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[lori11hen2ry]

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[alanicglobal]

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[privatelabelbagsmanufacturer]

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[katieswan193]

[meryjones24]

[flannelclothing-14]

A trolley bag can make your life easier than any other travel bag. To know all about them, start listening!

[lvndrfucks]

i NEED more cobra kai challengers plzzzz

A pounding came at your door that slightly scared you. Your parents were out for the night, leaving you home alone. The clock read almost midnight. Who was at your door this late at night?

You cautiously got up from the couch and walked towards the door. You grabbed the baseball bat you had hidden around the corner, just as a safety precaution. You looked through the peephole and sighed in relief. You opened the door to reveal your two favorite boys.

“You scared me. I thought you were robbers or something,” you said, gesturing to the bat.

They both chuckled.

“Sorry, princesa, only us,” Miguel replied.

You stepped aside to let them in. You noticed they were both dressed like they had just gone out while you were lounging in your pajamas.

“So, what’s with the surprise visit,” you asked, crossing your arms.

They shared a look of weariness that didn’t go unnoticed.

“We just needed a place to relax after tonight,” Hawk answered.

“What do you mean? Did something happen?”

After the night of the party, the three of you had become fairly close. There weren’t any labels, but you all consecutively agreed to keep the relationship private. You were the boys’ getaway from their hectic karate life, but you were still in the know of the drama. You made the wise choice to stay out of it.

“We just took down Cobra Kai,” Miguel told.

You raised your eyebrows. “Okay. And how did you do that?”

“We broke into their dojo, fought off their students and got Terry Silver arrested after exposing him for cheating in the All Valley and beating someone up for blackmail.”

“…I’m gonna make tea.”

They followed you into the kitchen and sat down at the island table. They watched you set down three identical mugs while waiting for the tea kettle. You looked at them and sighed, walking around the counter to stand in front of them.

You inspected their appearance, checking for bruises or cuts. Of course, there were none. They were your strong boys.

“So, what does this mean now? No more karate war?” You questioned.

They shook their heads.

“The only thing to worry about now is the Sekai Tekai,” Hawk said. “But, at least now, we can relax a bit. Don’t have to worry about getting beat up in another tattoo parlor.”

You tilted your head, confused, but shook it off. You looked at Hawk. “You dyed your hair.”

“Oh, yeah.” He touched his gelled blue mohawk shyly. “Do you like it?”

You pecked his lips tenderly, pulling away with a smile. “I love it.” You turned to Miguel. “And you better keep these curls.” You ran your hand through his hair as his went to your hip, squeezing gently.

The tea kettle went off, making you, unfortunately, pull away. You poured the hot water into the mugs and placed the tea bags in. You grabbed some honey and squeezed some in each cup. You pushed it towards the boys.

It was silent as the three of you drank. Peaceful.

“Do you boys have time for a movie,” you asked, receiving nods in response.

You led them up into your room that they had snuck into countless times before. You sat your mug on your nightstand, same as them. You turned to them with a knowing look.

“You know the rules.”

They noticed the small smirk forming on your face. They looked at each other and complied. They removed their shoes first, followed by their jeans. You weren’t a fan of outside clothes getting on your comforter. Shirts were okay, optional to wear, of course.

You climbed into bed first, followed by Miguel on your right and Hawk on your left. You started scrolling through movies before settling on something you had all seen.

You settled into Miguel’s warm embrace as he kept one arm around you. You sat a pillow on your lap for Hawk to rest his head on, draping one arm over him. He grabbed your hand, placing a light kiss on your palm.

hera speaks!

i could’ve had this end differently…but i wanted to do a lil fluff post just cause.

what do y’all think of s6 so far? i love it sm and binged it as soon as it came out

[redbullgirly]

Hi! Can you write something about Lando x reader where she wants to wait till marriage to have sex and how'd he react to this? I'll leave the rest to you, it doesn't have to be a whole fic, maybe just a small blurb. Thank you <3

SAND AND CONFESSION [LN4 oneshot]

Lando Norris x reader

Summary: You and Lando have been going out for few weeks, maybe months now. While you're enjoying each other's company on a beach with sunset behind your backs, you decide to tell him you want to wait with sex till marriage.

Word Count: 0.8k

Warnings: English isn't my first language and I honestly didn't write for a while, so if some sentences are kinda weird or sloppy, I'm very sorry! Don't be afraid to correct me if you find some errors.

Author's Note: Hi Anon, thanks for the request! I hope you and everybody else will like this shorter fic I wrote based on it. I'll appreciate likes, comments, follows, reblogs and any other form of support! :)

The sand beneath your feet was still warm, though the sun had almost set behind the fluffy clouds on the horizon. You ran up the beach, trying to get as far from the sea as you could, before the curly-haired man could throw you into the waves, messing up your hair. He followed you, laughing and almost tripping, which was probably the only reason you actually managed to escape to the laid out blanket with your things and bags.

You laid on it, your chest covered in droplets of salty water heaving with uneven breaths. Some sand probably stuck to your wet skin, but you didn't mind.

“Y/N, you left me there all alone!” Lando faked a pout, standing above you with crossed arms and a silly smile.

“Yeah, 'cause you tried to drown me!” you fired right back and stuck out your tongue.

He shook his head and stretched out his arm, helping you stand back up. Then, without any warning, he slapped your ass. You squealed his name and tried to punch him, but he dodged effortlessly. May his fast reflexes be damned.

It was getting darker by every minute, the sun now nearly gone from the evening sky. Shadows slowly crept to the beach, and you shivered in the cool air. Lando, the caring boy he was, instantly noticed the goosebumps popping up all over your body. You were both still just in your swimsuits, and it was getting cold. 

He bent down to the bag you took to the beach with you and took out a big towel. “C'mere baby,” he mumbled, and when you took a step towards him, he wrapped you and himself up in it. 

Suddenly, you didn't feel cold at all — quite the opposite, really. Lando's firm body was pressed against you, his hands around your waist and faces impossibly close to each other. You could feel his warm breath, smelling after the vanilla milkshake you drank at a cozy café before going to the private beach.

