#pretty far away from it but close enough for her to wander there by accident

[satoruxx]

omg so like i saw ur event open and uhm what afe akaashi + this side of paradise by coyote theory 🫶

pairing: akaashi keiji x reader | 2.1k+ words summary: college au, student akaashi, pining (ofc), basically reader monologuing about her crush on akaashi for 2k words (i mean same), both of them are introverted af tho, which means they're both idiots (i'm speaking from experience hehe), nerds being nerds, overall just lots of fluff and overthinking !! a/n: AKIIIII hello hello <333 ty for sending this in lovely !! can you believe this is my first time writing for a haikyuu character?? and it so happens to be akaashi skhfkdjds i adore him !! this was so cute to write i was kicking my feet and giggling. i remember being obsessed with this song a few years ago and now that i wrote this i've been listening to it on repeat !! anyways i hope you enjoy this hehe <3

literature class was by far your favorite one of the day. you liked the stories you got to read, because it meant that you could fall into a world of your own and let your mind race with ideas. you liked how kind the professor was, passionately speaking about a subject only few could teach. you liked that it was an afternoon class, not too early for sleep to still be clinging to your eyes and yet not too late for the day's exhaustion to hit your body.

and you liked the way akaashi keiji looked as he intently listened to the lecture.

it was an accident at first. you'd gone into the lecture hall on the first day as early as you could, just so that you could scope out the corner most seat. the one away from the front where all eyes rest, but close enough from the far back so you could still pay attention. it was a fairly unpopular place to sit, so you wouldn't have to worry about any chatty seatmates trying to pull you out of your comfort zone.

only after a week of class, during one of the more boring lectures when your focus was waning and your eyes were wandering, did you notice him. akaashi keiji sitting in the row in front of you, closer to the other side of the room but angled in the perfect position for you to see his side profile.

his fingers curl under his chin as he rests his face in his palm, glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose precariously. he doesn't seem to mind though, eyes roaming over the board before settling on the professor again. occasionally, he'll look down at his notes to jot something down and then fidde with the pen mindlessly.

you just think he happens to look very pretty.

not that you'd ever tell him that.

no, you'd much rather stay hidden in your quiet corner of the lecture hall, where you can simply observe from the side. where you can avoid opening your mouth because oh god you know if you ever spoke you'd make an absolute fool of yourself.

it's better for you to remain alone, because that's how you've always preferred it to be. that's how you like it.

you think maybe that's why you're drawn to akaashi keiji.

he reminds you of yourself. always alone but never unhappy. he seems to enjoy solitude, just like you do. even when you manage to catch a glimpse of him around campus, he is by himself, nose buried in a book or pencil dragging against sheets of paper. he'll occasionally have headphones plugged into his ears, drowning out the world in a way you know all too well.

you like that about him, how similar he is to you. sometimes your friends will tell you that you need to socialize more, because human interaction is healthy and required and oh so important. they're right, but they don't understand how difficult it can be when you're so used to your own company. or when your brain is constantly conjuring up ideas on how strange you must look or sound. you think you'd much rather wait for the opportunity to socialize to fall right into your lap, not seek it out yourself.

so yes, in your opinion, it's completely acceptable to settle for just admiring akaashi keiji from afar. every time you sit in literature class you're grateful enough to just get the chance to see the small things he does. which pen he'll choose to write with for today's lecture, or whether he'll forgo paying attention to instead bury his face in a novel. that's enough for you.

but right now you need to push thoughts of akaashi keiji out of your head. you need to focus on finishing your reading assignment for literature class. and you want to focus, but it seems like every where you go someone is intent on making it as difficult as possible for you. you head to the library, and it's oddly loud in there. you try to find an empty classroom, and they're all filled with students. you just need a quiet place on campus where you could be alone and focus.

but you can't find any. you're about to give up and head back to your apartment when you spot a small alcove in one of the campus gardens, hidden by stone walls and leafy vines.

you send a quick thanks to the heavens and take a seat, making yourself comfortable and pulling out your book and notes. you don't know how long you sit there, cut off from the outside world as you read through pages and pages of the story, occasionally taking notes and rereading passages. you're only aware of the way the sun travels across the sky, indicating that time is indeed moving. you like it here, in this little space away from the rest of society, and you think you could remain here for so much longer.

"what do you think of it?"

you look up and your stomach drops as your eyes take in akaashi keiji standing over you, his bag slung over his shoulder. you only gape at him, not having enough time to prepare yourself for this sudden interaction. all you can manage is a stupid "huh?"

"the book. what were your thoughts?" he asks again, pointing down at the novel laying in your lap. you have to force yourself to stop staring at him and open your mouth.

"it's ridiculous." you answer lamely and akaashi's lips quirk upwards.

"it's a shakespearean tragedy..." he says and you suddenly think that your answer might've been a dumb one, but then he's nodding in what seems to be agreement. your breath catches as he bends down to take a seat next to you. "...of course it's got themes of ridiculousness."

the soft fabric of his sweater brushes against your skin and you almost choke, because your palms feel sweaty and your heart is racing and you think you might be breathing too loudly and-

"i felt the same way." he says, his finger coming to rest on one of the sticky notes you've put in the margin, where your summarized thoughts are scribbled down. "though i firmly believe desdemona was the true victim of the play."

you're still blinking at him owlishly, and you can practically see the way his shoulders drop as he attempts to withdraw his forwardness. "i'm sorry i shouldn't have-"

"i agree," you say hurriedly, effectively halting his words. "she deserved better than what she got. if i were her i would've blamed him for killing me instead of myself."

akaashi blinks, before a light smile graces his face, and he's nodding along with you. "for sure. leave it to the male main character to make the ending all about him."

you laugh before you can stop yourself, fiddling with the corners of the page. "i think we're dumbing it down a little too much."

"we probably are." akaashi muses, his fingers coming up to nudge at his glasses before they slip down his nose. he pauses for a second, glancing at you carefully before speaking again. "you...sit in the row behind me, right?"

oh no, has he noticed the way you stare at him? does he think you're creepy? you don't even want to hear what he has to say next. what if he-

"this is usually where i come to read alone. i've never seen anyone else here before." he continues, looking around the hidden little alcove.

you panic subsides and you immediately feel guilty. "oh shoot, i'm so sorry. i was looking for a quiet place to finish the book and i passed by here. i didn't mean to-"

akaashi is shaking his head immediately, hushing your apologies with a laugh. "no no, it's alright. i didn't mean to make you think i was angry about it. i don't mind sharing this spot. it works wonders when you need some quiet time."

maybe it's the tone of his voice or the way his eyes shine behind the frames of his glasses, but you find yourself relaxing before you can process it, giving him a half smile and a small shrug. "that's nice of you. i just...know how annoying it can be when people invade your space. especially when you want to be alone."

akaashi pauses, giving you a curious glance before his faces eases into a warm smile. he nods just slightly before shrugging. “that’s true. but…i don’t find myself all that annoyed right now.”

it’s obviously not meant in any other way but friendly, but that doesn’t stop his words from making your heart race. you only give him a shaky lopsided grin and try to take a leap of faith.

"well how did you feel about the ending monologue?" you ask, and akaashi chuckles, easing into the wall behind him as an invisible weight is lifted from his shoulders. he begins to answer your question, and a slight feeling of pride bubbles in your stomach.

you're actually talking to akaashi keiji. you took the leap of faith.

and it pays off because akaashi remains there with you for hours after that. you both take turns ranting about the novel, eventually drifting off into other topics that have the two of you easily conversing like you had been friends for years. by the time night has fallen and you both are packing your things, you're wondering why you were ever nervous to begin with.

“i’m glad that you found this place. it’s really peaceful.” you comment with an easy going smile and akaashi returns it almost immediately.

his tone is light when he speaks up. “you’re welcome back here anytime.”

you end up taking him up on the offer many times afterward.

a part of you worries that maybe he might find you annoying. but he always just gives you that soft smile, patting the ground next to him as he allows you to invade his space over and over again.

besides you don’t know this yet, but he only allows this for you.

because truthfully, akaashi keiji has thought you were pretty since the moment he first saw you in literature class. he’s not prideful enough to deny the way his eyes have drifted over to you during the lectures. to watch the way you tap your pen against your lips or to gaze at you when you doodle on the corner of your notes.

but he figured these feelings were something he'd keep to himself because god knows akaashi was nothing if not introverted. he would never have even dared to approach you and open his mouth since he knew in his gut that he would somehow fumble his words once he was in front of you. so why would he risk it? he wouldn't, he decided. he had made up his mind.

but then you're in front of him, curled up against the stone walls of his reading spot, all immersed in your book and his legs are carrying him forward before he can even process it. and then he's blurting out all these words while cursing himself internally because he can practically see the hesitation in your face as he basically forces you out of your comfort zone. why did he do it? he loved seeing you in your own little world, an easy smile on your face as you enjoyed your own company. now he's shattering your peace, dragging you out of it by the ankles and he wants to kick himself.

but you're always such a pleasant surprise, welcoming him into your space like it's nothing. and he knows it's not nothing. if there's anyone who can understand what a struggle it is to reach out a hand to someone, it's him. but he's grateful you built up the courage to continue a conversation with him. because now he finally has his foot in the door, and it's given him a confidence boost he sorely needed.

now that he meets you almost everyday in your shared little corner, talking about the most mundane and trivial things like it's always been a thing between you two, he feels better about what's to come. because he's dragged you into his space too, and you've become so integral to it that he can't imagine what it was like to be lonely in the first place.

but hopefully, you like being lonely with him too. because soon enough he's going to blurt out his true feelings in the form of a shaky jumbled confession, and all he can do is hope and pray you feel the same.

[supernovafreaks]

THE MAIN CAST!

NOVA: Our dashing protagonist! A demigoddess of the stars with a rebellious streak and an appetite for fun and adventure. Having an extremely lavish upbringing, Nova soon learns that living in the real world is no cakewalk! She’ll run into a situation where she’s way in over her head and she'll get far too cocky for her own good and wind up making things worse for herself and everybody, sometimes succeeding at a task by complete accident. Even though she was raised by royalty, Nova tends to be a pretty crass and vulgar girl whose inflated ego likes getting her into fights over something as small as the last piece of sushi. She's determined (or just stubborn and naive enough) to stop at nothing to regain queendom and show the Great Galactic Guild who's boss! Or maybe, deep down, she actually wants something more and doesn't even know it yet!

BECCA: Nova's most trusted friend (and eventual girlfriend) hailing from the slums of Neo Neopolis. Having years of experience from secretly being in a ruthless gang to get money to support her struggling family, Becca uses her street smarts and her mighty fisticuffs to get herself and Nova out of any hairy situation they may get into. Despite her rugged exterior and muscles that can pulverize your skull in one karate chop to the cranium, Becca tends to be a kind and gentle soul who wants nothing but the best for those she holds dear, occasionally to a fault. One evening, Becca decided to visit her parents to confess her secret, only to find that they were kidnapped by rival hoodlums! Becca, having lost nearly everything close to her, decides to join Nova on her quest not only to help her out but to rescue her family as well!

ISAAC: A manic young college dropout who runs an electronics repair shop in his cramped studio apartment. When he’s not guzzling energy drinks and scoring #1 victory royales, he uses whatever tech skills he has to make cool gadgets for the team, often using illegally obtained parts from shady folk. Isaac has a remarkable talent for bargaining with others to get really expensive, often untested parts for dirt cheap. Sometimes he even trades in old broken game console parts to fool the unfortunate buyer into thinking they can make plastic explosives with them. Isaac has made COUNTLESS enemies this way.  He tags along with Nova and the crew because he believes that Nova’s cosmic powers can help out the planet’s energy crisis and ward pesky otherworldly critters away. He kinda also has a big crush on Nova’s mom.

MUZZLE: A robotic dragon with a short fuse and a seemingly infinite assortment of weapons! Muzzle was destined to become a useless pile of scrap metal after running away from his abusive creator. But then Nova and Becca totalled a stolen car after making a jump into the junkyard. Instead of barbecuing them alive, the girls offer to fix him up and eventually get the parts to turn him into a cool battle mech, which is where Isaac comes in. Nothing brings this mechanical monster more joy than blowing shit up and unleashing absolute hell upon everyone. However, the squad usually has to calm him down before he goes full psychopath. He's also glad to fly Nova and the others through the cosmos with style and grace thanks to his experimental lightspeed warp drive that Isaac downloaded from the dark web.

QUASARIA: Nova's caring mother and former queen of the Star Weavers. An absolute sweetheart to everyone she encounters! However, her parenting skills could use a bit of work, as she shows a bit more favoritism towards Nova, seeing a bit more of herself in her than older sister Lyra, who feels ignored and rejected. The wrongful death of her husband also doesn’t help much, causing her to gradually let herself go and fall into a space alcohol induced depression. After Nova’s exile, she sets off on a journey of her own to see if Nova’s okay and learns to become a better parent in the process!

[ILLUSTRATION MISSING]

PULSARIS: A lost soul wandering through space who found Nova one night after she got her first celestial relic. He doesn't remember where he came from or what his purpose is, but he gains a bit of a symbiotic relationship with Nova and acts as her guide and father figure throughout her adventure. Only Nova can see him which leads to some pretty awkward moments where Nova shouts into the void. Along with the relics aiding Nova, they also help Pulsaris regain his memory and life force.

[ILLUSTRATION MISSING]

LYRA: Nova's uptight older sister who got crowned as the new queen of the Star Weavers by default due to Nova's exile. She's basically the antithesis of everything Nova is. Responsible, mature and always having good manners. Lyra takes her position seriously but has a hard time standing up to authority, often giving in to the Great Galactic Guild's ludicrous demands. Poor Lyra got the short end of the stick as Quasaria always favored Nova so Lyra relied on outside sources to train.

ACHERNAR: Our devious antagonist! She was once a low ranking Star Weaver. Tired of being seen as average and insignificant, she set out to obtain relics that would give her true power and the same amount of respect as Quasaria! But she ended up toying with stuff beyond her comprehension and got corrupted by relics made of dark matter, giving her a monstrous new appearance! Which she takes absolute pride in, of course. Having learned to control the chaotic material that could very well consume her entire being, Achernar set off on a petty revenge quest to chase Nova and the gang around to obtain the Celestial Relics before they do so she can call our heroes stinky poopoo heads and commandeer her own demented Star Weaver army that will bring chaos upon the universe!

[REDACTED]: Having been sealed away in an impenetrable barrier by the Star Weavers eons ago, this indescribable horror lures Achernar over promising to grant her any of her deepest wishes and desires as long as she promises to fetch it as many relics it needs to make her dreams a reality. Achernar, too stubborn to realize that this is obviously a trap, foolishly accepts its offer. Near the end of the story, Achernar gives it all the relics it needs and predictably backstabs her and breaks free from its prison, going on a rampage to destroy and consume every single bit of matter in the universe until absolutely nothing remains but a dark, endless void! Nova and Achy must call a truce and let bygones be bygones to put a stop to this apocalyptic, universe ending scenario!

Thanks for coming to my ted talk! More updates to come in the future!

[adamwatchesmovies]

The Boogeyman (2023)

I enjoyed 2023's The Boogeyman enough that if my memories of it fade away, I won't be upset. While it shows that the film is not the nightmare-inducing, wet-your-pants-in-terror experience the people involved might have hoped for, it also means I'm likely to accidentally watch it again in the future.

