you, whenever that is"

Y/n tried to sound uninterested in the date but deep down, she was really excited.

Kafka giggled, seeing right through Y/n's act.

"Meet me here tomorrow. 9am. Don't keep me waiting~ and remember.. You will have to listen to everything I say and do whatever I tell you to do~"

"Ugh.. why did I agree to this?.. Yeah yeah whatever you say. I'm leaving now. I'm fucking tired.."

Y/n started walking away, trying to calm her heart from beating too fast. She was going on a date. Not just any date.. A date with Kafka! Y/n will never admit it but, she always found the woman attractive. Everything Kafka said about 'capturing a Stellaron Hunter' being an excuse to see her? It was all true. Even though Y/n would rather die than admit that to Kafka, she didn't know that the woman she's been constantly looking for already knew her true feelings.

"Hmm.. maybe a date with Kafka wouldn't be that bad.... Haah... What should I wear tomorrow..?"

Kafka watched Y/n walk away before turning around herself. Smiling to herself at the thought of going on a date with her persistent pursuer. She too, was feeling a little excited.

"Hmm~ I might have cheated a little bit~ I already knew I was gonna win the fight, courtesy of Elio.. but even without Elio's insight, I would have still won fair and square~ That girl is just too obvious with her true feelings intentions~ Oh well... I'm not gonna ask Elio what will happen on the date tomorrow. I want to be surprised as well~ Hmm... Now what should I wear~"

Kafka hummed blissfully while walking to her room, thinking of what outfit she will wear to see Y/n's flustered face.

--------------------------------------------------Hey there this is my first attempt in making a story. Hope ya'll liked it ( •̀ᴗ•́ )و ̑̑ As you can tell I'm horrible at making fight scenes lmao. Please feel free to point out some mistakes. I'm learning as I go🫶

[hatsunevitu]

a short messy unfinished benrietta uhhh thing that i wrote at night idk if there are many enjoyers. cw underage smoking!!

***

Bebe takes a deep drag on a cigarette, coughing and blinking away the tears in her eyes. Despite what she had said to Goth kids, she wasn’t actually really used to smoking, and now, with a bit of a shame, a delusional thought flashes in her head – Henrietta is probably laughing internally at Bebe's attempts to mimic their lifestyle. Nevertheless, Stevens quickly gets rid of it, angrily shaking her head.

She feels disgusted to realize that the desire to please and satisfy everyone around her is put so deeply into the subcortex of her brain that she can’t let herself relax even now, in the passenger seat of Mrs. Biggle's old car, in the very suburbs of South Park — in the place where no one could even see her. Except Henrietta, of course. But Bebe mercilessly cuts off this thought, because she wouldn’t try so hard to look good just for Henrietta – she is almost sure of that.

She takes a drag on a bitter menthol cigarette, holding the smoke in her lungs for a couple of seconds. Then she blows the smoke, imagining all of her obsessive thoughts and troubles coming out of her body as well. Her head feels pleasantly empty, and she giggles, leaning back in the seat and lazily looking around the neighborhood through the mud-stained broken car window.

Shithole. South Park was just a one huge shithole, a cage in which she lived all her life, and from which she desperately wanted to be free. What exactly she meant by "freedom", Bebe wasn’t really able to explain, so she usually stuck to safe "Denver" — that’s where she wanted to move after finishing high school.

Bebe chuckles and shares out loud her ideas about moving out of their town. To her surprise, Henrietta's hoarse voice sounds completely uninspired, even bored:

“Denver is just the same dump. I don't want to move, it's conformist”.

Bebe frowns, raises herself on her elbows and carefully examines the serene expression of her friend's face. She is leaning back in the driver's seat, with her eyes closed and a lit cigarette between her fingers.

Bebe squints, noticing the mascara that has carelessly smeared in the corners of Henrietta's eyes, and suppresses the desire to move closer and fix her makeup. Instead, she follows Henrietta’s example and closes her eyes, accidentally poking a cigarette into her cheek and squealing shortly in surprise.

"You shouldn't move either, by the way. You'll go wild as soon as you get out of of your parents’ control, and then you'll just hate yourself. That’s how it happens to girls like you," Henrietta says disinterestedly.

Bebe listens to her voice, monotonous, hoarse from smoking, and does not know if she even should be offended by the harsh words if they are said in such an incredibly beautiful voice. For some reason, her heart is speeding up its pace, and she can only hope that it's out of anger.

“Well, maybe I need to go wild? It's not easy to always be perfect, you know!” Bebe replies, wrinkling her nose capriciously.

“And who told you you’re perfect?” Henrietta asks, raising her eyebrows slightly in surprise, as if she did not expect such words from herself.

Bebe gasps with indignation, and makes an attempt to defend herself:

“Well, everyone knows that”.