One of his big hands cupped your cheek, your eyes locked in with his intense blue stare. Lando and you were going out for a few weeks, even months now. You didn't put any label on it, maybe too afraid of the feelings that bubbled in your stomach every time that exact expression appeared in his eyes. The one of pure adoration and happiness, as if you'd give him the Moon. And honestly? If he ever asked, you probably would. Or at least try.

As if the boy could read your thoughts, his smile deepened, and he finally closed the remaining distance between you two. His lips felt soft and hard against yours at the same time, asking and demanding all at once. Lando was always careful at the start, but as soon as your body relaxed, and you gently bit his bottom lip, the kiss heated up pretty quickly.

He moaned into your mouth and his hold on your waist tightened. This wasn't your first time making out, but it never felt so intense, so breathtaking before. You struggled to keep pace with him, though you'd lie if you said you didn't like it. However, when his hands slipped under the towel that was still wrapped around your bodies, and tugged onto your bikini straps, you pulled away. Your cheeks were flushed, lips swollen and hair messy.

He stopped, furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and looked at you questioningly, eyes wide. You realized Lando thought he did something wrong, again. And that made you feel even worse than before.

“What's wrong, babe?” he asked in a quiet voice, his hand still cupping the side of your cheek. You wanted to look down, ashamed and not knowing how to say what had to be said, but Lando didn't let you. “You can tell me Y/N. I won't be angry or anything.”

It was his assurance and sweet voice that caused you to sight and swallow thickly.

“I… there's something I need to tell you,” you whispered. He just nodded, listening curiously. “So, I feel weird saying it, but… I never actually… you know.” You point between you and him. “I never did this before,” you confess, not able to look him into the eyes.

“Oh, sweetheart,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “That's no problem at all-” You put your finger on his lips, silently asking him to be quiet.

“And,” you say, making him know that's not all you wanted to say, “I don't want to. Not until marriage.”

Now he seems surprised, taken aback even. It's clear he's processing your words for a moment, while you almost faint from the nerves. You're worried he won't understand. That now, when you told him he won't get what most men want, he'll break up whatever you two have going on.

But he does nothing like that. No, he nods slowly, a little smile tugging at the corners of his lips. A smile that soon turns into the grin you know so well by this point. And then, Lando pulls you closer and whispers in your ear: “Well, good thing I plan on marrying you one day.”

And even though he says it in a joking voice, wanting to lighten up the atmosphere, you know right there and then that deep down, he means it.

THE END

[pedgito]

It's the season of Summer Lovin'—and with the perfect...men. A Pedro Pascal character extravaganza all wrapped up into a series of locations, hidden behind numbers of your choosing and carefully crafted for each Pedro boy. If you're interested, please be sure to read through the following instructions and important information below:

There are 50 moodboards to choose from, first come first serve. (none of these pictures dictate the appearance of reader, this is all purely for vibes and up for your own interpretation) All request need to be sent through my askbox!

There's no maximum word count, but we suggest a minimum of 500 words if you're interested, but that is only a suggestion. Write as much or as little as your heart demands.

(Located under the read more) All numbers are separated by 10 location and labeled 1-5 on each, so when requesting a number please do so in the following manner, [ 'camping, #1' or 'barbecue, #5'] and in the chance that number is already taken, I will message you privately to re-choose.

These moodboards will come with the following requirements: a character, a location, and a quote/sentence that all must be incorporated into the fic, everything else is up to you!

All requests will take place June 2nd-3rd and entries will be due to be posted June 20th-22nd!

BY THE WATER

#1 — taken (@ladamedusoif)

#2 — javier pena x reader, like snow on the beach (@janaispunk)

#3 — dieter bravo x reader, poolside (@ovaryacted)

#4 — taken (@sp00kymulderr)

#5 — oberyn martell x reader, doves in the wind (@beskarandblasters)

CONCERT

#1 — tim rockford x reader, confessions (@wildemaven)

#2 — jack daniels x reader, the cowboy & the thief (@schnarfer)

#3 — frankie morales x reader, it's hell on earth to be heavenly (@hellfire-state-of-mind)

#4 — marcus pike x reader, a fine romance (@doscharolastras)

#5 — taken (@ramblers-lets-get-ramblin)

BARBECUE

#1 — marcus moreno x reader, you see me, i watch you (@iamasaddie)

#2 — taken (@beefrobeefcal)

#3 — lucien flores x reader, met you once saw you thrice (@undercoverpena)

#4 — joel miller x reader, wedding in the apocalypse (@i-own-loki)

#5 — frankie morales x reader, do you feel it too? (@burntheedges)

CAMPING

#1 — taken (@the-blind-assassin-12)

#2 — dieter bravo x reader, cabin down below (@eupheme)

#3 — taken (@pr0ximamidnight)

#4 — frankie morales x reader, bagged & tagged (@inept-the-magnificent)

#5 — din djarin x reader, sway the stars which dazzle like pearls (@lady-of-glass-and-bone)

ROAD TRIP

#1 — taken (@whocaresstillthelouvre)

#2 — joel miller x reader, sunshine (@couldsewyouastitchandsavenine)

#3 — jack daniels x reader, hit the road jack! (@thelastofhyde)

#4 — joel miller x reader, until men fell at their women's feet and asked for forgiveness (@jomiddlemarch)

#5 — dave york x reader, still (@sizzlingcloudmentality)

CARNIVAL

#1 — jack daniels x reader, hot chocolate (@punkshort)

#2 — taken (@starstruckunknown-princess)

#3 — taken (@vivian-pascal)

#4 — max phillips x reader, the eternal night (@ozarkthedog)

#5 — dieter bravo x reader, no solo riders (@missredherring)

HIKING

#1 — taken (@leslie-lyman)

#2 — frankie x reader, beneath the silent boughs, whispers of dangers flow (@joelalorian)

#3 — javier pena x reader, flora and fauna (@hellishjoel)

#4 — dieter x reader, a lesson in nature (@the-orange-tabby-cat)

#5 — joel miller x reader, stranded (@joelscurls)

WEDDINGS

#1 — taken (@amanitacowboy)

#2 — javier pena x reader, una noche en medellín (@luxurychristmaspudding)