Therapist Will Harper (Chris Messina) is struggling to cope with his wife’s sudden death in a car accident. One day, a man enters his home office unexpectedly, explaining that his children were all killed by an evil force that emerged from their closets. Convinced that the entity latches onto families going through dark times and that there is no escaping “The Boogeyman”, he commits suicide. Soon after, Will’s youngest daughter, Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair) claims to see the creature. Her father thinks nothing of it but his eldest daughter, Sadie (Sophie Thatcher), thinks there's more to the dead man's story than delusions.

The obvious movie to compare The Boogeyman to is Lights Out. Both feature an unseen monster that lives in the darkness and can only be repelled by light. Between the two, Lights Out is more memorable, but I actually like this film better. The major difference is the monster, whose origin remains shrouded in mystery even at the end, making it much scarier. The Boogeyman is only shown in any sort of clarity during the last, final confrontation. The glimpses we catch reveal a relatively simple design but director Rob Savage and the creature artists do this thing with their monster’s mouth that’ll give you goosebumps. I admire this film for not being so in love with The Boogeyman that they "shine a light" on it, ruining its ability to scare in the process.

If you look at the plot, it isn’t anything revolutionary, with the creature incrementally terrorizing the family until they’re properly seasoned by fear to strike, or what have you. The investigation thing we’ve seen enough times that at this point, I find it more interesting when the characters are too busy dealing with the monster’s rules, what’s happening now, or their own drama to flip through microfiches at the library - I’m thinking of It Follows or Talk to Me as good examples. What we get in The Boogeyman isn’t badly done, but it’s what you expect. To that, I say "Surprises are nice but sometimes, having your expectations met is also nice". What's new are the bits of family drama. The Harpers make the film more engaging than if we were following random teens getting bumped off one by one (see Slender Man, for example). Take Will. He's a therapist but is clearly unwell psychologically. He won’t even attend the family therapy sessions. Everyone in the family is broken in one way or another, which makes you understand why it takes so long for everyone to realize what's happening. The performances from the cast, particularly the young actresses are quite good. You like the characters and sympathize for them even when they’re doing some of the “horror movie protagonist” stuff you hate, like going into the dark basement or wandering alone in the house with no lights on.

To survive, the Harpers will have to band together. In the meantime, you get some pretty good scares. We’ve seen that bit where a child hears a strange noise and decides to check under the bed to see what's happening before, but it remains effective. Watch this movie in the dark, by yourself, in bed and the next time you need to use the bathroom at night, I'm sure you'll jump as close as possible to get to the light switch for fear that something will grab your feet if they don’t land far enough.

It isn’t too hard to find ways you could improve The Boogeyman but what it does, it does well. It’s scary enough, with some good performances and a couple of neat tricks to spice things up. Perhaps most importantly, it doesn’t drop the ball when it comes to the important plays. I think the worst thing you could say about this film by Rob Savage is that it’s “workmanlike” rather than inspired but at worst, that just makes it a film you watch once and be happy to have seen. (November 25, 2023)

[sllvertongue]

@memoryspine.

[ . . . ] some memories stayed. changed and shifted and became her own, and some were given away to time, to making space for new ones, rewritten, replaced. some lingered even though she wished they didn't, gives them more time instead, tries to make peace. she hopes this is peace, the ring tucked away, now. some things she wished it was as easy as signing it out of sight, instead of when even if it's gone, the memory can still stay. still linger. still haunt. the glasses slide down her nose, hair in her eyes. instead, despite, she still wishes for that peace. here, and again, and again. despite. despite.

haeran's lips twitch when the appraiser slips on their glasses to look. "do those help? tell between the good and bad ones?" there's an art to these things, she knows that. it's the same with people, though she's never been as good with objects, at the observation of them --- object permanence, haeran, is something still there when it can't be seen? how long does it exist out of sight until it can finally no longer be there anymore? inference is easier. easier to spin fiction out of things she can't really see, like the appraiser's easy humming that still rings in the back of her mind, like the closeness with which they study the ring in the light.

which one is it running through their mind, haeran wonders, observation or inference? do they see the lives that diamond has seen in its reflection? do they see the dispassion of the engagement it honored? does it feel as cold through that glove as it had always felt around her finger?

haeran sees every possible version of herself spring forth from each face of the gem. standing under the light of someone's perception has always felt akin to a glass mirror splintering under a precise strike. she keeps waiting for it, for the appraiser's gaze to wander to her instead.

it doesn't. haeran feels like the cat in that batty scientist's box, waiting anxiously for them to open the flaps and peer in and resolve the reality of her. who? who am i? who can i be for you? but when still she's given no cue, she takes the tentative step to observe them instead.

they look practiced. the music she'd walked into might have led her to think of someone careless, but now, less than an arm's width away, they look nothing short of meticulous. pretty, too. haeran decides that she's in good hands, proven right when the appraiser seems to finish and note down a price without another word about the ring.

yes. this time, haeran allows herself a small smile. perhaps there was no reason to dread walking back into this shop of memories after all.

"that looks agreeable enough to me. thank you for accepting it." not all of it was for show; something in her throat dislodges once the appraiser finally shuts the box and the ring is out of her sight.

all that's left now is to forget the permanence of it.

haeran's eyes fall on the pen, the most difficult part of the encounter so far. the accident had forced her to become ambidextrous, yet it hadn't killed enough nerve endings to keep her from favoring her left hand for writing. "do people come to sell often?" she asks because she's curious, but also because she hopes to mask the irritating click of her prosthetic as she forces its synthetic tendons to bend. "it looks quiet here." she glances at the dice. "a little dull, too."

the distraction is all it takes for her control to slip. her prosthetic snaps too hard too tightly, jamming the tip of the pen down too hard and sending ink onto the paper and her hand.

"fuck." anger first---the embarrassment's there, yes, but above all, she despises that the damn thing had been so expensive but wouldn't do what it was made for. "i'm so sorry about that. here." hurriedly, she forces the rest of her signature onto the paper, gritting her teeth past the crookedness of it. then she pushes the paper back over the counter, clenching her ink-stained hand back to herself.

[olibavee]

Is Viola good a making Bloodborne pie?:3c What do you think people in Yharnam usually ate??

YOU MEAN THE PIE WITH THE BLOOD AND THE LEAD BULLETS??? SDKJFNS

Yes. 

And oh GOODNESS, idk...my first thought was “Just Pebbles And Blood” but probably lots of soups made of cheap vegetables, bread, eggs, seafood and stuff like that. I imagine the food was pretty bland though, especially towards the end of it all, and stuff like nice candy and fruit were somewhat coveted. And I’d think that the diet changed throughout the year, as they had to stick to what was in season since they lived in a city. I wish I knew more about that mysterious Yharnam Food Market™ because the ideas in my head are pretty vague and total guesses...

Although lobsters likes to say that Yharnamites just ate horses. That’s their main meat. 

Horse. You ride AND you die.

[i-cant-sing]

Yandere RE8: TRP Part 4

Part 1 is here.

Part 2 is here.

Part 3 is here.

Part 5 is here.

Check out my MASTERLIST for more!

"Uhh... hello?"

You looked at the woman standing in the stairs. She was wearing a dark veil that matched the rest of her outfit- oh shit, that's a funeral outfit.

I really did pick a bad time to come here, didn't I? She's in mourning, she sees an intruder, and her day went from bad to worst. Yep, she's gonna kill me.

You took one look at the woman and then at all the possible exits: the doors- no, they'd be too heavy to move and what if they're locked? The window- but I'd have to jump out and just because it looks cool in movies to jump through glass, doesn't mean it'll work, Y/n.

So, the only option was to eliminate the threat. Or maybe... defuse it.

"This is your doll, right?" You asked, pointing at the doll, judging by the lace designs on both of their dresses. The woman didn't reply. "It looks like its been... used a lot. To be honest, she's very different than most dolls I've seen, definitely a lot more spookier." You nervously giggled, hoping she didn't mind. "But... she looks like she's been loved. A lot. Despite being broken from a lot of places, someone still took their time to fix her." You smiled sadly, remembering your own doll that Mia had ripped. "Wish I had someone like that. To sew up the wounds and fix them."You mumbled, not really sure if you were talking about your doll or yourself.

"Your doll, she's- she's very pretty. My sister would've liked her." You began. "Which is why I'm here. My family, we were in an accident- I know it was wrong of me to come here without permission, but I need to find my sister, Rose and my father, Ethan." You took a step closer. "They both of have blonde hair. Rose, my sister, she's just 6 months old. She was dressed in a baby pink onesie, bundled up in a blanket. My father, Ethan, he's about this tall and has big blue eyes. I think he was wearing a jacket, with blue denim jeans. H-have you seen them?" You asked, eyes full of hope and voice laced with eagerness.

Please, please let her have seen them. God, please.

Unsurprisingly, the woman didn't reply, but she did turn her head towards the left window. You didn't know whether she was telling you to get out of her house or signalling that they are out there, but you knew you had to leave.

Nodding, you slowly walked towards the window, your heart beating faster as you prayed that this wasn't some sort of trap, hoping she wouldn't attack you from behind because that would be like... really shitty.

But you left the house unharmed, and without looking back at the window because you didn't want to jinx it, you walked towards the forrest once again, thankful that the sun had finally came out.

Where are you guys?

You had been walking for a couple of hours now, the sun had been a bit warmer today, which was good since you hated the snow that surrounded you now. You looked at the map, tracing the path to your new destination. The Salvatore reservoir. It seemed like it would take you a day's journey to get there, and you sure as hell weren't seeing any lake in sight.

God, when will this nightmare end?

You decided to sit on a stone and take some much needed rest. Your feet ached from all the walking, and your calves were cramping. You rolled your head, popping it from the side, before taking off the rifle that had been weighing down, stretching out your arms. Digging through the little back pack you bought from Duke, you pulled out a thermos of coffee and twinkie. You don't know how or where he got it, but Duke had filled your bag with a couple of snacks; saying its for his loyal customer.

So, here you sat, in the middle of the snowy woods, eating a twinkie and drinking a lukewarm coffee. Both didn't taste good, but they're gonna keep you alive so, no complaining.

After drinking the coffee, you rested your head against a tree, recalling last nights events as you waited for the caffeine to kick in.

You tried to make sense of what happened when you got... locked in the basement. You thought you had forgotten about her, Angel. Guess not.

Wait- didn't that lady lock me in the basement? Maybe, she didn't look very hostile, her creepy doll looked scarier than she did.

You laughed at the irony. You always made fun of the horror movies where the family would become so attached to the most horrifying doll, and you'd scream at their stupidity, And yet here you were, falling for the cliche as you found comfort in that creepy doll.

Man, I'm really losing it here.

You sighed, closing your eyes as you tried to come up with the next plan. But the warm coffee had lulled you right to sleep, which was dangerous but you were too tired to care.

Just for a couple of minutes...

You woke up to the sound of growling and heavy steps. And as soon as you opened your eyes, you knew you had definitely slept for far longer than a few minutes. But that was not of concern at the moment. No, it was the source of the growling that had woken you up.

Just about 40 feet away from you were lycans. Plural. Not one, not two, but 5 lycans, and one of them was a really big one.

You held your breath as you watched them wander around; they hadn't spotted you yet, and if you stayed quiet, you hoped they would just go away.

Stilling yourself as much as you could, you watched them with wide eyes. One of them started to walk in your direction, it wasn't looking at you, which meant that it hadn't seen you, but he would if he kept on walking this way.

God, I know we haven't been on good terms, but like c'mon, you gotta give me a break. Please, I love you? Come on, you know this is not how I want to go.

You sent a silent prayer, and perhaps it worked, since the lycan suddenly turned the other way, joining its pack as they started walking deeper into the woods.

Slowly, you began to gather up your things, silently shoving them in your bag, one eye on the lycans and the other one making sure that you don't accidentally drop something that'd cause noise.

Fortunately, you didn't. You swung the bag over your shoulder, and took a step forward, careful not to step on any twigs.

Maybe God did love me. All that time in church-

THWACK!

You jumped back as a huge sheet of snow fell from the trees in front of you. You whipped your head towards the monsters and they all had stopped dead in their tracks. Slowly, one of them turned and if they hadn't heard the snow fall, they'd definitely heard the way your heart was about to burst out of your chest. Then, it growled.

Motherfucker.

You pulled out your gun just as the two of them began running your way. With a quick jump to the side, you dodged them and shot them two times each. Hearing your gun fire, the other two began running your way too, while the larger one stayed behind as it watched. This time, as you shot one of them, the other managed to kick you in the chest hard, throwing you against the rock. Luckily, you didn't hit your head, as you rolled and shot it dead.

Spitting out the blood, you looked back at the last lycan who had already started running your way. You began loading up your gun with trembling hands, but just as you aimed, the lycan took a giant leap and knocked the gun out of your hand.

Fuck.

The giant grabbed you by your neck, lifting you up high before throwing you across the ground. You wheezed, scrambling up to your feet as you began running away from it, its heavy steps following you. It roared angrily behind you, and that only made you ignore the burning pain in your chest as you ran faster.

But of course, God had decided to make you live a cliche horror movie, because you tripped over a fucking branch, making you fall on your stomach. You flipped over instantly, and saw your nightmare come true as the lycan jumped on you.

On pure reflex, you punched it square in the face, which you doubted hurt it more than it hurt you, if anything, the monster was momentarily perplexed, but that was enough for you to slip from under it.

But you were only able to take a few steps away when it suddenly grabbed you by your neck and lifted you up again, snarling as it began opening its mouth, revealing its razor-sharp teeth at you.

God, if you're hearing this, I'm converting to atheism because I did not need this today.

Looking at the horrifying lycan, you prayed one last time before you were eaten by it. Surprisingly, your life did not flash before your eyes, which you were kinda grateful for because you did not need to relive that before your death.

But that moment didn't came. No, what came were familiar moans of pain, and then the sound of a drill, followed by blood splattering on your face as the lycan was sliced vertically from the head to the toe by the aforementioned drill.

The lycan fell to the ground, revealing the pair of soldats that killed them and behind them a smirking Heisenberg, who rested against a tree, tipping his hat at you.

You were far too shocked to say anything, and after a few seconds, the man walked over to you, blocking the view of his monstrous creations just mutilating the lycans.

"So... that was a bit traumatising." He started, chuckling at your stunned face. "You okay, kid?"

What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck-

"Yeah." You took his hand, and he helped you up. You groaned at the pain, touching the tender side around the chest where the lycan had hit you. Yeah, you probably broke a rib.

Heisenberg helped you sit down on a tree stump. "Hmm, that bastard kicked you hard didn't it." Wait- "But that was a phenomenal punch you threw at it. Nearly made me burst out laughing."

"You were watching? Why the fuck didn't you come in before!"

He shrugged. "I just wanted to see if you could really handle yourself- which you were pretty good at, but then you lost your gun and it was kinda an unfair match from there on." He pulled out some pills from his coat. "i was just passing by when I saw those lycans moving away. Thats when I pushed the tree which made snow sheet fall and you know the rest from there on."

Your eyes went wide. "You did that on purpose? What the shit, Heisenberg-?! Fuck." You doubled over in pain, clutching your ribs, heaving.