And indeed. A constant. A strange hierarchy among the girls in the second grade put Bebe to the other "popular" girls – Bebe doesn’t remember exactly why, though. Maybe because she had the most beautiful pink bows in the whole class, or maybe because she was pretty confident while talking to the boys, or some similar stupid childish reason. Back then, in elementary school, everything was much simpler, and Bebe didn't even have to try to be liked by people – everything was already decided for her by her cute blonde curls, which all the boys in the class were crazy about.

Now she wastes hours of her life on skin care, good (but not perfect, so as not to become a “nerd”) grades and shopping with girlfriends.

She didn't know what would happen if she did go down the social ladder at school, but she preferred not to think about it too much. Several times she was already close to it, but quickly redeemed her reputation every time.

Now she felt like she was walking on the edge, looking into the abyss at the very bottom of the hierarchy they had invented, balancing dangerously. For example, because now, instead of having fun at Wendy's birthday party, she is sitting with Henrietta in an ancient car in the poorest neighbourhood of their town and smoking the third cigarette.

Bebe thinks for a second where Henrietta would be on this so called social ladder, and then realises that she probably doesn't fit into this system at all, standing somewhere aside alone and muttering something about pathetic conformists. She feels a sharp pang of envy in her heart. She wished she could just not care about her social status too.

Henrietta's voice pulls her out of the abyss of her thoughts – Bebe has clearly been thinking too much lately – and Stevens is surprised to notice in it emotions that she could not read yet. So far, she couldn't read Henrietta at all.

“Well, I don't argue with the fact that you are beautiful and convenient, but perfect?” Henrietta winces expressively, and Bebe suddenly feels as if she's been punched in the gut.

“If you’re just gonna insult me for no reason, I’m leaving,” Bebe warns, frowning. She can’t help but feel offended, even though she has no idea why she wants to be liked by Henrietta so bad.

“Those are not insults, they’re facts. Grass is green, sky is blue, and you are deeply unhappy because you try to fit into society’s standards”. Henrietta shrugs casually, as if she didn’t just destroy Bebe’s understanding of her own life.

“At least I’m accepted into society and people don’t call me a fucking freak and weirdo!” Bebe murmurs angrily.

“Was that supposed to be offensive?” Henrietta chuckles, inhaling smoke again.

[real-life-cloud]

18 and your choice of ship?

hiii sorry this took so long!! i decided to pick momojirou ♥ i listened exclusively to rain ambience mixes of animal crossing music and p5 music while writing this lol

you can real the drabble on ao3 -> here

you can see the prompt list -> here

⛅

Prompt 18: Walking Home wordcount: 1.4k

During their final period for the day, Kyouka started to hear raindrops on the roof of UA. She doubted the others heard it—aside maybe Shouji—but her sensitive ears certainly did.

Internally, she cursed. She didn't bother checking the weather that morning, and didn't have an umbrella. 'Hopefully,' she thought, 'if I'm lucky, the rain will pass quickly.'

Jirou Kyouka wasn't known for being lucky.

That rainy, gloomy Thursday afternoon was no different. By the time she was about to leave, it had turned into a full-on downpour.

She could ask a classmate to share, or see if anyone had a spare. But an anxious and uncomfortable feeling swirled around in her gut at the thought of doing so. It was the first week of school, she barely knew any of them. What if they thought she was being too familiar with them? She fidgeted with her audio jacks as she watched the rainfall.

'No one is going to hate me for forgetting an umbrella.' She mentally reassured herself. It did nothing to get rid of the feeling.

"Wow, it's really coming down…" A voice to her left startled her out of her thoughts.

She turned to see Yaoyorozu staring out into the rain as well. A folded umbrella lay in her hands, as she was a smart person who probably checked the weather every day.

She really was so smart. And beautiful, and competent, and tall. Not that that was all it took for her to get a crush. She did not have a crush. Probably. She barely knew the girl. They hadn’t properly talked outside of a brief introduction. Who knew if she even remembered Kyouka’s name.

Yaoyorozu cocked her head to the side, her pretty black hair swaying along with it. It looked so glossy, yet never greasy. "Did you not bring an umbrella, Jirou?" 

"Ah, well." Kyouka faltered, feeling embarrassed. That answered one question. "I forgot to check the weather this morning, heh." She laughed.

Yaoyorozu's brows knit together, "You're a highschooler now, you really should be remembering things like this!" She chided, sounding more like a teacher than a student.

Kyouka's eyes fell to the floor. Of course it was one of her most responsible—and gorgeous—classmates that found her like this. She felt her face heat up.

A beat of silence, then, "Sorry, I didn't mean to, um, what I meant was-" Yaoyorozu sighed, clearly flustered. "You… walk to the nearest station, don't you, Jirou?"

Kyouka nodded dumbly.

"I could walk you there; if you wanted, that is."

Kyouka nodded again, more enthusiastically. Then, she finally remembered to speak, "If you don't mind."

She smiled, "Not at all." Then she opened up the umbrella and they stepped into the downpour together.