#3 — marcus pike x reader, we'll regret this in the morning (@thesluttylittleknee)

#4 — dieter bravo x reader, princesa bride (@rhoorl)

#5 — joel miller x reader, my place or yours (@criticallyacclaimedstranger)

HEAT WAVE

#1 — javier pena x reader, like a fever (@pedgito)

#2 — joel miller x reader, consider it a favor (@chaotic-mystery)

#3 — taken (@quinnnfabrgay-writes)

#4 — taken (@rulexofxnines)

#5 — marcus moreno x reader, a little help goes a long way (@iluvstrawberry)

MUSEUM

#1 — taken (@carusolikey)

#2 — din djarin x reader, a perfect day (@flightlessangelwings)

#3 — pero tovar x reader, moonlight flight (@sawymredfox)

#4 — marcus pike x reader, when's the last time you lived (@avastrasposts)

#5 — joel miller x reader, who we were (@studioghibelli)

Please make sure to tag your entries under #SummerLovin24 and tag either @chaotic-mystery, @amanitacowboy, or myself (@pedgito)! These will all be reblogged through the week of June 20th-22nd!

[taeiun]

this love is small.

synopsis: some of the little things that they do in your relationship

who: zb1 x gn!reader (not including yujin)

categories: fluff, some crack, headcanon styled scenarios

warnings: mentions of food in jiwoong + taerae's parts, light swearing

word count: 1.1k

✧ JIWOONG !

✧ jiwoong gains a newly formed sixth sense when it comes to your needs; he knows your favourite snacks by heart and also picks up if you guys are low on them without even looking at the cabinet.  you don’t even need to ask him to grab a snack for you because he’ll just know. probably knows when those foods are on sale before you even open your mouth to tell him. like, he’s probably already picked up three bags of those chips you really enjoyed last time and they’re waiting on the counter for you.

✧ will send you a notes app shopping list so that you don’t get jumped scared by the random appearance of shrimp chips and sour candies constantly and wonder how they got there half the time when you both haven’t even talked about being out of them.

✧ ZHANG HAO !

✧ hao keeps a collection of short, vlog-like recordings of the two of you in a private, for his eyes only folder on his phone. he watches these whenever he misses you or feels down and needs a pick me up. these videos will range from past dates, his commentary as he records you sleeping, to not even a two second moment of you laughing. you might find the angles unflattering, but he treasures each and everyone, watching them with a goofy ahah smile on his face.

✧ the others have 100% definitely, not even up for question, walked in on him in the middle of a watching session. he’ll just be sitting curled up in bed, blanket draped around him, with the lights turned off and earbuds plugged into his phone. this ends two ways. 1) the member leaves before he can notice and all is well or 2) they tease him only to end up with a pillow to the face

✧ HANBIN !

✧ whenever he’s on tour or can’t see you for long periods of time, hanbin will keep a list of things that happen throughout the days he’s gone to share with you. he never wants you to feel left out of his life and wants full communication with things. he can send you all the pictures you want of his travels, but nothing beats the actual stories.

✧ he mainly keeps tabs of things he did but will include the members’ shenanigans if he thinks they’ll make you laugh. starts a new list every time he has to leave and each one is dated, the activities labeled for what day and the time gone written at the top.

✧ MATTHEW !

✧ a big chatterbox when it comes to you, especially when it comes to his family. phone calls, messages, will even in emails to relatives, the conversation will drift to you no matter the topic. the only criteria needed for this to happen is for someone to simply breath in his direction.

✧ matthew pivots the conversation so fast that it gives his family whiplash. they aren’t complaining though; it’s nice to see him so happy and they can tell just how much he cares about your relationship. he wants them to love you as much as he does and by telling them these fond memories, he’s sure they will.

✧ TAERAE !

✧ the silly man he is, taerae will send you selfie updates throughout the day of where he is. you could probably make and sell your own bootleg, limited edition, taerae of zb1 pcs with how many you get from him. from walks to the company building to convenience store runs, he’s always sending you a picture of when he leaves to when he arrives at the destination as a way of assurance he’s safe.

✧ stores all of these in a folder labeled “for yn and yn only” and refuses to post them publicly, no matter how good you tell him some of them are. the background settings of his photos are always interesting. sometimes the members will be there, sometimes it’s while he’s in a storage closet. it’s funny until you wake up to find selfies of him at mcdonalds at 4 am with a handful of chicken nuggets shoved in his mouth.

✧ RICKY !

✧ spoils you so much. he knows that love doesn’t mean the amount of money you spend on someone but he can’t help but buy trinkets that remind him of you. the thought process is basically just: “oh. this kind of looks like yn.” and proceeds to checkout with a ditto keychain. ricky pays close attention to what type of accessories you tend to wear and prefer for this very reason. if your ears are pierced, you’ll find a new pair waiting for you on your desk that look eerily similar to his… like what? nooooo he totally didn’t go and buy subtle matching stuff pfttt nah- ok yes. please wear it; coordinate matching outfits with him.

✧ also, don’t bother asking for the prices of these things. he’ll never tell you because he knows that you’ll pay him back and he doesn’t want that. he doesn’t expect anything back and wants to make sure that you understand that he wants to do these things. you also probably won’t want to know because oof scary.

✧ GYUVIN !

✧ omfg he will abuse voice memo privileges to hell and back in order to let you in on dumb jokes and random thoughts. gyuvin constantly has his phone close within his reach just because of this so that he never misses the chance to blow your mind with… whatever falls from his mouth. even when in bed. the voice memos range from “i love you so much i don’t know what i’d do without you” to “did you know you are always within three meters of a spider?”. you never know if you’ll be swooning or sleeping with one eye open with these.

✧ the worst ones come at night for sure; he’ll wake up suddenly, blindly search for his phone, string together a weird ass sentence that only he’d be able to decipher, send it, then knock himself out again and sleep without remorse for his actions. he should be paying for your icloud with how much storage he clogs with those messages.

✧ GUNWOOK !