"Shh, stay still, kid. Here, take these. They'll help with the pain." You eyed the bottle before popping two in your mouth. Hey, if he wanted me dead, he wouldn't have saved me from the lycan. "I just wanted to see if you were worth the trouble, and as it turns out, you are."

"You didn't have to almost kill me to see that. And now I've lost my gun. And I don't have any money to buy a new one. I doubt Duke gives freebies." You huffed out.

Heisenberg rolled his eyes. "God, you sure do whine a lot. Here-" He dropped a tiny pouch in your lap. "There's some coins in there. That should be enough to buy you a new gun. And for fucks sake, get a gun with more rounds! You don't have time to be loading a gun mid battle." He huffed. "So, where are you going now?"

You rolled your head from side to side. "Well, I went to the Beneviento house. Didn't find Ethan or Rose there. Now, I'm going to the lake."

"The lake? Huh, well if you survived Donna, then Moreau should be a piece of cake. You got the map? Let me show you the short cut, it's not far from here." You gave him the map and he showed you the directions.

"Where are you going then?"

"Mother Miranda called. Don't worry, I'll keep our meeting a secret." He then nodded at you. "Alright, I'm off now."

"Wait!" Your voice stopped him. "I don't know when I'll see Duke again. And I don't have gun, so what if another pack of lycans come?"

Heisenberg slumped his shoulders as he let out an annoyed sigh. "Fine. I gotta do everything by myself." He dog whistled and one of the soldats stopped maiming the lycan and ran to Heisenberg. "From now on, you're gonna listen to her."The soldat looked at you and nodded. "If she tells you to kill, you kill. If she tells you to die, you die. Follow her around and keep her safe." The soldat nodded. Then Heisenberg turned to you. "He's already dead, so don't worry about throwing him in danger. Oh and also, just take him into the sun every once in a while so that his engine can recharge. You'll know when he needs the sun."

You were baffled. "Wait, Heisenberg- how the- what the hell am I supposed to do with him?"

"Figure it out, kid. Think of him as a guard dog."

You looked at the soldat then at Heisenberg's retreating form, then back at the soldat.

"So..." The soldat stared at you. "You got a name?"

"Handsome." You nodded to yourself as you trudged, using the soldat's arm to support yourself. "That's what I'm gonna call you. Handsome. What do you think?"

The soldat was wearing a metal contraption over its eyes, so you couldn't really tell what it was feeling.

"Well, you don't seem to have any complaints, so from now on, you'll respond to the name "Handsome". Do you understand?"

The soldat nodded.

You laughed. God, the pain meds were either making me stupid or everything else funnier.

You looked at the map again. Just a couple of more minutes and then a right turn. And then you should see the lake- god, this map was confusing as hell.

"So..." you wondered what you should ask the cyborg. Oh right. "You seen Ethan? Blonde man, crazy big eyes. Or a baby, Rose?" The man shook his head no.

Sigh. What else could I ask him? What about how did he die? No, what if that's triggering? I can't handle a Terminator right now. And I don't think I should ask him about his past or anything that'll cause him to have a existential crisis. Ah! I've got it!

"Hey, how do you see?"

The soldat looks down at you for a few seconds then points at his metal contraption.

Wait- is that sarcasm?

You scoff. "Of course, you see with your eyes! I meant, with the whole metal thingy covering them, how do you- oh, there's this vision specs in them."

You smiled. "Hey, you're kinda like Cyclops, yknow-" you were cut off as Handsome suddenly pushed you to the ground, turning on his drill.

"Wait, shit- you don't have to be Cyclops! We can talk this out-" but Handsome was focusing on something else, and that's when you saw it. Two lycans.

Handsome ran and easily maimed them to pieces, I mean, you had to look away from the horrific scene midway.

The soldat returned five minutes later, covered in blood. He extended his hand and you reluctantly took it, letting him support you as you began walking again, your heart still beating like crazy.

But you calmed down when you finally reached the lake, the setting sun gave serene feel to the entire reservoir. You inhaled deeply before looking at Handsome. "Lets go down there." You pointed at the lake.

You were both sitting at the wooden broadwalk, your legs hanging off the ledge. You looked at the water, it wasn't crystal clear, but you could see some fishes swimming around, so at least it wasn't dangerous to life. You looked at Handsome, then at his drill and you realised he was still covered in blood. "Lets get you cleaned up, hm?" You said, pulling out a rag from your bag and dipping it in the cold water below. You began with cleaning up his drill, then dipping the rag back in cold water and cleaning his chest and his other arm.

"Good job back there, Handsome."You smiled as Handsome nodded. "Heisenberg was right, you are kinda like a dog. Hmm, I wonder if..." You tested your theory as you petted him on the head. "Good job, Handsome!" But the soldat only tilted its head in confusion.

"Hmm, perhaps not." You cupped the cold water in your hands and washed your own face, You looked at your reflection in the water. "You wanna go for a swim? I don't mind." Handsome shook his head. "Yeah, I'm not a fan of swimming either."

Handsome stared at you. You scoffed. "Oh so you pretend you don't understand what I say, but you want to hear the story? Fine, but I'm only telling you because it might be important later."

You both stared at the water as you began your story. "Well, when I was 15, I had snuck out of the house to go to a party. It was at this rich girl's house and I knew she didn't like me, but I was surprised when she had invited me to her place. Yes, a red flag I should've seen from miles ago, but I was young and dumb and desperate to climb the highschool social hierarchy." You chuckled. "Anyways, long story short, one of the guys there pushed me into the pool because I don't know if they thought it was funny to see me drown? By some luck, I managed to grab onto the pool ledge and pull myself up. I immediately left the party, embarrassed and cold and on the verge of breaking down. Then on the way back home, there was this car following me and then some weirdo catcalled me and tried to get me in his car. Now, scared for my life because I watched a lot of Criminal Minds, I ran all the way home, praying that he leaves me alone. I think he stopped when he saw a Range Rover following him, but I don't know. I just rushed back home." You sighed. "You know what happened next? I bursted through the front door, slamming it shut and I turn around to see my dad in the living room, looking surprised to see me. He stood up and looked me up and down and then said, "Y/n? You're drenched completely. And you're messing up the floor. You know what? Mia's in the bathroom right now, why don't you go upstairs and I'll clean up here. You know how she gets when there's water on the wood." And I was just so shocked, that I didn't say anything and went back upstairs. Once I was in the shower, that's when I broke down crying. I almost drowned, almost got kidnapped and my father was worried about me messing up the wooden floor? Hell, he didn't even ask me why I was coming home at midnight." Your tears fell into the lake, making small ripples. You chuckled, "God, I always wondered how tired he must've been from work that day to ignore all these visible signs of distress. I always hated his job, you know? They made him work way too much." You looked at Handsome who was looking at the lake. "Anywho, now you know I can't swim so, save me if I fall into this lake, okay?" He nodded.

You guys sat in comfortable silence for a few more minutes before a question popped up in your mind. "Handsome?" He turned his head towards you, only to see a mischievous smile on your face. "Are you seeing someone?" The man turned his back to the lake, making you laugh. "Ahh, so you like someone. Tell me, is it someone from the village?" The man further turned his head away from you in embarrassment. "Oh come on, tell me! Is it a girl?" He nodded reluctantly, making you punch his arm. "You dog! Does she know?" Handsome shook his head, making you smile. "Tell you what? As a payback for saving me back there, I'll help you get her. I'll be your wingman, Handsome, hm?" He nodded a bit enthusiastically.

"We all deserve good things, Handsome. No matter how we look, or what we are, these things don't really define one's self worth. Its our intentions, you know?" Handsome didn't know, but he nodded anyways.

"Good. Now, lets go check out this place. Keep an eye out for Ethan and Rose, okay?" You told him, not knowing someone was already watching the two of you.

So... thought?

What did you guys think about Handsome? I'm gonna post a pic of him soon if you guys want.

Part 5 is here.

[therealvalkyrie]

exactly the spring

Pairing/setting: Ushijima Wakatoshi x Fem!Reader, college!AU

Summary: Reserved biology student Ushijima finds himself falling in love when you, an adorably disorganized art student, wander into the greenhouse.

Word Count: 3.4k

Warnings: fluff, kissing

AN: Hi!! So, the inspiration for this one sprang from the beautiful, sexi brain of Emme ( @doinmybesthere ) way back in MARCH ahem anyway, it's done! I hope it's just as soft and intimate as you envisioned<33 Also, big shoutout to my beautiful friends Arobi ( @daqueenobooty ) and Cee ( @spacelabrathor ) for being wonderful betas and giving me such kind comments:) I hope you enjoy, and as always don't be shy about leaving comments or coming to chat! Be kind to yourselves and others.  ~valkyrie

p.s. check out this amazing art that @/54prowl made of plant boy ushi!! :D

Plants don’t talk back, Ushijima learned as a toddler. He’d babble to them in nonsensical phrases as his mother worked in the garden, and they’d only sway in the wind and listen, waxy under his chubby fingers.

A volleyball doesn’t talk back, either, not even through its bounces and echoes on hands and hard surfaces. It doesn’t listen as easily as plants, but can be herded and shaped like putty into a winning thing if you touch it right. This, Ushijima learned at his father’s hand and carried with him through childhood and adolescence.

The joy and puzzlement of you is that you do both. You listen so intently and openly with your steady eyes and soft body as the words pour out of him. And then, you reply. With your clear voice and new perspective, you offer something new. You offer companionship.

It was the second week of spring semester that you wandered into the greenhouse, eyes lit by the sun and sketchbook under one arm. Ushijima was repotting a large fern, dirt up to his elbows as he kneeled on the floor. He barely gave you a second glance, preoccupied with nestling the plant’s root system comfortably.

You settled a short distance away, crossing your legs to sit on the tile floor in front of an orange tree to sketch its still-closed flower buds with charcoal pencils. He kept working as you did, the sun sliding across glass, shadows shifting into the early evening of winter. When the sun was threatening to set over the city skyline — even with the greenhouse where it sits on the roof of the biology building — he turned to tell you he was closing up, only to find you gone. In your place, sitting on the wooden table that held newly planted basil and sage, was a drawing.

It was a single branch, detailed in shades of charcoal down to the last dewdrop. At the bottom, looping handwriting scrawled, “thank you for the peace.”

That night, he tacked it up above his desk in his dorm next to the postcard from Tendō and hoped you’d come back.

And you do, a couple of days later, on a Saturday. He looks up from where he’s filling in the logbook, this time, catching your gaze and holding it for a moment before you break away to survey the room. Today, he thinks you looked breathtaking. You’re wearing a long, flowing skirt and a sweater that makes him want to feel how soft it is, and how soft you are in it, and by the time his brain catches up with his thoughts, he’s been staring too long and your eyes have wandered back to him. It’s raining, today — it never really snows in this city, he’s learned — and shadowy droplets play across your face as they drip down the greenhouse’s arched glass ceiling, highlighting the curve of your cheekbone and making your eyes glow softly.

He clears his throat and looks back to the thick spiral-bound book on the table before him. Sometimes, when he meets people for the first time, he knows he can come across as intimidating. That worked out for him in high school and on the volleyball court, but in his adulthood, it’s been more of a hindrance than a help. It makes it… difficult to make friends here, where he doesn’t already know anyone.

And the last thing he wants is to scare you away. The last thing he wants is to break the peace you’ve apparently found here.

Which is why he barely dares to breathe when he looks up to find you approaching him where he’s perched on a sturdy wooden stool.

“Hi,” you smile and lilt, and god if it isn’t the most beautiful word Ushijima’s ever heard, if it isn’t the prettiest smile he’s seen.

He doesn’t respond, doesn’t want to scare you away.

“Uhm,” you start again, when the silence makes it clear he’s waiting for you to speak, “I have an art assignment,” you start digging around in your shoulder bag as you speak, “to draw a, um, what’s it called?”

“I don’t know.”

You pause in your rifling and pin him with such a sunny smile it makes his knee start bouncing. And you laugh, too, which officially replaces your “hi” as the most beautiful sound in the world.

“Ha, you’re funny,” you resume digging, “it was um, pretty leafy and... tropical, I think? Oh! Here.” Triumphantly, you produce a wrinkled paper from your bag. It’s the first imperfect thing Ushijima’s found out about you, that you’re shit at keeping your belongings organized, and he files it away for later reference. You hold the paper in front of your face and squint slightly to read in the shifting light. “Canna indica.”

Canna indica, native to tropical climates, notable as a minor food crop for South American Native populations for thousands of years.

“And I was told that you have it, here, in the greenhouse.”

Ushijima nods and finds himself relieved that this is what you’re asking him. Plants, he can do.

“We do. Would you like me to show you?”

“Yes, please,” you also sound relieved, like he’s provided the solution to every problem you’ve ever had.

He unfolds himself from the stool, setting down his pen as he goes. You take a step back and look up at him mildly, as though you hadn’t realized quite how huge he is.

“This way,” he indicates, leading you deeper into the maze that is the biology department’s greenhouse. The winding path back to the tropical room gives him a moment to sink back into the earthy peace of being here, even if now there’s someone sharing that peace.

The temperature change from the warm main greenhouse to the balmy tropical room prompts Ushijima to shed his flannel outer layer, hanging it on the nail hammered by the door while you step in behind him.

“Whew,” you exhale, shrugging off your soft cardigan as well, “it’s hot in here.”

Ushijima hums in agreement and tries not to look too hard at the patch of skin revealed by your cropped tank top. Canna indica isn’t too far into the room, so he just gently moves past draping leaves and ceramic pots.

“Here,” he stops, holding back leaves for you. He stops breathing again when you duck under his arm and end up so close in the narrow aisle that he can smell your shampoo. The moment passes, and he can breathe again when you breeze past him and squat down to peer at the bright, waxy red leaves of your subject.

“Beautiful,” you murmur, and he silently agrees.

You’re leaning so close to the plant he’s afraid you might topple over when you make a noise of realization and sit back on your butt to rifle through your bag once again. Ushijima knows he should probably leave you to it, but he’s glad he waited just an extra minute when you pull out a pair of glasses and pop them on your face. Adorably.

“That’s better.” You’re looking back at canna indica, now, at a normal distance.

He’s figured you’ve forgotten he’s there when you start to pull out pastels from your seemingly bottomless bag, so he turns to leave you.

A soft, “hey,” calls him back to you, however, and he’s met by your face glowing eerily in the shifting rain-light. “Thank you for your help.”

“You’re welcome.”

When he locks up that afternoon, he finds another charcoal drawing waiting for him on the table near the door, this time of his favorite agapanthus africanus. No note, this time, but he attaches all the sounds he heard from you today in its place. He also finds your cardigan forgotten next to where you were sitting and carefully folds it for when you come back.

The drawing joins the orange branch on his wall-- an odd starter garden, he thinks, but all the more precious because it came from you.

The next time he sees you isn’t in the greenhouse, but instead at a cafe a couple of blocks away, two weeks later. He’s walking past, gym bag slung over his shoulder, when he hears your laugh ring out across the outdoor seating area. His eyes find you, head tipped back in sending peals of mirth into the lively spring air. It’s the first truly warm day of the season, though you and your companion are the only patrons sitting outside, and the sun catches on your glasses sat atop your head.