She was so close to her. She even smelled nice—like fresh cotton. Kyouka inhaled sharply when their shoulders brushed. God, this was so stupid. Was this really all it took for her to get a crush?

Yaoyorozu closed her eyes and inhaled, "I do love the smell of rain, though. Don't you?" She suddenly asked with a smile.

Kyouka fumbled for a moment, but only a moment. "Uh, yeah! Yeah, though, I think it's even better in the fall 'cause it, like, the leaves-"

"It mixes with the smell of fallen leaves! I feel exactly the same." She cut in excitedly. She was so cute that Kyouka couldn't even be upset at being cut off.

Kyouka giggled. Giggled. In what world did she ever giggle? “Yeah.”

Okay, it was definitely a crush.

They walked slowly, and Kyouka was glad for it. In part because her legs were much shorter than Yaoyorozu's, but also because it gave them more time together. Students around them were walking home, too. Some slowly, others running without umbrellas with the hope that if they were fast enough, they wouldn’t get too wet. Kyouka was almost one of them, a few minutes prior.

Green leaves poked through the pink cherry blossom trees, it would be summer before they knew it. She much preferred spring. As she looked around, she noticed the rain getting lighter.

She looked up at Yaoyorozu only to find her already looking back. They both quickly looked away.

Was Yaoyorozu just as curious about her? She bit the inside of her cheek at the thought—no, she shouldn’t get her hopes up like that. ‘Seriously Kyouka, you just realized you even have a crush on her…’ She chastised herself.

The rain, much gentler than before, filled the silence between them.

Yaoyorozu spoke up first. She cleared her throat daintily, “I apologize for earlier, I didn’t mean to start scolding you like that. I’m not your mother, or even your upperclassman! Sorry about that.” She said, sounding formal even when she looked embarrassed.

She was still worried about that? God, she was cute. “Hey, it’s fine, dude. I mean, I should know better by now—this used to happen all the time in middle school!” Kyouka laughed and tried for a reassuring smile, but Yaoyorozu just looked even more troubled. Her pace slowed then stopped.

“Goodness, would you just run in the rain? Didn’t you get sick?” She asked with a hand clutched on her chest.

Kyouka’s laugh turned more awkward, “Yes and yes.”

Even Yaoyorozu’s appalled face was cute. Her brows scrunched together and her hand shot up to cover her mouth—like a worried little granny, except she was a pretty, teenage girl. “Well, I’m glad I ran into you, then.” She huffed, then began to walk again.

Kyouka hummed as she followed suit, “Me too.”

“If you ever forget in the future, I can walk you to the station again. We can’t have you getting sick—every day of training is important!” She scolded, sounding older than she was yet again.

Kyouka laughed, “You sound like a teacher.”

The taller girl blushed at her teasing, “I don’t mean to…”

Kyouka continued to giggle, and the tension between them softened.The rain was slowing down to a drizzle, but Kyouka silently, selfishly hoped they stayed under the umbrella anyway.

Yaoyorozu changed the subject to schoolwork, and Kyouka found that talking to her was actually pretty easy. Especially when none of her other classmates were there to make fun of how obviously infatuated she was with the girl.

The train station came into view, and Kyouka repressed a sigh. Had they really gotten there so soon? On any other day, she’d be thankful for the short trip. But she worried—what if this easy closeness was confined under their umbrella? What if Kyouka came to school the next day and suddenly she didn’t know how to talk to her anymore? She didn’t want it to end.

But eventually, they made it to the train station doors. The two of them ducked under the covered entrance, but Kyouka noticed Yaoyorozu lag behind her. She turned to give her a questioning look, “Aren’t you coming inside?”

“Oh, no.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, “No, I get picked up by car, actually, so this is where we part ways.”

For a moment, she just stared. Then it set in.

“You didn’t have to walk me the whole way!” She blurted out, waving her hands in a flustered motion. Why didn’t she think of that? Everyone knew Yaoyorozu was a rich girl, of course she got picked up by car.

Kyouka was so busy in her own head that she didn’t notice the other girl step forward, and jolted in surprise when she grabbed her hand. Her hands were so soft, her nails perfectly manicured. Her fingertips were cold.

“I wanted to.” She said, oddly serious. Her expression melted into a smile that had Kyouka’s chest swirling. “I never get to walk home with friends, it was nice. So don’t worry about it, okay? I already texted my chauffeur to pick me up here instead.”

A sleek black car pulled up, perfectly on time. Yaoyorozu gestured to the vehicle as if to say, “See?”

A mustached man in a suit emerged from the driver’s side to open the backseat door for her with a bow. She was rich rich, huh? Yaoyorozu thanked the man politely, then turned back to Kyouka one last time. “It was nice talking to you, Jirou. I hope we can get to know each other better.”

Kyouka stammered out a, “Me too.” And then she was driving away.

She decided right then: she was never going to bring an umbrella to school again.