✧ he’s classically cheesy in a way and sends you screenshotted song lyrics that describe his feelings or remind him of you. “#LiterallyUs” and it’s paper rings by taylor swift. can be unserious about it though. one time, you couldn’t hang out with him because of exams and he responded with “tell me why / ain’t nothin but a heartache”.

✧ there are times where gunwook will not only send the lyrics, but also a clip of him singing that certain part of the song. he mainly sends these versions at night from the bathroom, and you wonder how none of the others have stormed into the room and told him to shut up.

^ . _ . ^ !? told myself to take it easy and not post again this week but um... this is a heavily edited fic from my old blog @/luvjiun that ive been meaning to repost. hehe ok junjun out >_&lt;

© taeiun 2023. all rights reserved. do not copy, repost, translate, modify, or claim any of my writing as yours.

[lori11hen2ry]

Style Handbags for Any Occasion

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[bagmanufacturerusa]

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[slvttyplum]

choso never offically asked you out and you never offically moved in, you just… stayed there.

you and choso met in your second year of college. he was the big quiet guy that everyone was attracted to but he stayed to himself.

he was always in and out, he was the first one out the class and you would rarely see him around campus, you got lucky to have one class with him.

choso always saw you, you sat in the row down from him, he could recognize you from the cute little hat stayed on your head during the winter, and the way you was always bundled up.

he found you endearing, you were the same as him. you stayed out the way, did your work and only spoke to a few people.

so why not give talking to you a try.

he took the opportunity of having a group assignment to speak to you, his face red from embarrassment and not knowing what to say.

“if you don’t have a group yet, we can just start out with the two of us.” he let out bouncing his leg up and down with anticipation, not knowing what your answer would be.

please say yes please say yes please say yes please sa-

“sure. i’ll find the other two people.” you stand up and walk down towards the front to speak to a couple of people.

choso’s heart immediately slowed down from relief.

from that day onward the both of you grew closer, from keyed interest, family life, being able to enjoy each others silence, food, everything the two of you did with each other felt special.

at least to choso.

hanging out in public turned to hanging out in private. always in his apartment cooped up either playing games, eating, talking about people… or fucking.

the fucking wasn’t intentional, it kinda just happened after a night of drinking and just continued to happen.

after physical contact there was no going back, he knew he had feelings for you and you knew you had feelings for him, the both of you just didn’t want to share.

not because you were afraid the other person didn’t feel the same, but because there was no point, no point in complicity.

you weren’t aching to be his and he wasn’t aching to be yours, yet again if he saw another person talking to you he would twitch with jealousy.

that’s something only he knows though, he knew you weren’t going anywhere.

one night you showed up with a bag and he didn’t think too much of it until that night turned into a month, and the month turned into a year.

he didn’t even notice the pile of your things in the corner of the room quietly expanding, and neither did you.

you didn’t realize until your roommate finally texted you asking if you were ever coming back, awkward.

“omg i didn’t realize! i’ll come by tomorrow and we can talk.”

the next day you ended your lease and gave your friend the room, your roommate appreciated the approach.

til this day the both of you are going strong with no labels and you still living in his apartment (he doesn’t mind.)

he eventually got to telling you he loved you and you reciprocated it, but there were still no labels. how fun is that?

[angel-of-the-moons]

When you get the chance do you think you could write a Miguel x chubbyF!reader ?

(It's my first time requesting and I wanted to try and give like an idea of it)

Miguel saw the reader in the library and she caught his eye and he went on about what he was doing until he grabbed the same book as her and it just happened to be both of their favorite books and they ended up talking about it and maybe going to a coffee shop after?

The Very Grumpy Spider

Miguel x Chubby/Curvy!Fem!Reader

TW/CW: None

Taglist: @tojishugetiddies

🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷

Miguel was hiding away from the world in the most unlikely of places. It wasn't his home, or his darkened office at HQ, or the labs at Alchemax.

No, it was the library. It hardly had any foot traffic, and the libraries of the world were quickly becoming obsolete with their actual paper books in favor of all the digital files you could simply download online these days.

Which is why it was perfect for him to hide in.

It was quiet, almost no people, and his favorite reading nook had the comfiest chairs. Hell, sometimes he'd sit in the bean bag chairs and nod off a bit.

Today he was browsing the shelves labeled "Classics -- Science Fiction".

His large fingers drummed on the spines of each book as he weighed the decision of which one to read, his glasses perched low on his nose. It seemed silly, that someone who has superpowers would like something as simple as science fiction, but these books were a big escape from the abuse he and his little brother were witness (and in many cases victim) to.

It was also the library he'd run off to back then, too.

It was a sanctuary, a sweet, private Sanctuary.

Miguel was so warped in his thoughts that he didn't notice somebody was now standing right next to him.

Not until a small hand reached out and they both touched the spine of the same book.

An omnibus of sorts containing all the stories of a series called "Dinotopia" by an author named James Gurney, a little over a hundred or so years ago. Miguel as a child had silly fantasies of finding such a place and now the stories were a source of great comfort when the stress of his life became a bit too hard.

"Oh! Sorry!" You say, awkwardly snatching your hand back. "I... Er. Didn't know that anybody else liked... uh, nevermind."

You were... cute. Not obnoxiously made-up like many of the women he's met; you were very minimal makeup and he could even see a few blemishes here and there.

Your body was not rail thin--again, like most women he's known--you were soft, your clothes hugged your body in a way that showed that you had little rolls that spilled over the top of your jeans, your legs and arms a bit on the thicker side, and your round little face definitely set you apart.

And Miguel found himself quickly liking the sight.

He lowered his hand and shook his head with a soft chuckle, "Ah, no, it's alright. I'm surprised anybody even knows these books exist."

You smiled sheepishly up at him, dimples in your soft cheeks as you did. "Yeah... My grandpa used to read these to me when I was little. It's hard to find them nowadays and the copies I had got ruined when my apartment flooded..."

"I used to read them as a kid, myself." Miguel smiled at you as he plucked the book off the shelf, looking at the illustrated cover; protected by a dust jacket but the cover was faded with time, the pages slightly yellowed.

"They were a nice escape."

"Oh! Yeah... They--they are." You say as you watched him turn the book over in his massive hands. Hell, they were so goddamn big that the thick volume looked like a tiny booklet. And oh, did you try to ignore how strong they looked.