Your friend says something apparently hilarious, because your giggles redouble, and an honest-to-god snort pushes out of your nose. Ushijima catalogues it in his ever-growing list of sounds you make, and pauses at the crosswalk, halfway turned back to keep one eye on you and one on the light. If you were alone, he might’ve approached you and told you that he still has your sweater in the greenhouse, waiting on a shelf between succulents, but he doesn’t want to interrupt your— date?

He isn’t sure, but the person sat there with you seems like someone you might date. Clearly also an art student, judging by the carefully disheveled blue hair and combat boots. Are you the type to date someone with blue hair? Unlikely, he decides. You seem too… bright. Too floaty to be so concerned with looking like you don’t care how you look.

Ushijima’s still debating whether you find blue hair attractive when the crosswalk light begins its countdown and he starts across the street. And he almost makes it all the way across, too, when a voice calls—

“Wait! Hey!”

He turns partially because it sounds urgent enough that it might be an emergency, and his grandmother would roll in her grave if he remained a bystander to some horrific accident. But it’s you, standing up from your seat and waving him back over. He glances at the crosswalk countdown, which lights up red as it ticks from four to three, then turns and jogs back towards you, waving a hand apologetically to the cars waiting at the light. You meet him at the metal fence around the cafe seating area, and now that you’re standing, he can see you’re wearing a yellow sundress that cuts off at your calves and drapes over your hips like the fabric was spun from pure light.

“Hello.” Ushijima talks first this time because if he doesn’t refocus his brain on something else he knows he won’t be able to stop staring.

“Hi! Sorry about that, uh, and I’m sure you have places to be, but, um, did I leave my cardigan at the greenhouse? I can’t find it, and I know I have a tendency to forget things, so,” you finish with a laugh, one hand fiddling with the rings on the other.

“Yes, you did. I put it on a shelf in case you came back.”

“Oh! That’s great!” You sound relieved, and Ushijima’s suddenly very grateful he didn’t take it down to the bio department’s lost and found like they’re technically supposed to. “Is there maybe a time I can come pick it up? When you’ll be there?”

“I’ll be there all day tomorrow, opening at nine.” 

He can’t tell if he sounds a little too eager, and he’s about to soften his meaning by telling you that they’re open today, too, and anyone can hand you a sweater, but you’re already smiling big and sunny and telling him,

“I’ll see you at nine, then. Do you drink coffee?”

He doesn’t; his coaches have always told him that caffeine can only harm his athletic performance.

“Yes, I do.”

“Then I’ll see you at nine, with coffee.”

Ushijima says goodbye and turns to wait at the crosswalk again while you swirl your way back to your seat and pick up your conversation with your friend. He can feel two pairs of eyes on him as he crosses the street, red numbers blinking down from ten, and can’t help but turn to look back as he steps onto the opposite sidewalk. Where your friend tactfully looks down into their cup of tea, you catch his eye with yours and wave. He lifts his hand halfway in a goodbye before an eighteen-wheeler stops at the intersection and blocks you from him.

Ushijima’s normal work attire is typical of an average agricultural biology student accustomed to being up to their elbows in dirt every day: practical cargo shorts, dirt-stained but sturdy sneakers, a “plant dad” t-shirt (a gift from Tendō when they’d said their goodbyes and gone away to college), and a soft cotton flannel. He’s usually satisfied with this for his shift at the greenhouse, expecting to be mud-covered at least up to his wrists by the end of the day.

But today… Today, he pauses in the dorm bathroom to scrub his face raw, and he clips and shapes his nails like his mother used to do for him every Saturday. He normally only does it before tournaments, now, and it calms his nerves to feel prepared for a Big Event, even if that event is only handing you your gently pilled cashmere cardigan and receiving a coffee he won’t drink in return.

The air that morning is heady with spring, earthy and alive, reminding Ushijima of lying beneath the hedge along his mother’s garden to pass notes to the girl next door. He was seven and she was nine, so naturally she knew everything he didn’t. She knew about the planets and why worms live in dirt and how to spell the word “catastrophe,” and Ushijima would’ve bet his whole weekly allowance that she was the coolest person in the world, if he knew what betting was. (She did, and once bet him half an ice cream sandwich that he couldn’t climb the oak tree in his backyard all the way to the top. He did, and then twisted his ankle on the way down, and she brought him an ice cream sandwich every day for a week as an apology.) She was all shiny, long black hair and dark eyes and fast words, nothing like the spring blooming around him.

You, on the other hand, are exactly the spring.

He stops at his favorite pastry place on the way to work to pick up two fresh cream donuts. The line is just dwindling from the height of the morning rush, so he manages to make it to the biology building just five minutes before he normally does.

Morning sun sends rainbows through the automatic misting spray as Ushijima unlocks the greenhouse door, letting a burst of humidity out into the rest of the building. The spiral-bound log book is there on the desk, a thick parchment bookmark sticking out from where whoever closed last night marked the page. 

Ushijima places his backpack and pastry bag on the desk and reaches to hang his key on its hook just when there’s a knock on the door.

“I know I’m early,” you start, edging your way into the room with a paper coffee cup in each hand. “But I saw it was already open, so...”

Ushijima smiles despite himself. In their second year Oikawa Tooru had told him that his smiles can be unnerving, but he can’t help it right now. You look so lovely today, in jeans and a silky tank top, with a certain morning tenderness in the way you hold yourself.

“It’s okay, come in. I just need to check the temperature controls and I’ll be done opening.”

“Sounds good,” you reply, smiling back.

As he makes his way to the temp controls on the Southern wall, you perch on the wooden stool and set down the coffee.

With his back turned to you for a moment, you allow yourself to slouch, planting two hands on the table and stretching your shoulders with a sigh. It’s earlier than you normally get out of bed, let alone actually leave your apartment, and you can already feel a quiet exhaustion setting into your bones.

But this is worth it, you remind yourself. Worth it to talk to the beautiful boy with broad shoulders and gentle hands.

He’d been unexpected. That first day in the greenhouse, you’d sat down with the intention to calm down from a tedious school day and nothing more. Your hands had moved of their own volition on that second drawing of the orange branch, scribbling out a hasty message that made your cheeks burn. But he was so present that day, in the corner of your eye but staying respectfully out of your space. And you’re not blind -- you saw the muscles under his shirt as he lifted an entire small tree in its pot. You saw the startling shade of green his eyes took on in the sun. You saw it all, and it drew you back, and now you’re here.

When he joins you back at the table, leaning back against it to face you, you stick out your hand and offer your name.

He looks at it for a moment, then back at you.

“I just, uh, realized we never properly introduced ourselves,” you explain, with a hesitant smile.

He smiles again and your heart thuds, then his big hand engulfs yours and he shakes it firmly.

“Wakatoshi. It’s nice to meet you.”

You learn in the following weeks of coming to the greenhouse that Wakatoshi doesn’t like coffee. But he does like tea and donuts, so that’s what you bring him on the mornings you can find it in you to wake up before nine. You sit with him in the greenhouse, talking and listening as he records data and waters plants and sits next to you on the quilt you’ve fallen into the habit of bringing. The occasional professor or student comes through, and you get to watch Wakatoshi show off his brains when he leaves you to help them.

There are several things you learn about him over those weeks. Number one: he never minces words. Two: he prefers grapefruit chapstick over anything else. And three: he kisses like it’s his last day on Earth.

You discover number three late one night when you decide to drop by after class, shooting him a text to make sure he’s still there. Today he’s closing instead of opening, and you missed spending your morning with him.

The city lights cast a different kind of glow at this time of night. They add a distance to everything that’s palpable as you drop your bag by the door.

“Toshi, are you here-- oh, hi.” You turn the corner to find him closing the door to the supply closet.

His cheekbones are highlighted briefly by a billboard outside flashing red.

“You should get some sleep.”

“I’m not tired. And I wanted to see you.”

“You wanted to see me?”

He takes a step towards you and you have to tilt your head back slightly to keep your eyes on his. They’re leaf green and unreadable.

“Yeah, uh,” you wet your lips with your tongue, “is that okay?”

“Yes.” He pauses for a long time, then, watching you carefully in the neon glow of the exit sign. His hand shakes as it reaches up to push your glasses from your face onto your head.

Without them, he looks fuzzy and soft around the edges.

He says, “Can I kiss you?” and it feels like there’s a bird trapped in your ribcage.

“Yes. Kiss me.”

Wakatoshi kisses nothing like you expected, all tongues and teeth and heavy fingers in the dip of your waist. He growls when you gasp and mewl against him, sucking on your lower lip as your hands find purchase in his shirt. He kisses you so absolutely breathless that you think you might pass out. Your knees buckle and you pull away, gasping with your eyes closed for a moment until you come back to yourself.

“Are you alright, little one?”

The endearment makes your cheeks flush with heat and your eyes snap open.

“Yes, I’m alright. Please do it again.”

And so he does it again, and again, and again until you find yourself bringing him home with you on the last bus that goes towards your neighborhood. He’s standing in the aisle, one hand wrapped around a pole and the other wound around you, who’s standing in front of him. He keeps you steady as the bus rounds a corner.

That night, you bring the peace of the greenhouse into your home, and the only thing you find yourself wishing for is that it never leaves.

[jihyocentric]

from college student jihyo and her dorm mate nayeon, how did it start? Can i ask for their first time?

Have a great day lumi, take cares!

to be paired with im nayeon was... surprising for jihyo, to say the least.

when she stepped into her new dorm and found nayeon doing push-ups in their living room, she was mortified. she'd chosen the most reclusive dorm she could find, so that she could have some peace and keep her low profile, but what she thought when she saw nayeon there, sweaty in her living room, with music playing loudly on the speakers, was that she had made a bad decision.

but jihyo was very wrong. whatever she previously thought about living with one of the college's most popular girls, she threw away when she realized nayeon wasn't what she had idealized in her head. nayeon was sweet, calm, and, despite being loud when she worked out, she respected jihyo's space.

they bonded pretty quickly, and then jihyo understood why nayeon was so popular. soon enough, jihyo started feeling weird around nayeon, be it when she saw her walking around the house wearing boxers and sports bra, or when nayeon was trying to help her with her assignments - they weren't on the same graduation course, but nayeon was a senior, and she helped a lot. nayeon was pretty, kind, and she treated jihyo so well that it was hard not to fall for her.

jihyo kept it all to herself, mostly because she was shy, and the other big deal was that nayeon had a girlfriend.

nayeon had a girlfriend, but jihyo never saw her around, and nayeon never took her to their shared dorm. she was grateful that nayeon didn't, because she didn't know how she would feel if she saw them together under her and nayeon's roof. it didn't take long for nayeon to start to open up with jihyo, and soon enough she found out that nayeon had fallen out of love, and that she wasn't in the best terms with her girlfriend.

the first time they ever kissed, it was an accident. or perhaps it wasn't, but when nayeon kissed her after they'd drank a couple cans of beer, jihyo gave her consent, both of them tipsy. jihyo felt ashamed - she shouldn't be accepting nayeon's touches when the older had someone else. but jihyo liked nayeon. that feeling blinded her, making her ignore her brain telling her to stop right there, turn around and go back to her room.

jihyo stayed right where she was on the couch, kissing nayeon back and letting the older's hands wander under her shirt. it was a mistake, but if felt so good, and jihyo had never been touched like that. she trusted nayeon, knowing that maybe she shouldn't, but nayeon had this enchanting aura that made jihyo want to stay close and never say no to her.

"i want you." nayeon mumbled, still pecking jihyo's lips. her hands had gone way too far under her shirt, from the waist to jihyo's breasts, that she soon found out were bare under that shirt. "i really, really want you, hyo."

"so take me." jihyo said, her voice almost faltering. "take me, nayeon." she said it again, more convincing this time.

nayeon wanted to say she was sorry. maybe for jihyo, or her girlfriend - whom she was cheating on - or maybe herself. but the words stuck in her throat and she just couldn't say it, she couldn't say anything that wasn't a praise for jihyo. jihyo, who was putty in her hands, losing piece after piece of clothing.

"you're so beautiful." nayeon whispered, close to jihyo's ear. she made jihyo lie down on the couch, now fully bare, with evident shyness displaying on the way her cheeks warmed under the touch and she tried to cover herself. nayeon didn't let her, kissing her gently and letting herself forget everything, thinking only about jihyo.

"i've never done this." jihyo told her. nayeon looked hesitant to continue, but jihyo held her now bare shoulders. "keep going. i trust you."

"are you sure..." nayeon faltered.

"please." jihyo asked. "don't stop now."

the previous kisses made nayeon shamefully hard, and if she stopped now, she'd only have her hand to help her. besides, nayeon didn't think one orgasm would be enough to satiate the desire she had over jihyo's body, so there was nothing better than jihyo herself to solve her problem.

jihyo looked precious, and though nayeon liked her, she felt a hint of guilt once she slipped her length inside her. jihyo winced, grunting in pain, and nayeon kissed her, trying to be the most careful she could. she was big and it would be uncomfortable at first, but she was hopeful that jihyo could take her.

"how does it feel?" nayeon asked, her voice soothing jihyo. once she was fully sheathed by jihyo, she tried pulling back and then slipping all the way inside again. it made jihyo whimper, enjoying the sensation.

"feels good." jihyo replied, so wet that her slick coated nayeon's cock.

nayeon relished in the way jihyo reacted to her touches, needy, not wanting to let her go. she was stuck in between jihyo's legs and it felt better than anything else, with jihyo squeezing her arms, nails sinking in her biceps with each jolt of her hips, whining each time nayeon filled her. it felt like heaven, and nayeon knew she'd come soon.

nayeon used her thumb to rub jihyo's clit, kissing jihyo's neck, keeping her steady pace. it wasn't a surprise when jihyo came quickly, her body trembling, hands gripping nayeon's arm tighter. the way her walls tightened made nayeon jerk her hips forward and come, spurting her cum inside jihyo, with no protection to prevent jihyo from leaking and make a mess of the couch.

nayeon pulled out, breathless, her face just as flushed as jihyo's. her cock pulsed at the sight of her cum leaking from jihyo and trickling on the surface of the couch, getting hard again.

nayeon gulped. "does it hurt?"

jihyo shook her head. "unnie," jihyo seemed to back fully back to her senses. "what about your..."

"let's not talk about it right now." nayeon asked, her hand caressing jihyo's thigh. "we'll talk about it tomorrow, i promise."

jihyo nodded and nayeon leaned in again, tasting the younger's lips. she pushed her cock back inside, and it felt so good that nayeon wanted to call it home. for the time being, she decided not to worry about anything other than jihyo whining and clamping down around her cock.

[raptorghost]

An Accident?

Vandertrees Drabble (credit to roominthecastle for gifs)

Inspired by gifs shown.

Flipping through her phone, Asta felt a sudden worry wash over her, staring down at the dimly lit screen the messages sitting there.

A - Hey, is your shift nearly over? I wanted to make us something.

H - Nearly done, clocking out and be home soon, stay sweet.

Harry had started ending their conversations like that 'stay sweet'.. reading it always brought a little flutter to her heart. But that last message popped up an hour ago, she knows it takes a little time to get home, but this was far off the usual time, and Harry is pretty good about being on time, especially when it involved getting a warm meal after dealing with patients and Ellen all day.

Somethings not right, Asta managed to get the tv to function, no less than a miracle with the age. But she flipped to the news channel, it was a touch fuzzy, but she could make out the images just fine. The voices on the scene, an accident?

"As you can see behind me, there is a red truck flipped on its hood, this blizzard is one that we recommend everyone to get inside, and stay inside." The news anchor spoke. Asta was aware of the oncoming blizzard, but it hit far sooner than she wished, and now her heart sank harder. Staring at her phone again, she curled on the couch a little, trying several times to ring Harry's phone. Nothing. Voice mail answering her each time, and with each time she grew more and more worried. The hour ticked by slowly, drawing her gaze away from the tv, shutting it off and dropping the remote beside her. She couldn't stand to listen another moment to the motor accident on the road, fearing the worse about Harry.

It felt like an eternity passed by before she was slowly wiping tears away, hearing the door to the cabin open and the jingle of familiar keys.

"Harry?" She finally called, pushing to stand as she stared at him, he was nearly covered in snow just staring back at her.

"Asta?.." He realised she had been crying, and quickly dropped his keys in the dish, shrugged off his coat and wandered closer to her. It was clear once he was close enough the fear in her eyes slowly melted away to relief. Before he could speak again, she was wrapping her arms around him, she didn't pull him in like usual, but he flowed with the movement and wrapped his arms around her in turn.

"I thought I lost you.." She finally muttered against his chest, the warmth of tears slowly soaking into his flannel.

He spoke nothing, not yet, instead he softly leaned back, pressing a gentle kiss against her brow, and lifting his hands to wipe the tears from her eyes.

"I won't leave you again, Asta.." His voice was soft, lacking the usual quirk he had, he was serious.

They stood together in the middle of the cabin for a while longer, Asta holding onto Harry, Harry holding onto Asta. When she was able to find her voice again, Harry gently eased her over to the couch, they sat there before the fireplace, Asta explaining that the news had spoken of the blizzard, of the accident, and she feared he was the truck flipped over. He assured her the opposite, that he saw the accident, and chose instead to help, speaking plainly. "I am a doctor after all."

[russett-pots]

CUM ft. Minju

Innocent girl went home with you plot quickie please

Cum ft. Minju

Kim Minju

Fluff

TW: small mentions of bullying

My first request, hope you'll enjoy this. If you want a smut version just tell me.

“Minju, is this your home? It is pretty far from school.”

“Yup, thank you, Oppa, for dropping me off. I was scared when I was accidentally got locked in the janitor's closet.”

You pause there for a second. Minju's eyes start to wander downward. It wasn’t an accident that she was locked in it. Her classmates locked it as soon as she stepped in. They laugh as they hear her desperate cries for help.

“Are you okay?” you ask, seeing her minor bruises from trying to bang the door and hoping to see if anyone could hear her.

She pulls them out, shouts the red scuff marks that taint her immaculate skin. “I guess I am. Thanks to you.”

You can still see her eyes, crusted with the salt that remained from her tears. “Here, wait.” You pull out your handkerchief and wipe off the rest of her tears. Soon, more appear, slowly escaping the tear ducts that created them.

She pulls down your hand. “Oppa, I have something to tell.”

“Hmmm?”

“I don’t know if this is the best time to say this. But…” She freezes, stuttering, trying to spit out any words.

“Yes, Minju? You were saying something?”

“I…”

“I like you… You don’t have to say anything. I just..” That’s she cannot handle it anymore. She runs to the gate of her house, desperately trying to open it.

But her struggling just cannot stop you from doing anything; you go to her, tapping on her shoulder.

“Minju, I like you too.” You cup her face and gently push your lips against hers.

You always tried to take care of her. Subtly, doing nice things but without showing it off to everyone in the world. Her innocent nature just wants you to protect her in this cruel world.

Gently pulling away from you, she opens her mouth again. “Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?” Her eye closed at the most stalkerish request she even said.

Your dad is gone, still buying milk ten years ago. Mom lost her sanity when your dad left. She resorted to alcohol and drugs to cope, using you as someone to blame when she lost her husband.

“I’m sure my parents won’t mind.”

Minju's eyes, millimeter by millimeter open, relieved that she got a yes. She pulls you in with her. Her mansion of a house allows you to enter its premises. She rings the bell and opens the large wooden door carved beautifully like Minju.

“Ms. Minju, welcome back.” An elderly woman wearing a uniform greets her.

“Thank you, imo….” Minju eyes drop, heart sinks. “Oppa, this is imo, my maid.”

“Ms. Minju, your dad, is still at the office and will be departing for his working trip right after, and your mom already took her flight to Hong Kong t….”

“I know, to meet for the movie shoot...” Minju drags her feet with still her school bag on her right shoulder.

“Minju, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She stops, looks at you. “Can you come with me?”

“Ms. Minju, do you want anything to eat?”

“No, it is okay, imo.”

Her maid leaves her, still concerned about her but knows when to leave Minju alone.

Minju leads you up the grand staircase, with a sophisticated chandelier in the middle hanging from the ceiling. Banisters lined with engravings that can only be described as alluring. Now two doors down, she stops, puts her hand on the knob, and turns it.

Her bedroom is gigantic. This, plus her on-suite bathroom, is already bigger than your own house. Her king-size bed is full of stuffed animals in the middle of the room, with four tall wooden vertical posters in each corner. The mattress lined up white lined sheets enough for a princess like her.

Her wardrobe is big enough to fit clothes for all seasons plus more. Next to it is a make-up table with a lightbulb surrounding the vanity. Brands like MAC, L’Oreal, and Chanel are neatly set on the side.

As she walks inside and tosses her bag on her chair, she turns at you. “Oppa, are you happy?”

However, flabbergasted by her question, you respond composed “Only with you.”

Her eyes water, tears slowing again. A sight you do not want to see. She runs to you, hugging you, her head buried in your chest. At this point, crying turns sobbing.

You stroke her silky smooth hair, rub her back and embrace this tiny treasure that needs you.

She looks upon you. Her face shines despite the harsh reality that she lives in. “I don’t want to do this to anyone else but with you. Can you turn me a woman?”

[subpar-ghoulfriend]

Home

yandere!EraserMic x Reader

Mic skips a couple of steps and brings their darling home earlier than planned.

18+ only

tw: mention of blood, kidnapping, restraints

Hizashi felt panic bubble up his throat as he aggressively ran his fingers through his hair. This wasn't good, he wasn't good. He fumbled around trying to pull out his phone so he could message Shota.

-Sho, when are you getting home???

Probably in a few hours...-

why-

Shaking, the blonde continued:

-I brought her home

Hizashi was convinced he'd burn a whole in the rug with his pacing. Staring at his phone screen it looked like Shota was responding, then it stopped, started, stopped, and started. Finally after what felt like forever he got a simple reply:

I'll be home in 15 -

---

"Mic, what did you do?" Aizawa sighed. The grumpy man intended to scold his partner but he couldn't bring himself to do so when Mic was so close to a full on panic attack.

"She agreed to meet up with her ex, he was talking about getting back together and I panicked."

Aizawa sighed; he understood where his partner was coming from. Even though Hazashi had abandoned their plan to wait, he was no longer surprised by Mic's actions. There was an understanding between the pair as the atmosphere softened.

Mic lead him down the basement stairs, instead of using the overhead light there was already a dull glow from nightlight that allowed the Pro Heroes to see well enough. On the bed in front of them the comforter rose and fell along with the breath of their darling.

"She should be asleep for another hour or two," Mic whispered. "I only cuffed one wrist to the bed, I figured without her quirk she won't be too troublesome."

Aizawa lovingly rolled his eyes. His partner was such a softy. Nodding in agreement he moved the blanket aside to see the clunky metal quirk-cancelling cuff encircling her ankle. The two had plenty of equipment from their jobs that allowed them to make a "safe" space for their girl.

The couple had stumbled across you on accident; you worked at the new cat cafe that opened near their home. The two quickly became regulars and you snagged their hearts when you recognized them as cafe regulars. They went every Sunday, you had their orders memorized and even told them which cats seemed to miss them the most. Hizashi fell hard and fast. It wasn't until Aizawa found you crying in the ally after one of your shifts that your fate was sealed. You told him that one of the cats ran out of the cafe earlier that day got hit by a car. Learning about the death of a cat wasn't the only thing breaking his heart.

When he got home that evening he told Hizashi. They both agreed that you needed to be protected, shielded from the pain of reality, and never subjected to cat-death-by-car ever again. Essentially they baby proofed their home for you. Anything dangerous (from silverware to chemicals) was locked away. Eraserhead installed cameras throughout the house that streamed to both of their phones. The windows were locked and shatter resistant and they even installed a top of the line security system.

Then came the stalking, both kept tabs on you - in their minds they both casual about it. Aizawa even visited you (broke in) one night to bug your phone. This was how the learned about your ex. The breakup was amicable enough that you two occasionally checked in on each other. After all, you had been together from middle school all the way through your teens. The two of you just wanted and were ready for different things.

---

Sure enough, two hours later they could hear your faint scream travel up from the basement. Mic had taken care of the acoustics, of course. He made sure that not a peep could be heard from outside of the house; even before you were in the picture this was in place for his quirk. Between each floor of their house he also added sound minimizing flooring and installation. They needed to be able to hear you but also maintain their sanity.

"M-mr. Yamada? Mr Aizawa?"

Your wide eyes were filled to the brim with tears. As Mic sat on the edge of the bed you withdrew as far as you could from him.

Aizawa seemed more conscientious of your space; instead he knelt in front of the bed so he was at least on your level.

He was the first to speak, "There's no need to scream, y/n, you're safe here. It's just Zashi and I."

The tears finally spilled over. You tried asking them to let you go, that you wouldn't say anything. You told them you had work this evening (even if you didn't) and that they'd know something was wrong if you didn't show up. What made it worse was that the men just kept nodding, taking in every plea you made.

Finally Mic cut you off, "You don't have to worry about work anymore, me and Sho are gonna take care of you, it'll be great. We won't have to wait a whole week to spend time together."

"You can't," You hiccupped, "this is illegal. Once they find out you'll be in trouble."

It was as if they didn't hear you. Mic just kept rambling about what you three could do together and how perfect everything was and how you'd love living with them.

Aizawa on the other hand sighed and indicated to Mic that he should get off the bed. "It's a lot to take in right now, new environments can be scary. You should get some more rest, Zashi gave you a pretty strong sedative."

That explained the pounding in your head. You didn't bother to keep yelling as the ascended the stairs. Instead you focused on not crying. You kept telling yourself that now wasn't the time for tears. You needed to get away from your abductors. You had never been in handcuffs before, you tried pulling against the bed frame in hopes that something would give way. As you expected, nothing really happened. The cuff was secured tightly around your wrist and with every pull came a dull pain in your hand. There wasn't anything useful within your reach.

After crying on the bed for what felt like an eternity you were all out of tears. You thought back to a movie you saw last summer, this detective was cuffed to a furnace and he pulled his hand free. However, that guy definitely lost the flesh on his hand and probably broke something. Your stomach churned at the thought. Then your mind wandered to terrible things the men could do to you. What if they were cannibals? Or wanted to sell your organs on the black market? Weighing the pros and cons you began to pull violently away from the bedpost. The metal dug into your skin and you couldn't help but scream. Hopefully your captors wouldn't come until you were free. There was a small window at the very top of the adjacent wall maybe you could squeeze through.

The searing pain became too much and you stopped to collect yourself. There were already gashes along the base of your wrist and blood coated the handcuffs. You stifled a cry as you resumed your work. You let out a blood-curdling scream when you felt a pop. Instead of freedom, you felt even more trapped. Your thumb looks wrong and looked like it was caught half way in the handcuff and halfway out. Movies make everything seem so much easier.

Light poured in as the door to the basement opened. Panicking you concealed the evidence under the blanket. Both of your hands and parts of your clothes were painted with blood.

"Hey kitten," Aizawa cooed. "We brought you some water. Are you feeling any better."

It was Mic who noticed first. You flinched as his hands cupped your face, his thumb ran along your cheek and you felt something slick.

His voice was rushed and panicked, "Sweet girl, this is blood. Shota come here, y/n is bleeding."

The blonde man handles your face and neck trying to find the source of the bleeding.

You pulled the blanket tighter, "I'm okay, please let me go."

Then Aizawa noticed the specks of blood on the sheets. He tugged at the blankets until you couldn't hold on any more. You were really only holding on with one good hand. You couldn't recall seeing that much emotion on his face in the past.

"Mic go get the first aid kit, now," Eraser's voice was strained and quiet but it sent the other man scattering up the stairs. He pulled a key out of his pocket and unlocked the cuff. Instinctively your cradled the hand to your chest, crying for the umph-teenth time that day. The scruffy man pulled you on to his lap, cradling your head to his chest like you would a child.

"You're okay, Mic's gonna get the first aid kit and we're gonna get you all taken care of."

When it came to flight or fight involving direct confrontation, you chose the third option: freeze. You focus on your breathing as the man continued to soothe you. You could hear Mic nearly throw himself down the stairs as he made his was back to your side.

Mic was gentle with your wound, after cleaning the blood off the cuts were visibly deep but not as bad as it seemed. Aizawa told him that it looked like your thumb was dislocated and that he would fix it once the bleeding stopped.

As Hizashi continued to apply pressure you were able to hear him sniffling as he held back tears of his own. Aizawa reached over to comfort Mic as he continued his fawning over you, "You're safe, everything's okay now. We should've known that you would get scared, all by yourself down here. We won't leave you alone again, especially while you're adjusting to your new home."

[mviswidow]

falling

Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Word count: 1.5k

Warnings: cursing, alcohol

Prompt: i was wondering if i could request an imagine?? it’s kind of based off of harry styles’ song ‘falling’ whereas the reader accidentally admits she’s in love with wanda and wanda, having gone through so much heartbreak, pushes the reader away as she’s too scared to get involved with someone again, as all she’s known is loss. so, the two separate a bit until thor talks to her about it because he, too, has shared a lot of heartbreaking moments and shit and it’s not until she’s drunk (lyric: “I’m in my bed, and you’re not here 
And there’s no one to blame
 But the drink in my wandering hands.”) she realizes the mistake she’s made and goes to find the reader to tell them she’s in love with her too :(  IT’S SOME REAL ANGSTY SHIT BUT I FEEL LIKE IT COULD BE SO GOOD. LMAOO. <3 - @cierrascorpse​

Summary: R confesses her love for Wanda. Despite loving her back, Wanda pushes her away, but is convinced to go to R after the two of them have avoided each other for far too long.

A/N: this is my first songfic!! it’s ‘Falling’ by Harry Styles, in case you want to listen to it.

“You’re back!” You ran over to Wanda and hugged her, heart fluttering when she hugged you back tightly.

When you pulled away, she had a bright smile on her face even though she still looked sleepy. 

“Good morning, Y/n,” She chuckled, opening the fridge to get milk for her cereal.

You smiled and grabbed some fruit before sitting on the kitchen barstool and spinning around once or twice, “How did your mission go?”

“Eh,” Wanda shrugged with one shoulder and stuck her spoon in the bowl, nudging her cereal around.

“What happened?” You frowned.

“Nothing, I just made a mistake. Steve’s kind of mad at me,” Wanda sighed, looking up and seeing you with your eyebrow raised. She rolled her eyes, “I wasn’t paying attention and I almost got shot, I got lucky that Steve was watching.”