Miguel sighed and held the book out to you, "Here. Far be it from me to keep someone from reading a favorite, huh?"

You held your hands up, waving then a bit. "Oh! No, no, um... It's okay. You can read it."

You both stood there, blinking at each other in an awkward silence.

Until you both broke out into soft laughter and Miguel lowered his hand that still clutched the book.

"...We're just going to go back and forth about this, aren't we?" He asked.

"... Probably." You giggled, rubbing the back of your neck.

There was another pause, until you decided to break it.

"Um... well. We can... Talk about it?"

When he tilted his head at you with raised eyes you felt yourself flush. "I--! Well, I just mean that, um... Er. It's unusual to find anybody that knows about that series because it's so old, so, I mean..."

He laughed again, and god, did it sound wonderful as it tumbled out of his lips. He fixed his dark eyes on you and smiled. "Sure. I don't have anywhere to be for the rest of the day."

You swore you could see that his eyes glimmered a different color as he spoke, and your heart slipped a beat.

🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷🍷

You and Miguel chatted for what must have been close to three hours. You'd even gotten so close as to read the book together; or, well, a few of the stories in it here and there.

You guys had sat so close you could smell his cologne and aftershave.

Meanwhile Miguel could smell your sweet, cherry-like perfume. Hell, he could even smell your lip balm (it had notes of honey) thanks to his super senses.

He loved watching you move, he would often take his eyes from the pages to scan your form, looking at how soft and plush you were. He had the most intrusive thoughts about laying his head in your lap and just letting you run your fingers through his hair as you read the book aloud to him.

Oh, your thighs looked like perfect napping pillows...

He was gorgeous, and he found you absolutely beautiful. You were cute, funny, and quirky, whereas you found him intelligent, witty and kind when he spoke to you.

Something beeped on Miguel's watch and when he looked at it, he grunted. Lyla was asking him when he was going to just ask you out, because apparently she'd been eavesdropping covertly through his watch.

Yeah, it had been hours.

"Is that, um... A call you need to take?" You ask hesitantly.

"No, it's just my assistant checking on me." He turned it off and lowered his wrist, smiling again at you, and he felt something gnaw in his stomach when he saw your hopeful expression.

Fuck it.

"Hey... Would you like to get a coffee?" He finally asked you directly.

And oh, the little error-code face you made was just precious.

"Oh!" You shake your head softly, and smile up at him again. "Sure! I--I mean that is I'm okay with with that, and... uh."

Miguel stood, the book once again in his palm and he extended his hand to you politely to help you out of your seat.

Witty and chivalrous. It made you positively weak in the knees!

"But, um... are you sure?" You ask, following him to the check out counter.

He smiled at you over his shoulder, waving the book.

"Of course. After all, how else are we supposed to finish reading this together?"

[marlynnofmany]

Not Special, Part Two

(Part One is here)

Oscar Tennyson grabbed his purchases and hurried after the rest of his crew. As usual, they were walking quickly on their longer legs and bellowing for him to keep up. The teeth-and-scales Mighty had no patience for human weaknesses. Of which there were many.

But, as Oscar had just learned, there were some strengths as well. And he couldn’t wait to show them.

He scampered onboard before the door shut, wondering if they would actually leave without him if he dawdled too long. Probably not — who would handle their finances and hunting permits? They’d have to hire someone else, because they certainly didn’t want to do it themselves. But he didn’t want to test that.

He had much better things to test. While the stark metal walls vibrated with the engine’s revs, Oscar wove between scaled biceps and tails to his own quarters. He pressed the panel by the door, which was oversized and cracked like all of them on this ship. The Mighty were not fans of fiddly little buttons or keys. Not when they could have panels big enough to punch, which only broke sometimes.

When Oscar stepped through and closed the door behind him, he felt immediately relieved. This was his private space to decorate as he chose, without worrying that someone would take things down or make fun of him. Ship rules were clear about personal quarters. Oscar’s fake orchids and real cactus made the room homey, along with more posters than the walls could hold. They spilled onto the ceiling, lining it with nature scenes from Earth, sports figures he admired, media announcements, and a good number of fluffy kittens. This was the one spot on the ship where he could feel comfortable, and he was making the most of it.

The bag of refueling station supplies crinkled as he set it on his small table to remove the contents. A high-end store might have had Waterwill bags that evaporated after a day, but this place used regular old plastic. Inside were food cubes, bottled water, and the purchase he was most excited about: six cans of very weak caffeine.

He scanned the label. It was just like the other human had said. Tall cans in dramatic colors, but not much of substance inside. At least, not as far as the average human was concerned.

Oscar couldn’t wait until dinner time.

Before then, he had a permit to submit and several other things to check. The ship should be on the way to Argosha, which was notorious for welcoming outsiders in to hunt the Dagger Birds that were giving everyone so much trouble, but he had better get their paperwork in order anyway.

He grabbed his tablet and left his safe haven, heading back into the public parts of the ship where he could face taunts from any direction. Really, these guys were just like his cousins. At least it was familiar.

Fending off tiresome conversation — “How’s the weather down there?” “Why don’t you ask your mother?” —he reached the bridge and found a corner to stand in. The captain and the pilot were arguing about where to land when they reached Argosha.

“The main site will have more people to admire our ship!”

“The new one is closer to the hunting grounds!”

“Dagger Birds are overrunning the place; everywhere is a hunting ground!”

“Do you want to pay the damages for shooting a building instead of a bird? We can take it all out of your pay, if you want!”

“Fine, but if we land on some overgrown hedge and the ship is scratched, you get to pay for that!”

“Fine!”

The pair of them stopped yelling and sat back in their seats as if nothing at all was the matter, because it wasn’t. Polite disagreements were always held at that volume.

In the brief lull while the pilot manipulated the controls with more force than a lesser console could withstand, Oscar spoke up. “I’d like to come too.”

Both dinosaurian heads turned to stare at him in surprise. “Why?” the captain demanded. “One kick from a bird, and you’re useless to us.”

“Thanks,” Oscar said flatly. “I’ll keep out of the way. I want to take photos of your fighting prowess; I should be able to sell them.”