“Oh my god, Wanda, you have to be more careful.”

“I know, it was just an accident-”

“We don’t have room for accidents. You know better than to make careless mistakes,” You interrupted, shaking your head.

Her brow furrowed, it was weird that you were getting so worked up like this, “Yeah, I do know, and I obviously didn’t almost get shot on purpose, so if you’re going to be like this then I’d prefer you just back off.”

You scoffed as your eyebrows shot up, “Why are you being so defensive about this?”

Her voice raised, “I just don’t get why you care so much-”

“Because I love you!” 

Wanda’s jaw snapped closed and she noticeably swallowed before nodding, “I’m going to have breakfast in my room.”

“Wanda-”

“I don’t think us being friends is a great idea, Y/n,” She spoke softly, trying to keep eye contact for as long as she could.

Tears welled in your eyes and you pushed off the bar stool before making your way out of the kitchen, “Fuck you, too, then.”

---

From then on, the two of you didn’t talk unless absolutely necessary, which basically just meant missions and the occasional odd day where you had to talk to each other for something regarding the team.

It hurt. Really bad. Even looking in her general direction made you want to cry. The team wasn’t oblivious to the fact that there was something going on, they figured it out pretty quickly and it didn’t take long for them all to have found out what had happened.

You ended up spending a lot of time with Natasha. You were already close with her before Wanda rejected you, but you became best friends after the fact. 

Having to sit through meetings while sitting across from Wanda was excruciating. You willed yourself to get over her but she was constantly occupying your mind and you saw her every day, so that was pretty hard. 

Wanda also felt horribly about the situation. She’d never dated anyone before, and she loved you a whole lot, but she knew the last thing you needed was someone like her to come into your life in such a big way and leave mess in her wake.

Her heart raced when you took more than a few seconds to respond to comms and she always found herself looking around for you while out on the field, just to make sure you were okay.

Two months after Wanda had rejected you, the team was pretty fed up with the two of you. They obviously cared about your feelings but you were both way too distracted on mission and careless mistakes were happening more frequently.

That was when Steve gave Thor his own mini-mission of talking to Wanda.

He knocked twice on her door, which had her looking up from her book and opening the door with a swift movement of her fingers, “Thor,” Wanda smiled softly. “What’s up?”

“I wanted to talk to you, about Y/n,” He said as he closed the door, his usually loud voice now quiet and calm.

Wanda’s heart clenched and she bit the inside of her cheek, “Is she okay?”

“Oh,” Thor was now realizing that he might have made it seem like you were hurt. “Yes, she is- well, physically- I mean, it’s complicated.”

Wanda quirked an eyebrow up. The usual eloquent God of Thunder now stumbling over his words like anyone else, “This is about what happened between the two of us, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” He nodded and looked towards the edge of her bed. “May I sit?”

“Be my guest,” She nodded.

“Steve and I were talking about you guys, honestly, the whole team talks about you. It’s been hard to watch you guys like this, but we see the way you still care for each other. I know that you’ve been through a lot, Wanda. Losing family is harder than words could ever begin to describe, I understand that, but that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve happiness and that you can’t love the people you want to love. I see the way you look at her, we all do,” And eloquent Thor was back, apparently. “I just don’t believe you should let this pass you by. She’s a really special girl and she loves you a lot. I think you love her a lot, too, and I think you need each other. That’s all I wanted to say, I guess. I just hope you think about this more- maybe even talk to her when you’re ready, if you are.”

Wanda blinked away the tears in her eyes and nodded, “Thank you, I appreciate it.”

Thor left without saying anything else, and when the door closed behind him, Wanda pulled her pillow to cover her face and groaned. She laid there for a minute before getting up and walking to the kitchen in search of some kind of alcohol. 

An hour and a half later, she was laying on her bed in pajama shorts and a red hoodie that you’d given her for her birthday sulking.

She had half a mind to cry, but she didn’t really like drunk crying, and she was far enough into the bottle of vodka for her judgement to be impaired, but not enough to not acknowledge that drunk crying was the worst kind of crying. 

After months of being without you, she longed to be near you, to have fun sleepovers again, to sneak away from Tony’s parties to go up to the roof or to watch a movie, she wanted you to braid her hair and cuddle her at night and kiss her-

Before Wanda knew what she was doing, she set the vodka bottle on her nightstand and made her way to your room. She stood outside for a few seconds before knocking quickly so she couldn’t talk herself out of whatever she was about to do.

She could hear you laugh from inside your room, “Nat, did you leave something? You were here like- oh.”

Your smile fell when you opened the door and saw Wanda standing at the other side of it, “Do you need something?”

“I’m so sorry,” Wanda said, her voice breathy, her face flushed, that stupid hoodie that made her look adorable, and her hair tied back into a lose ponytail that was so messed up that it could probably barely even be called a ponytail anymore. But you could tell she was drunk.

You had to stop yourself from scoffing, “Well, you’re two months too late, Wanda.”

“I love you.”

“Don’t do this now,” You shook your head, tears now brimming your eyes. You didn’t want to put up with this when tomorrow things would be back to how they had been.

“Y/n/n, I’m serious. I love you so much,” And tears of her own threatened to spill. “I feel so guilty, as I should, but I just- I was really scared, and I thought that I was going to fuck things up for you, and that’s the last thing I wanted to do. I love you. I’ll say it a million times if that’s what it takes to convince you. I want us to happen.”

You sniffled and wiped away a tear that was starting to run down your face. All of a sudden Wanda was starting to sound really sober. “You promise?” Your voice broke, and you bit your lip, willing yourself to not make any noise.

“I swear to you that I love you,” Wanda smiled softly, bringing her hand up to cup your cheek, wiping away another tear that fell.

You leaned into her touch and closed your eyes for a moment before opening them and being graced by a soft smile on Wanda’s features.

“I would love to kiss you now but I want it to be good and not when I’m kinda drunk, so can I just sleep in your room tonight instead?” She asked hopefully, longing to hold you.

“Please,” You nodded and stepped forward, hugging her for the first time in two months. “I missed you so much.”

[myherowritings]

anywhere the wind blows

SUMMARY. After hunting a bounty near Wangshu Inn, you sensed the faint scent of qingxin blowing in the familiar wind. It seemed like it was leading you somewhere.

PAIRING. xiao x reader

WORD COUNT. 2.2k

GENRE. fluff, pre 1.3 release

A/N. my first genshin fic of my fav character xiao !! i’m definitely still getting used to writing for this world and for him but i hope this isn’t too bad 🥺 i’m so excited for xiao’s story and banner and can’t wait to learn more about him! if 1.3 comes and totally undermines the small guesses abt the lore i added into this fic then…we pretend we do not see u.u ANYWAY PLS ENJOY xx sof

“A rock shieldwall Mitachurl with a resistance to cryo,” you murmured to yourself with a satisfied smile, picking up the ominous mask and heavy horn that it dropped from the fight. “No more terrorizing Wangshu for you.”

You had just accepted a bounty handed out to you in Liyue and arranged for the proper party to come pick it up. The rewards were promptly transferred to your tab and you bade the team who came to collect the Mitachurl a swift goodbye.

It wasn’t normally on your daily agenda to hunt bounty for money—though the mora was quite appealing, you couldn’t lie—but when the beasts were too close to civilization and scared both residents and passerbyers in Liyue alike, you felt a greater need to step in. And now, after a job well done with some mora in your pockets, you realized just how tired and hungry that search made you.

Looking up, you saw the peak of the inn from a distance and followed the silk flower-covered path there. It wasn’t often you frequented Wangshu Inn, but you have visited enough to know their Jueyun Chili Chicken and Almond Tofu were pretty solid reasons to drop by again.

Your appearance was rather disheveled from your fight with the Mitachurl but you weren’t too messy-looking—certainly decent enough to interact with other humans you hoped. Smoothing down your clothes and practicing a smile, you headed over to the outdoor dining area and were greeted by a waitress who led you to an empty table as she asked for your order. The exchange was pleasant enough and you were soon left to your own devices once your food swiftly arrived.

It was dark out in Wangshu. The bounty hunt took most of your late afternoon and by now the sun had fully set. The dining area was quiet and empty with only the moon watching over you.

You hummed, taking in a mouthful of the sweet Almond Tofu. The night was nice and peaceful and quiet, just like most of your evenings.

A familiar breeze blew against your face, chilling yet warm. Captivating. There was a faint smell of qingxin, like the flowers you grew fond of during your explorations around Liyue’s stone forests.

The wind was different from what you experienced in Mondstadt. That air was light and playful. Free.

The wind you felt just now, on the other hand, seemed to convey something more wistful. Almost yearning.

And it wasn’t your first encounter with this qingxin-filled breeze either. When you helped comfort Little Luo back in Qingce Village and fended off the pesky Hilichurls on her trail, this wind blew around you and cooled the heat from your cheeks. Around Bubu Pharmacy when you spent time with Qiqi, a zombie you happened to stumble upon one day, you felt the same curious breeze.

Part of you felt like you were being watched over. But not in a bad way. It made you feel safe and protected, yet empowered enough to continue your bold expeditions and help the people of Liyue when you were needed.

The wind stuck around as you finished your meal, the aroma of Almond Tofu wafting through the air from the wandering breeze, almost as if it was seeking a taste. Once your plates were cleared and your drink emptied, you headed inside the inn and hoped they had a spare room on such a short notice and—to your surprise—for once they actually did.

On the way up the stairs, you passed by an open balcony near the top of the inn where you caught a glimpse of a lean figure with dark hair looking up at the night sky. You normally would have walked away from the balcony and left the man to his own devices, promptly going to your rented room to get some much needed rest, but the familiar scent of qingxin flowers dancing in the wind made you freeze mid-step.

Wangshu Inn wasn’t too far from mountain tops where qingxin grew… It could have been a mere coincidence.

But in Liyue, you knew that believing such things could be a coincidence would simply be fooling yourself.

The person on the balcony gave no indication that he felt your gaze, but you knew intuitively that he had already sensed your presence despite not having moved a single inch. His stance was so steady you might have thought he was a statue if not for his teal-tinged hair blowing in the wind.

Could he have been the cause of the qingxin breeze that recently started following you around?

“Hi,” you said gently to more formally announce your presence. On the off-chance he didn’t realize anyone was there, you definitely didn’t want to startle him. But judging by the unsurprised expression on his face as he slowly looked over his shoulder, you sincerely doubted he was one to startle easily. “May I stand here?”

His eyes were scrutinizing but not unkind as they looked you up and down. You took your time examining him as well— From the top of his silky-looking hair to the blue tattoos wrapping around his arms and to the mysterious horned mask hanging from his hip.

“I suppose you may,” he finally replied with a single nod, his voice neither welcoming nor rude.

You stood a few feet away from him, leaning against the wooden balustrades as you let the cool air hit your face. The night was quiet and calm, dimly lit by the moon peeking through the foggy sky. Sighing, your eyes fluttered shut in contentment as you felt the wind soothe the aches from the bounty hunt in your muscles.

You wouldn’t normally let your guard down like this in front of someone you just met, but for some reason you weren’t the least bit on edge. He didn’t seem like a stranger. And you had a feeling that maybe he wasn’t.

“Have we met before?” you found yourself wondering aloud. The mask on his hip looked familiar, though you couldn’t pinpoint exactly why, like you’ve seen it in a book you’ve read. And the air around him certainly felt familiar, though it seemed strange to describe why.

He didn’t respond.

Huffing, you tried a different approach. A more direct one. “Have you been following me?”

His brow raised but he uttered no words.

Was that approach too direct?

After a moment of silence, he said, “Were you not the one who followed me out onto the balcony? If I remember correctly, I was here first.”

“But were you not the one who drew me here with your qingxin-scented breeze?” you shot back, tone more curious than biting.

To your surprise, he said nothing to deny it. “Attentive, I see.”

“I’m not sure it’s quite that I’m attentive rather than you wanting me to know.” You hid a smile. He wouldn’t have made it so obvious otherwise, you were certain of it. For someone who held more power in his little finger than you could possibly fathom, you knew that him alerting you of his existence couldn’t be a mere accident.

“You’re right.” He shrugged. “But it’s not so much that I wanted to call you here than I didn’t mind if you happened to stumble by.”

You ran the palms of your hands over the railings, craning your neck to the side to face him. He was a puzzling creature, giving off the aura of something greater and more powerful than a human. The ominous mask dangling around his hip seemed to serve as a word of caution to indicate a menacing side he hadn’t shown you, but his calm stance and the small tilt of his head made him seem curious—almost inviting.

It was intriguing, to say the least.

“And why did you want me to, as you say, stumble by?” you said. “Not that I mind.”

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly, shaking his head and looking confused himself. “Intuition? I noticed you fighting, helping the people of Liyue. You’re doing a...good job.”

You shrugged, rubbing at the back of your neck as you shied away from his praise. “So you summoned me here to thank me?”

“I don’t know,” he said again, his impassive tone sounding almost frustrated.

At the small frown playing on his lips, you couldn’t help but let a noise of laughter escape you. He gazed at you in question. This whole situation seemed strange and peculiar, straight out of a dream you’d have at random only to forget the next morning. He seemed strange and peculiar, like a figure out of a story book lost in the ruins of Liyue.

And yet you found yourself enjoying this odd encounter.

“Well, Mr. Stranger, since you seem uncertain of so many things still, are you going to continue to have your wind follow me around Liyue until you figure whatever it is out?” you questioned teasingly, not at all minding that prospect.

He glared, looking slightly embarrassed. “It’s not that I was following you. I only sensed someone in need but happened to see you rushing along the way and decided to let you handle it. The less involvement in the affairs of mortals, the better.”

So he wasn’t a mortal himself, you thought, his words confirming your previous suspicions. Still…

“Is that so?” You quirked a brow. “And what is this if not for involvement in the affairs of a mortal?”

He folded his arms and didn’t say a word.

“Let me guess— You don’t know?”

“Hmph.”

You smiled. “Well, I guess it’s okay you don’t know. It’s okay not to know sometimes, you know?”

He blinked. “You aren’t making sense.”

“And you are?” you retaliated. “I still don’t know who you are or anything about you yet. But… I know you smell like qingxin flowers and feel like a cooling breeze. And I know that I rather enjoy it.”

The mysterious entity looked out into the mountain scenery, gloved hand resting on the dark balustrade. He seemed both lost in thought and completely aware of his physical surroundings at the same time. Suddenly, he spoke up.

“Xiao.”

Your gaze met his as he nodded once. “Xiao?”

“My name. Now you know who I am.”

You laughed, startled by how blunt he was. “I guess you’re right. Nice to meet you Xiao.”

“Hm.” Xiao waited one moment before he asked, “Do you plan to keep exploring Liyue?”

At his question, you briefly considered your options for the near future. You liked Liyue and there was so much you had left to see. Was it like home to you? No— Not yet anyway, though it could be if the situation was right. But that didn’t mean you wanted to leave just yet.

Not when you may have found a reason you would want to stay.

“For the time being, yes.”

He nodded in satisfaction. “That’s good. You being there to help the people of Liyue means less involvement with mortal affairs for me.”

Though his tone was haughty, he didn’t seem like he actually minded what he considered mortal affairs. If he did, why would he be so alert when he sensed people in need?

“And, if you ever need assistance during your ventures, I’ll be there.”