Both of the Mighty preened at that, as he’d known they would. Ego was big here. The captain agreed, and Oscar didn’t let slip any hints of his secret plan. He just finished working on his tablet, then retreated to his quarters to practice Dagger Bird mating calls.

The air on Argosha was breathable but hot, at least this part of it. Oscar was ready with his Tool in his pocket. (He’d gotten out of the habit of calling it a phone, since the Mighty were right in that it did a near-infinite number of things.) (He still smirked quietly at the potential innuendo, but it was a conversation he didn’t really want to have with giant dinosaur aliens, so he kept that to himself.)

“This way,” announced the captain, pointing in what looked like an arbitrary direction into the wilderness. Whooping with the alien equivalent of testosterone, the crew raised their blasters and tromped off the landing pad with Oscar following close behind.

True to his word, he did take some pictures as he went. But he was waiting for his moment.

It didn’t take long to come. The shouting scared off all the wildlife, then the Mighty found a boulder to crouch behind and wait for the creatures to come back. They played a silent counting game to see who was best at guessing when they’d spot something worth killing.

Distant footsteps on leaves made them smack each other in excitement, but nothing appeared between the trees.

Now or never, Oscar thought. Knowing better than to startled his crewmates, he whispered, “Here, let me.” Then he took a deep breath and let loose with his best imitation of a Dagger Bird seeking a mate. “Woarrrrrrk!”

While the Mighty shushed him and wondered what he was doing and started to figure it out, an answering woarrk sounded from nearby.

Then another, then, three.

Oscar wondered if he’d overplayed his hand.

No less than five large and eager Dagger Birds crashed through the undergrowth at once, croaking and flapping, taking offense at each other’s presence. The Mighty all roared and leapt out, firing in every direction.

Oscar dashed for a tree he’d been eyeing, the one with lots of branches, and didn’t stop climbing until he was out of beak-stabbing range. He held tight to the trunk, catching his breath and watching the chaos. Belatedly, he remembered to take out his Tool and snap some photos.

This was actually a good angle. He got a great shot of the captain aiming down the throat of a wide-open beak, then another a split second later when the beak snapped shut inches from his head. Another of the engineer shooting one from beneath. Two of the pilot tackling the largest bird and sinking teeth into the back of its neck where it couldn’t reach to stab.

Other species did their trophy hunting from a distance. The Mighty liked the fight as much as the kill. Their blasters were set on a deliberately low setting, and their teeth were sharp.

Safe up in his tree, Oscar grimaced at how bloody things were getting down below. He yelled another bird call to distract the one about to spear the crewmate who’d been knocked to the ground, and he got a cheerful “Nice save by the little guy!” which was as close to a thank you as he was going to get. The crewmate scrambled up and bit off a chunk while the bird was distracted. A couple of the crew looked like they were bleeding their own blood, but most of it was coming from the Dagger Birds, which were just as stubborn as the stories had said. Not one of them ran off. The last to die fell on top of somebody, which just added laughter from the rest of the crew to the triumphant cheers.

Oscar took a picture of the bird being dragged off his disgraced crewmate. That photo he wouldn’t sell, but would keep as minor blackmail if he ever needed it. Sticking it up on the wall to remind everyone of this moment could be a valuable strategic move.

“We are the MIGHTY!” bellowed the captain, and the whole crew joined in with a deep-voiced cheer. Oscar climbed down to more approval than he’d gotten in the last month.

“Good work by our human here! Who knew you could do that?”

“That’s sure an efficient way to hunt!”

“We should bring you out every time. That was great.”

Oscar took the praise with pride, not bothering with modesty. That was just another word for weakness as far as these guys were concerned.

He managed to dodge when one of them made to slap him on the back with a large bloodstained hand, which just made them laugh more. Luckily the captain directed everybody to gather their kills for dragging back to the ship, rather than chasing the human and messing up his clothes.

Oscar took a position on the lowest branch of his tree, taking a couple more photos as the victorious hunters figured out how to get it all home. If anyone had asked Oscar, which they never would, he’d have suggested going back for a hovercart, or taking them one at a time. But of course they did neither.

Definitely the type to insist on carrying all the groceries in at once, Oscar thought as his crewmates strained to drag the giant carcasses through the undergrowth. He hopped down and kept pace out to the side where there was no blood on the leaves.

They finally made it back to the ship, doing nothing to clean up the smears of blood they left on the landing pad. Oscar darted off to his quarters as soon as the door opened. The rest of them could handle getting the birds into cryo storage, or chopped up right away, whichever they saw fit to do. The lowest-ranking one without significant injuries would be in charge of clearing the blood from the hallways, but only after they’d all taken a walk through the water-and-air blast chamber that passed for a shower here. It had always reminded Oscar of a car wash.

He kept to himself until dinner, sorting his photos while everyone else dealt with the catch and the mess and the injuries. The mechanical medsystem on this ship was just as efficient as the shower. They’d all be in decent shape by mealtime.

And mealtime after a successful hunt was also drinking time.

Oscar usually ate in his room, wanting nothing to do with the raucous meat-tearing and drunkenness. But today was different, because he’d learned something valuable about the liquid they were getting drunk off.

Oscar considered the cans he’d bought, then decided it would have more of an impact if he just took one of the communal supply. So instead he grabbed his new food cubes and a premade tin of spaghetti from his mini-cryo, and followed the sound of laughter.

They were already a little drunk when he got there. Sprawled across chairs with a table full of meat slabs spilling over the edges of the plates. And as expected, there were tall purple cans everywhere.

“Heyyyy, it’s the little guy! Let’s hear it for the human with the surprise talent! Maybe you’re not useless after all!”

“Thanks,” Oscar said as they pounded fists against anything in reach as a form of applause. He leaned against the open doorway and shuffled his belongings so he could get a fork in a meatball without setting down the food cubes. “That was pretty easy where I’m from. You guys really can’t do that?” He popped the meatball into his mouth, casual as you please.

The Mighty of course, thought this was funny, and took it in stride. More gulps from their drinks, more savage mouthfuls of food, and a few questions about the surely-excellent photos he’d gotten, which would make them all look amazing.

Oscar said he’d share the best ones. These would make fine decorations in their own quarters, and would probably be appreciated by the right paying audience.

Then came the moment he’d been waiting for. The captain raised his drink in another cheer, and somebody noticed that the human was the only one without a can in his hand.

“Get the human a warrior’s drink!”

“Bet you he passes out after one sip.”

“Nah, he can take at least two.”

Oscar smiled quietly. If they’d been paying attention, they might have changed their bets at that smile. He set his food down in the hallway to free his hands. When one muscular, taloned arm offered him a can of their most potent intoxicant, he took it. Oh so casually.

Then he whipped his head back and chugged the whole thing.

“Oh! Human’s gonna die!”

“I’m not cleaning up the puke!”

“What the supernova! There are better ways to go than that!”

“Somebody drag him to medical so we don’t have to find somebody else to do the boring stuff.”

“Yeah, he was just getting interesting.”

Oscar ignored all of them, giving the empty can a thoughtful look. It felt like the same thin aluminum he remembered from Earth. And if there was anything his cousins had taught him, it was the proper way to dispose of a beer can.

He dug his fingertips in and crushed it against his forehead. Then while the room reacted to that, he wiped off the drips and threw the can across the room. When it went into the trash on the first try, he was internally very glad, but he didn’t let it show. Instead he picked up his food and resumed eating. “What’s the big deal?” he said. “Is that what you guys have been getting drunk off? How quaint.”

“How in all the black holes—”

“No, he’s gonna fall over any second; just watch.”

“Quaint, that’s hilarious.”

“He’s totally bluffing. Just wait and see.”

Oscar was enjoying being the center of the crew’s attention today. He made a show of sweeping his eyes across the various cans in the room. “None of you has finished a can yet, I see. Was that supposed to be strong?”

There was widespread laughing and elbowing of each other, most of them still clearly convinced that the silly little human was going to throw up and die any second now.

So Oscar set down his food, walked over to the table, and chugged a second one. It was a bit more liquid than his stomach was really happy with, but that was a small price to pay for the uproar that followed.

They exclaimed; they renewed their bets; they drank from their own cans; they got visibly drunker and abandoned their bets.

Oscar leaned against the doorframe, eating spaghetti and food cubes.

After one particularly unsteady crewmate tripped onto the table full of meat, and someone pointed out that the human wasn’t wobbling at all, Oscar said, “You guys don’t know much about my species, do you? Half of what I eat would liquify your insides.” He held up a food cube, eyeing the different colored specks of all the ingredients that made it balanced for an omnivorous digestive system. He laughed. “You guys just eat meat. How boring!”

They only got drunker after that. Oscar was pretty sure that the nearest two wanted to pat him on the back, but the floor was moving too much for them to make it all the way to the doorway. Somebody offered him a raw slab of Dagger Bird. He turned it down with casual scorn.

“Nah, meat isn’t worth eating unless it’s passed through fire. That’s weakling meat you’ve got there. Get back to me when it’s cooked brown.”

They loved that. The party was an epic one, only winding down when most of the crew was too drunk to reach more drinks. Oscar demonstrated his steadiness by picking through the mess to drop his food containers in the trash, then move back to the door.

“Well, it’s been fun,” he said. “I’ll send in the med-drone to make sure nobody’s going to wake up dead. Let me know if you want to get your tails handed to you by any more Dagger Birds. I’ll call ‘em in close for you again.”

He got groggy approval to that.

Oscar left with a smile on his face, and a mild amount of caffeine in his blood. Maybe after stopping by the medcenter, he’d use that energy on some exercise. Thoughts of the run to the hunting grounds, and the way his crewmates had paced themselves, suggested that it wouldn’t take much practice for him to out-endurance the Mighty on the VR treadmill.