Xiao’s words comforted you as you looked at him, his hair blowing in the wind. Maybe one day you could reach out and touch it. But not today.

You sensed this meeting was about to end. The breeze picked up and you could feel him getting ready to leave. Whether he was going to leave to go to bed or leave the mortal world, you weren’t sure. But you would rather treasure this encounter than dwell on an inevitable—and hopefully temporary—farewell.

“Thank you, Xiao. And if you ever need assistance with...whatever it is you do, I’ll be there too!” you said confidently. “As I’m sure you’ve seen, I’m pretty handy at weilding a sword myself.” You doubted he would ever need much help in the physical or martial department. “Or, I could simply lend an ear as well.”

It happened so fast, you weren’t sure if it was actually there, or if your eyes were playing tricks on you— Xiao smiled. At least, you thought he did. But in the mere blink of an eye, it was gone.

Still, you don’t think you would ever forget that peaceful image no matter how hard you tried. Not that you wanted to.

Sensing the night coming to an end, you asked, “When will I be able to see you like this again?”

He paused. “In this human form, you mean?”

You nodded, though you figured the answer would be those three familiar words he had said many times tonight.

“I don’t know.”

A wry smile played on your lips. Knew it.

“The mortal realm is not where I naturally belong,” explained Xiao, amber eyes glowing brighter than the moon in the sky. “But I will meet you again in this state soon.”

The scent of qingxin grew stronger as the wind picked up. His skin grew paler, almost translucent as he met your gaze one last time for the night.

“Even if it takes time, at least the wind will tell me when you’re near.” You smiled, raising your hand in a wave. “Goodnight, Xiao.”

“Sleep well, traveller.”

And in your dreams that night, with qingxin in the air, you felt contentment and serenity in ways you never had before. You would see the entrancing being who called himself Xiao again. Soon. But you had the wind to keep you company while in wait.

[mattsvn]

CHANCE BALL LOVE!

Pairing: Ushijima Wakatoshi x gn!reader

Genre: Meet ugly! strangers to lovers! Getting hit in the head with a volleyball!

Warnings: Blood, head injury, concussion, did I mention getting hit in the head with a volleyball? Food hehe, that's all.

WC: 2.4K

Summary: After being hit with a volleyball by the ace and U19 athlete, Ushijima Wakatoshi, you find yourself laying in the nurse's office, with a bag of ice on your head and a boy apologizing every two minutes for that terrible accident. As the times goes by, you realize that not only you were hit by a ball, but by destiny, and more important, love.

A/N: I'm so excited for this piece! This is a collab for HQHQ (now Anilysium!) The masterlist is here! I hope you like this piece! Reblogs are appreciated!

Life is made up of 90% causality and 10% coincidence.

That was what your mother used to say, with her hands covered with flour up to her elbows, while she prepared one of those delicious desserts. Possibly as a result of all her years perfecting her technique as a pastry chef, but, as in that, she considered that everything had to be planned, measured, and calculated.

On the other hand, your father was always talking about how fate made everything line up perfectly for things in his life to come in abundance, he would happily tell about the coincidences in his life, although the answer was always the same, a debate between the two of them as to what was the truth.

A skeptical pastry chef and a dreamy lawyer, a match made in heaven.

Whatever it had been, causality or causality, you never thought a hit of luck would be so...literal.

It was unusual for you to be in Shiratorizawa's volleyball gymnasium, if you had managed to get into such a prestigious high school it was because of the impeccable grades you always had, sports were not a priority.

You weren't afraid of balls, but, the way everyone was spiking the ball was about to cause you a headache, especially Ushijima Wakatoshi, the school's ace, one of the best athletes in the country.

"Why are we here, again?" you asked, your gaze wandering between the various players and the sound of balls hitting everywhere making the conversation feel distorted.

"Because they" one pointed out, to the rest of the girls looking around the court excitedly "want to see Semi Eita, the pretty boy with the grey hair" she gestured to the boy in the corner, slamming the ball to the ground unaware that they were watching.

"Ah" you replied, somewhat bored, grabbing your backpack and standing up. "Good luck with that, I have to get home early" you said, waving goodbye to everyone.

To leave, or at least, to do it in a faster way, the door that led out of the building, and through which you had to go through the court, was the best option, as it took longer to take the way inside the corridors. The only option as you made your way down the bleachers.

The only thing you heard, with your eyes glued to the ground, trying to go completely unnoticed was a "WATCH OUT!" that made you look up before you saw nothing but darkness.

"I don't know, Wakatoshi-kun, looks like you did kill her" a voice was heard in the distance, the light irritating your eyes if you tried to open them. Still, only because of your stubbornness, you tried to get up without anyone else's help.

"I don't think it's best if you stand up now" you heard a deeper voice, but you didn't know exactly where it was coming from.

"I'm fine" you whispered, placing a hand on where you assumed you had been hit with the volleyball, feeling a warm liquid staining it. It wasn't possible that a spike had cracked your forehead open, right?

Right?

"I'm fine, I have to go" as you stood up, opening your eyes, everything was spinning. An arm went around your shoulders, stopping you from falling back to the ground, firm, but at the same time gentle.

"You need to go to the infirmary, you're bleeding" the voice now seemed to be closer, a little more stable, but, no way did you feel you could even move without throwing up or passing out again, what the fuck had that hit been? Could someone hit someone that hard just with a serve?

The answer was yes, and the name, Ushijima Wakatoshi.

You barely felt it when, just like that, he lifted you off the ground, although it seemed that your body felt it. A piece of something, probably cloth or gauze stopped the bleeding. You kept repeating that at least they let you walk, that you were okay, even though, clearly, you had the symptoms of a concussion.

"Are you all right, can you tell me where you are?" questioned Ushijima, entering a room. You had finally managed to open your eyes and recover from the dizziness.

"I'm fine, we're at the high school" you whispered, looking at Ushijima for the first time.

Even if you had gone to games before, you had never seen that look on Wakatoshi's face, a mixture of fear and worry, accompanied by his pale face and a barely noticeable bloodstain on his shirt.

"You can wait outside, dear boy," said the nurse, slightly terrified by what had happened.

A couple of hours passed before they managed to let you go, after calling your parents and making sure you didn't leave the building unless you were accompanied. You didn't need stitches, and that was a huge plus, but still, you left the infirmary with a gauze pad on your forehead, some candy, and a chance to take the rest of the week off to rest, which wasn't such a bad outcome.

You closed the door behind you, looking sideways at Wakatoshi on the floor, who got up almost immediately, still looking scared, even his gaze lingered for a few seconds on the patch on your forehead, which reminded him of the fact that he had accidentally hit you with a volleyball while practicing his serves.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, looking disheveled, and as if he had done nothing more than wait in the hallway until everything was in order.

"Oh, don't worry, Ushijima-san, I'm fine" you assured, but it didn't seem to be enough for him.

"I'm so sorry, let me take you home to be sure you arrive safely" he asked, with his hands behind his back and his head slightly bent down, like a child discovered stealing the candy from the counter.

"My parents are here to take me home, don't worry" you assured, glancing sideways at the door, somewhat far away. "You can walk me to the car, if you like."

"Of course" he nodded, walking beside you. Up close he looked even taller than he was, his expression calm and his gaze fixed straight ahead, though, he seemed to have a doubt that would leave his lips at any moment "Would you allow me to walk you to school tomorrow?"

You looked at him with raised eyebrows, somehow, the sound of just both of your footsteps in the hallway was comforting, soothing. It wasn't awkward, or uncomfortable. Ushijma didn't believe in awkward silences, because to him actions said more than words, and, that a question shouldn't be answered right away. So, the way to the entrance was nothing more than waiting for an honest, and safe, answer.

"I got permission to miss classes for the rest of the week, in case the concussion gets complicated, because I have to rest" you began, letting again the calm silence take center stage for a couple of seconds. "Then I won't be back until Monday, but maybe you can come for dinner tomorrow?"

"If you accept that as my apology for hurting you, then by all means" he took the door, allowing you to leave before him, there was still a bit of a walk to the main entrance. "Although, I would like to cook"

"Oh, I didn't know you cooked," you smiled, looking up at him. Ushijima looked down, and, you could swear he was smiling too. "If that's what you prefer, I'd love to."

The rest of the walk was quiet, and calm. Ushijima said goodbye to you after introducing himself to your parents, and apologizing again. In the rearview mirror you saw him standing there, waiting until he didn't see the car to go home.

He was really worried, and it would probably take him a few days to stop being scared about what had just happened. He was even willing to be scolded by the coach for missing two days of practice, just to make sure everything was in order.

Likewise, even if it would be a whole day before you saw Ushijima, he decided to call you just before he went to bed. And at lunchtime, because doing it earlier would surely have woken you up. He didn't talk too much, he let you talk about how annoying the doctors at the hospital had been when you went to check that everything was okay, and all the boring time you spent there.

He called back as soon as he got out of school, to make sure the details of the dinner were ready, he would bring the food, and some dessert, and, you would bring the drinks. You had to convince him though, otherwise he would have bought everything, he would have even brought plates and silverware from his own house.

Wakatoshi took the job of bringing the food seriously, as much as he could buy anything on the way home, he decided to make something himself. The menu was simple, yakisoba, yukari rice balls with an egg on top of each dish. As for dessert, he decided not to risk it, and preferred to buy those box cakes that had been quite popular lately, and, some condensed milk truffles that Tendou gave him as a gift as, he assured, you would love them.

Your parents could be quite reluctant to invite a boy to the house, but, after proposing the idea that you could clean up the picnic table you had in the backyard, where there was a space convenient enough for them to peek in just a little to feel safe, they agreed almost immediately.

During the afternoon, the question you wanted to ignore came out of nowhere, could that be considered a date, and should you dress for the occasion? It didn't seem like anything would match a forehead injury, or that anything would hide it. The result ended up being something you would wear if you were going out with friends, simple, and appropriate for the sunny day out.

Ushijima arrived exactly at the appointed time, and, reluctantly from your parents, you opened the door without them intruding. Looking at him, you failed to understand the nervous feeling that traveled from your heart to the tips of your fingers, making them tremble. Standing with a bag in his left hand, his hair slightly tousled and a bouquet of flowers in the other. Yet another gesture of apology, right?

"Hi, I brought some flowers" he pointed out, extending them. Your hand gently brushing his as you took them, white roses with green accents that made the bouquet look incredibly elegant.

"I already told you that you didn't have to keep apologizing, Ushijima" you mentioned, taking the flowers. "We'll eat outside then you don't need to take off your shoes, but let me go get a vase."

"You look good today" he spoke out of nowhere, making you look at him even though you were already halfway down the aisle. "You look good in those clothes" he seemed to be trying to smile, but you weren't sure. You smiled anyway, grateful for the compliment.

You returned with the bouquet, which would now serve as a decoration for the picnic. You could feel the intense gaze of your parents even if they tried to hide when they peeked, or, according to them, "watched" that everything was in order.

"Are you feeling better then?" he asked, looking at how simply decorated the picnic table was but somehow looked incredibly cozy, with perfect tree shade.

As was now usual, Wakatoshi didn't talk more than usual, at least not at first, he wanted to hear about how you were feeling, and how many days you would be out of school, although you assured him that you would be back to your activities by next Monday, and that, your friends would take care of sending you the homework you needed. Then the questions about him began.

You learned a lot, how he learned to play volleyball at a young age, his interest in cooking but his almost zero ability to make desserts. My mother could make some, you laughed, drinking some cranberry juice in a wine glass, your father's idea. He told you about his new interest in plants, and his father's work out of the country. Even some good anecdotes about the volleyball team.

Dessert was something completely different, by that time, she started to excitedly explain his last game, and what it was like to be in the Olympics. Although it wasn't as noticeable, you could tell in the way his lips curved into a slight smile as he tried to find the right words to define how he felt.

Reluctantly, and after offering to do the dishes, you said no, keeping the bento boxes with the promise that you would bring lunch on Monday for both of you, and now a wide smile on his face, even when he had to go home.

The following Monday came terribly slow, with the only thing that made it better being that Ushijima had not stopped her constant calls, the day possibly delayed by dark clouds heralding torrential rain.

"You don't have to keep apologizing anymore, look, even the wound has healed" you said, to Ushijima who was standing at the entrance, now with a box of the truffles you had liked so much, and which he had now made.

"I know. But I'd really like to walk with you at school" he smiled. "If you'll let me.

"I'd love to."

Life is made up of 80% causality and 20% chance, and, although you wouldn't want to repeat the literal hit of luck you received, you hadn't wanted it any other way.

Going to the gym because your friends wanted to see a cute boy on the volleyball team, having to leave early because you had things to do at home, leaving through the door you had to walk through on the court, getting hit in the head with a volleyball, only to end up walking to school with him, fingers barely brushing, a tender kiss on the cheek before he left.

Eating now inside the house, holding hands, a kiss on the corner of the lips. Waiting in the bleachers for practice to end, a number one jacket covering you from the rain.

The worst way to get to know each other, and, somehow, it seemed you were made for one another.

[frostedfaves]

Repercussions (15 - Alt Ending)

Masterlist

Pairing: dark!Natasha Romanoff x dark!Wanda Maximoff x fem!reader

Summary: Natasha and Wanda refuse to leave without you.

Warnings: dark themes, gun mentions, threatened suicide, manipulation

A/N: never expected to write this despite it being highly requested, but with me being stuck with Particular Taste and in the mood to write some angst, I ended up doing it. I’m still down to write angst, so I may do another Sad Song Sunday, but I’ll let you know.

Original part 15

-

“You worried us, printsessa, disappearing like that,” Natasha addresses you in a chilling tone as the two of them stop a few feet away from you. “And we’ll deal with that later, after you tell Wesley to come out so we can punish him first.”

“He’s not here,” you tell her calmly. “His only job was to bring me here--”

“And take the tracker out of your leg, which we will be putting back,” Wanda interjects with a stern expression. “Now you can either come with us to the car willingly or we’ll drag you.”

“I won’t be doing either of those things.” You stand slowly, lifting the gun to your temple as you go. “Your only choices are to leave me here and go back to the way your lives were before I came in, or you can let me die. If you take me again, I’ll just fight you every day until you wish you’d killed me yourself. No matter how you manipulate my mind, my true self will never love someone who wants to control me. I’ll tell you how much I hate you for ruining my life every second I’m able, and I’ll kill myself the moment I get the chance to do so.”

You notice the glassy look in their eyes as they face each other, and you knew they were having a silent conversation in their minds. Seconds feel like minutes as they seem to discuss their options, eventually turning back to face you. Wanda is fully crying now, and Natasha seems to be physically holding back her own emotional break.

“Please don’t do this, printsessa,” Wanda chokes out with a cautious step forward. “We just want you to come home.”

“What’s home to you is a prison to me.”

“But it didn’t always feel like prison, right? Remember those days we’d bake together, and watch your favorite movies all day?”

“Or that time we took you to Coney Island for a week straight because you couldn’t get enough of it?” Natasha added and you sighed.

“You don’t get it, do you? I was obsessed with those Coney Island trips because it was the only time you didn’t make me feel like a kid that would get lost if I wandered too far! The only time I felt like an actual human instead of a fucking meat puppet!”

“The moment we decided to trust you a little, you abandoned us!” Natasha yells so loudly that Wanda even flinches. “We’re in Nebraska right now because you couldn’t stand being a good girl and waiting for us to get home!”

“You left me with a fucking babysitter, Natasha! It doesn’t matter that it was someone I actually wanted around. You installed cameras and tried to bug Wesley and me. You put a tracker in my leg! If you trusted me, why did you go through so much to make sure I couldn’t leave? You can’t say that you love me and treat me like you don’t.”

“I’m so sorry.” Wanda’s voice comes out in a whisper as she steps forward again, and you watch her eyes for any hints of red. “I never meant to make you feel so cornered, but you have to understand that I’m an Avenger. I’ve seen what enemies are out there and at one point I was one, so I just wanted to do what I could to make sure you never ended up in the wrong hands.”

“She’s right,” Natasha chimes in, clearing her throat as a single tear slips down her cheek. “I know what lengths some people will go to hurt the loved ones of the other side because I used to do that exact thing. I’d let the world end before I let any harm come to either of you, and I guess I went a little overboard with protecting you because Wanda has a bit of an advantage.”

“I know I’ll never understand what it’s like to do what you do, and to live with your pasts…” You take a deep breath as you feel a lump forming in your throat, and the hand holding the gun to your head begins to shake. “But I do know what love is supposed to feel like, and it’s not this. I shouldn’t have to worry about setting you off because I didn’t agree with something, or waking up from a week-long mind trance because you didn’t want me to fight back.”

“How about we start over?” Natasha offers, glancing at Wanda and turning back to you once she nods. “No trackers, restraints, babysitters or manipulation. Just us getting to know you and vice versa, and hopefully rebuilding the love you once felt for us.”

“Please.” Wanda gives a pointed look toward the gun still pressed against your temple. “I know how upsetting this already must be for you, so please. Let us help you make it better. Let us fix this and hopefully have an even better relationship in the future.”

“We love you, and we agree that we should’ve gone about this in a healthier way. Please give us the chance to make this right.”

“And you promise there will be no more tricks?” you ask, and Wanda nods as two more tears make an appearance.

“Cross my heart--”

“--and hope to die.”

You stand there for what feels like minutes, your gaze bouncing between the two women in front of you, hoping to gauge their level of sincerity on expressions alone. As much as you didn’t trust them because of everything they’d done before, you’d be lying if you said there wasn’t a part of you that missed those happier moments, and wouldn’t mind starting over to create more. Perhaps it was worth a shot, if they were truly serious about not messing with your mind anymore.

“Okay,” you finally answer, and you notice the relief appear on their faces. “If you’re serious about starting over and doing this the right way, I’ll give this a chance. But you’re going to have to wait a long time before I start to trust you.”

Wanda grins at the two of you as Natasha approaches you cautiously, and you place the gun on the chair behind you before allowing her to pull you into a hug that you melt into surprisingly fast. Your other girlfriend joins the embrace, and her ecstatic giggle is the last thing you hear before everything goes dark.

-

“Y/N/N...hey wake up!”

You jump up suddenly, nearly bumping into the person standing above you. After a few moments of blinking to adjust to the bright sunlight, you turn your head to see your cousin sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Wesley?!” you gasp as he grins in acknowledgement. “What are you doing here and why do you look like shit?”

“You know, I’m gonna let that go because it’s your wedding day, but I’ll get you back later.”

“Wait, my what?”

“Jesus, did you hit your head or something?”

“Feels like it,” you grumble as your eyes close for a moment.

“Bachelorette party must’ve been crazy.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” You sigh and face him again as your eyes open. “Did you have a crazy night too or did you come here all bruised up?”

“I got into a pretty bad accident a little while ago,” he answers after a few moments of silence. “I guess I didn’t tell you about it because I didn’t want you to worry, but I probably should’ve said something when I got the invitation in the mail. Which reminds me, it’s time for you to get ready.”

He stands up slowly with the help of a cane beside him and limps out of the room, and a chill washes over you as the door closes behind him. You move to run your hands over your face and pause as you feel a cool metal bump against your nose, and you lower your hands to see a ring on the appropriate finger.

Of course it made sense considering--according to Wesley--you were getting married today, and the ring is exactly what you would want, but it just doesn’t make sense how you got here. As you move onto the bathroom and begin showering, you get hit with flashes of moments with Natasha and Wanda that include the moment they proposed, but it feels a bit more like watching a movie than a memory should. Still, there’s a warm feeling in your chest as you come to terms with the fact that you’re marrying two people that have been so good to you since your relationship was formed.

“Come in!” you respond to a knock on your door as you slip on a robe, smiling as Pepper enters the room holding what seemed to be a dry cleaner’s bag and a small jewelry box.

“Hey there, just bringing your dress.” She drapes it carefully over the end of the bed and faces you while holding the box out to you. “And your almost wives wanted you to wear this.”

You take the object from her and lift the top off, gasping as a necklace is revealed. It consists of a simple silver chain, but the pendant has a spider with a prominent red gem that almost seems to glow as the sunlight makes contact with it.

“Need some help?”

You nod with an appreciative smile as you hand her the necklace and turn around, feeling your smile widen as the cool pendant touches your warm skin. Your fingers run over the spider while you wait for Pepper to secure the chain around your neck, and you face her when she pulls away.

“Thank you. Wait!” you call out as she turns to leave. “I just have to ask...Do you think going through with this wedding is a smart idea?”

“Well, I haven’t been around the three of you much, but I’ve seen the way Natasha and Wanda react whenever you’re mentioned. It’s equivalent to someone finding out they won the lottery, honestly. I also know how much time and effort they put into making this house as safe as possible to put their minds at ease about you while they’re away on missions. In my opinion, I think you’re in good hands here, but I’m also not there for the little things. I’d recommend just listening to what your heart tells you.”

You thank her before she leaves the room, letting her words echo in your mind for a bit before moving to get ready for the ceremony. The dress, you quickly discover, is an exact replica of one you’d seen in a magazine that you loved so much you saved it in a scrapbook for years. How you’d managed to track it down, you had no idea, but the questioning thoughts seemed to fade away a bit once you realized how amazing it felt to be finally wearing it.

“How do you feel?” Wesley asks once you reach the bottom of the stairs, and you loop your arm through his free one as he leads you to the back yard.

“If I’m being honest, I’m super nervous about all this. Everything’s felt like a weird coma dream since the moment I opened my eyes.”

“Hey, you’re about to spend the rest of your life with Natasha and Wanda,” he reminds you quietly, and your gaze shifts away from his joyous expression to the small crowd that begins to stand upon your arrival and Natasha and Wanda smiling at you from the end of the flowery path. 

“It’s what you’ve always wanted.”

-

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[boldlyanxious]

Kiss and Run

Jasonette July prompt 16: heist

July masterlist

All masterlist

All things considered this was probably the best night for her heist. It didn't make sense at first since the Wayne gala was the social event of the season and they definitely had more security than usual. But that was mostly concentrated on the manor and everyone trying to get in, not seldom used storage buildings beyond the garden.

It had taken her a long time to track down what was labeled as a ceremonial item but she knew that it was a missing miraculous. She had managed to get through all the paperwork but it just wasn't listed. The last person recorded to have handled it was Jack Drake. The item had never been sold. She looked through all the records of the items sold after his death and it wasn't listed. All the things his son kept had been moved to the Wayne estate when the Drake estate was sold.

Marinette snuck in as the guests were arriving. She made sure that her outfit was fitting for the occasion but would not draw unnecessary attention in case she was spotted. She didn't actually need to enter the manor. She blended in with the guests but headed to the building to locate the item quickly. She took Plagg with her to assist with remaining hidden and for the additional night vision.

It has been far easier to get in than she had expected. The building was a lot larger than she realized and it had taken longer than she liked to find what she needed. She was fairly certain she had found it. She didn’t have very precise details on what the jewelry would be so she ended up with 3 pieces that were from the same archaeological dig. That would have to be close enough. Based on how they were stored, she didn’t think they would miss them. Honestly she could probably wear them into the party and meet the whole family and they wouldn’t recognise the items. But she wouldn’t push her luck. It had taken over an hour to find them and she still needed to get out of here without being discovered.

She had just closed the door when she heard voices around the corner. She slipped around the other side and dropped her transformation. Getting caught while transformed would be suspicious. Wandering around in formalwear would just look like she wandered a bit too far when she went out for fresh air. Luckily she planned ahead and had a champagne flute and a small bottle in her purse. No one would have cause to question her too carefully if it was clear she had too much to drink.

“The alarm definitely went off again. There are some guests out this way so maybe it was an accident. I can see the door. It is locked.”

She could hear the man on the phone. She focused on getting further away from the door and towards the garden area from which she could exit the estate grounds. She could hear the man continue his conversation but she chose distance over information. She almost hit a man in the shadows when she heard him move suddenly. But the man from the phone had moved this way too. She thought he might be following her. She needed to do something fast to explain her presence without causing more questions.

She pivoted to the other man and pulled him down by his tie. He seemed stunned by the sudden action but she kissed him before he had a chance to say anything. The alcohol now on her breath would be an incentive for most men. The man on the phone saw them and gave a look before heading the other way. She was so relieved she barely noticed that the man in front of her had pushed her against the wall but he had not returned the kiss. His eyes danced with amusement as she tried to slip away and then looked up at him when she realized she was trapped.

“That was some quick change back there,” he said. “You went from a Halloween costume to formalwear almost instantly.”

“I don’t know what you mean. I just stepped out for some air. I probably had too much to drink.” she forced herself to stumble over her words and then let out a breathy giggle.

“Nice cover. What did you find so interesting in the storage? You were in there awhile but your bag isn’t very big so you had something specific in mind.”

“I think there has been some mistake."

She tried to keep her voice slow and even, hoping that Plagg would take the opportunity to recharge. She didn't think it would be an issue, he couldn't see a wheel of cheese without eating it. She slid her arms up around the man's neck and tried to pretend it had no effect on her when he moved closer. Really she was just trying to get her back away from the wall. He slid his hands down to her hips and smirked at her. She tipped her face back up towards him but without waiting to see if he took the bait she pushed off from the wall and twisted out of his arms. She dropped low and swept his legs with her foot.

Her dress was perfectly capable of a quick get away but not quite as easy to fight in as the suit. The leg sweep caused him to stumble but he was much more agile and with much quicker reflexes than she had anticipated from a random guest at a society function. She would think it was just a Gotham thing, but she had actually lived here long enough to know that wasn’t the case. Most of the residents seemed to have very little interest developing skills to fight back. Perhaps they had seen what happened to those who fought back and would prefer to wait until the incident was over and hope they didn’t become a target.

She turned back to the man to decide whether she would have to fight him or if she could run away. But as he stumbled he reached out and grabbed her bag strap. He didn’t need to do anything else. He had what she had come for and he might even think he would find identifying information in there. He wouldn’t because she knew better, but he might hope. She tugged back on the strap and with the force of both of them it snapped.

Luckily it snapped with the small pouch on her side so she gave another yank to get the rest of the strap away as she turned and ran for the gate on the far side of the garden. She weaved in and out of all the obstacles hoping to slow down his larger frame. He would likely have the advantage if it were a straight shot but she intended to make it hard on him. She was still shocked when she made it to the gate and he wasn’t right behind her. She opened it just enough to slip out before closing it quietly behind her.

She stayed in the shadow along the wall making her plan for the best path through the grounds. If she could make it to the trees she should be able to get away without risking capture. She cursed as she bumped into something sticking out of the wall. It grabbed her arms and pushed her against the wall. She looked back up to see the same man. He must have chosen a different path through the garden while she was slowing herself down in an attempt to slow him down. His knee slid between hers pinning her dress to the wall and restricting her movements. He easily held her struggling wrists in one hand.

“That is some pretty coarse language coming out of that pretty mouth. Did you still want to kiss me?” He used his free hand to tilt her chin up.

“I was just doing that to create a distraction. Let me go.” She struggled against him but she couldn’t get loose.

“I think it could work. We should try it just to find out.”

“Are you the security here? Pretty sure you are supposed to take me to your leader rather than trying to seduce me.”

“You are giving me such mixed signals. I thought you wanted to seduce me.”

He had leaned down to whisper that in her ear. She froze as goosebumps covered her neck and arms. He used his free hand to trace with his fingers behind her ear, down her neck, and along her collar bone. He chuckled when she shivered. She adjusted just enough to lift her mouth up. He tilted his head down to her and their lips met. His lips slid against hers easily. She pushed herself against him as she slid her tongue against his lips. He granted her entrance and met her halfway. She was careful to give just enough attention to kissing him that he wouldn’t notice how she was moving.

She twisted each wrist gradually until she was very close to breaking his hold. But he suddenly shifted again and grasped her wrists with both hands. He didn’t break the kiss until her wrists were pinned on either side of her head, her bag still dangling from her left hand. “Nice try,” he said as his lips pulled away from hers. He brought her wrists together in one hand and pulled the bag from her. Her grasp slipped away and he suddenly released her. “You can go. Feel free to come back and try that again any time.”

She made a frustrated noise as he winked at her. She rushed at him but his arm blocked her far too easily. She had nothing to lose as he had already seen her detransform so she used her last resort. “Plagg, claws out,” she called. The sudden change and the bright light gave her the opportunity to use her staff to sweep his legs. When he went down she kicked him in the gut and used the staff to hit the purse from his grip. She didn’t wait to see his reaction; her priority was escape. She didn’t manage it though. His arm shot out and grabbed her leg before she could get out of his range. Damn his lightning reflexed.

She stumbled and turned to pull away from his grip. She extended her staff to push off but once again he defied the odds and had jumped up and tackled her. They rolled over, each of them fighting for dominance. Marinette lost the fight as she looked over to locate her purse. She had been on top but her split second attempt to determine her escape route gave him the ability to turn her over and plant his weight over her. He placed his knee painfully on her hip to limit her movement and held down her shoulders.

“Very Catwoman look. I like it. But you didn’t manage to land on your feet.”

“I didn’t have a chance to land. Some brute knocked me over and landed on top of me.”

“You were trying to kiss and run. We could get back to the kissing.”

“But you told me I could go.” She batted her eyelashes at him. “Did you change your mind?”

“I don’t think I ever want to let you go. But I don’t see the need to force you to stay. Whatever you stole won’t be going with you.”

He hauled her up and reached down for the purse again. She only had the one chance to use his lack of knowledge against him. So when he moved back up and held both her wrists together to pull her along with him, she let him. But as soon as he turned his face away she extended her staff lifting them both. She relied on his quick reflexes to protect him until she could get him in her grip. She vaulted them both away for the trees she had planned to use for her escape. She made several jumps into the trees until she found a good sturdy tree that looked like it would be easy to climb down from.

She dropped him in the high branches and took the purse back from him. He tried to hold on to it but she continued extending until she was out of his reach. She pushed forward to the next tree to talk to him while she was out of his reach.

“I really wish I had a reason to come back and try that trick again.”

“Am I not reason enough? You did already seduce me.”

“I’m pretty sure you were trying to seduce me. But my need to keep this safe would complicate that. I won’t return it.” She shook the purse to show what she was talking about.

“You did kiss me. Twice.”

“Sorry to kiss and run.”

She vaulted away. She trusted that he would easily manage to get down on his own. She didn’t notice that he had slipped out his camera to get pictures of her before she made her escape.

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