I wonder what else I can do?

~~~~~~~~~

By popular request, this is the sequel to the story I posted last week, which is part of the ongoing series of backstory for the main character in this book. (It started that way, at any rate, and turned into a sprawling series in its own right. Fun stuff.)

Patreon opens the day after tomorrow, on May 1st! There's a free tier and everything if you want to keep up without strings attached! And you can even request more delightful nonsense like this.

Onward!

[onepiece-writting-forest]

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 3 - ꜱᴛᴜᴅʏ ᴅᴀᴛᴇ

Summary: In the middle of exams and a diet of instant noodles, you decide to order some take out. What you did not expect was your delivery person to be a hot guy on a motorcycle, who, as fate would have it, happens to be a fellow student at your university.

tags.: One Piece, Trafalgar Law, Law x Reader, NSFW, slow burn romance (?), Modern AU, law has a motorcycle cuz its hot, Penguin, Shachi, Bepo appearing as flat mates

a.n.: study date with Law, and Penguin spotting you two, getting on Laws nerves <3

[ꜱᴛᴏʀʏ ɪɴᴅᴇx]

Despite your brief dive into his social media, the little information you’d gathered did reassure you that he was indeed, a med student. His profile was private, yet you could read his bio still. It barley stated anything, besides a stethoscope emoji and “North”. You also looked through the pictures he was tagged in and saw some posts with who you guessed were his friends. In none of the photos did he seem particularly happy—his face always distant, never smiling.

The snow in the background, along with his clear mention of “North” in his bio, made you think he came from the North Blue, a rich seaport country known for its scholars and wealth. It left you wondering how someone from such a place could have financial problems. If he really was from there, why was he doing food deliveries while in med school?

You guessed that explained his cold demeanor, though you weren’t entirely sure. Maybe it was more than just his roots—something deeper, more guarded. Law really was a mystery to you, you had to admit…

With a quiet sigh, you finally stopped fussing with your outfit and began packing for the study session. You tossed your things into your bag, grabbed your keys, and headed out the door. After a few bus stops, you arrived at the small café where you’d suggested meeting up. It wasn’t anything fancy—just a place you liked for its cheap coffee and soft music.

As soon as you stepped inside, your gaze swept the café, trying to find that familiar face.

In the far corner, away from the bustle, Law sat with a cup beside his laptop, his hoodie drawn low over his head. Strands of messy black hair peeking out, giving him a cozy but tired look. His long legs were stretched out under the table as he typed, oblivious to the world around him.

You inhaled deeply, steadying the butterflies in your chest, and made your way over. The excitement buzzing inside you was undeniable, you’d been so eager for today that sleep had been non-existent the night before. Somehow, you hadn’t expected things to get this far—having his number, meeting up. Even though it was technically a study date rather than a real date, which carried its own expectations, it still felt like a big step. The label “study date” took some pressure off surely. You didn’t have to worry about impressing him with small talk or charm, instead, you could focus on the shared exam next week. The thought was comforting—less about romantic interest, more about surviving this test together. Yet, deep down, the thought of sitting across from Law, even under the guise of studying, still set your heart racing.

As you approached his table, you hesitated for a moment, standing there, unsure if he’d noticed you. At first, he seemed unaware, lost in whatever he was working on. But then, sensing your presence, he paused and pulled an earbud from beneath his hood. He was about to give you a cranky look, yet when he noticed it was you, his frown shifted into a mild surprise, followed by a faint smile that made your heart skip. He straightened up slightly, his attention now on you.

"Sorry, didn’t hear you," he murmured, reaching for his other earbud and slipping it into its case.

"Don’t worry about it," you said with a smile, sliding into the seat across from him. As you placed your bag down and pulled out your study materials, you couldn’t help but ask, "What were you working on?"

Law watched you for a moment, his gaze following your movements as you got settled. At your question, though, he let out a deep sigh, rubbing his eyes in clear frustration. His posture slumped as he sank further into his chair, his knee almost brushing against yours under the table.

"Ugh, nothing much really," he grumbled. "A friend of mine is writing his thesis and asked me to look it over. He added so many puns it’s basically unreadable."

You couldn’t help the grin forming on your lips, and didn’t notice how this first conversation made you relax quite a bit. It felt more natural to talk to him like this, as if you two really were just uni colleges. It was quite the contrast to the delivery Law you knew. And he seemed to be at ease with your presence as well.

“I really have to see the puns…can I?” You asked with a light chuckle in your words, as you leaned a bit closer in anticipation. Law rolled his eyes with a light grin and turned the laptop towards you. There were quite a lot of comments on the document you saw, and a lot of them just said “???” or “ew”.

With one slender inked finger he pointed at the screen “This one is the worst…”

You leaned in closer, your eyes skimming over the highlighted text. It read: 'In the field of marine biology, things can get a bit... fishy.'

You snorted, clapping a hand over your mouth as you stifled a laugh. "Oh my god, thats bad.," you said between chuckles.

Law shook his head again, a heavy sigh escaping him, though a grin tugged at the corner of his lips as he saved the file and turned his laptop back towards him. “Anyway,” he said, straightening up, “I’ll finish that misery later. Let’s focus on biochemistry now.”

For a moment, you wanted to ask about his friends, curious to know more about the people in his life and maybe learn a bit more about him too. But Law was already shifting gears, getting straight to the point. It didn’t disappoint you exactly—just reminded you that, despite how at ease he seemed, there were still walls up. He was private, and it was clear he wasn’t the type to open up easily. Even though he seemed comfortable around you, this was still a study session.

“Sure,” you said, snapping back to the task at hand. “Topic 8, right? I finished up those cycles... let me grab them.” You rifled through your bag, pulling out your notes and spreading them across the table.

Law’s gaze drifted down, scanning the pages. They were well organized—every chemical structure carefully drawn, names and enzymes clearly labeled, with helpful mnemonics in the margins. You had even highlighted key enzymes in a way that made them pop without overwhelming the page with color. He didn’t say anything, but you caught the slight flicker of something in his expression. Was that... approval?

He gave a small nod, leaning in to take a closer look. “Yeah, this part,” he muttered, pointing to a specific reaction, “it just won’t stick in my brain.”

As he spoke, he absentmindedly rubbed his cheek, before looking up at you with those intense, stormy eyes. For a split second, you forgot how to breathe. It wasn’t fair how effortlessly handsome he was—sharp features softened just enough by that calm voice. And here you were, supposed to be focusing on biochemical reactions, not him.

You cleared your throat, trying to pull yourself together. “Uh, yeah, this one's tricky. But the mnemonic I used really helps—let me walk you through it.”

Law’s gaze stayed locked on yours a moment longer than necessary, and for a heartbeat, the air between you felt heavier than it should. But then, just like that, the moment passed, and you were back to studying.

This was definitely going to be harder than you thought.

After hours of intense studying, testing each other with questions you thought might appear on the exam, you both hit a wall. The material was exhausting, and your head was beginning to throb. Law, who was usually so composed, seemed more drained than usual. He kept rubbing his face and leaning back in his chair, while you let out a sigh every now and then.

"Think we're done for the day?" you finally asked, the weight of your tiredness catching up with you.

Law gave a small nod, looking equally worn out. "Yeah, pretty much."

Packing up your things, you both stood up and made your way out of the café. As soon as you stepped outside, you noticed the sky had darkened, and the evening had settled in. You zipped up your jacket, slipping your hands into the pockets to ward off the chill. Law paused for a moment, glancing down the street in silence, before he turned to you.

“Where are you heading?”

The question hung in the air, casual but with a hint of something else. You knew he wasn’t offering to walk you home—Law didn’t seem like the type to make those kinds of gestures. But if you were headed the same way, it wouldn’t make sense not to walk together. Besides, you had to admit, a part of you hoped your routes would match up, giving you a little more time with him outside of studying.

You nodded towards your direction. “Just heading to catch the bus.”

Law simply gave you an approved hum.

A small rush of relief washed over you as you both started walking together in comfortable silence. Law wasn’t great at small talk, but somehow the quiet wasn’t awkward. There was something reassuring in just sharing the space with him, without the need to fill it with forced conversation.

The rhythmic sound of your footsteps filled the void between you, yet got distracted when someone from behind was starting to yell.

"Yo, Law!"

The sudden shout made you freeze mid-step, and you turned around, startled. Law, on the other hand, immediately pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly recognizing the voice and not being pleased about it. He let out an annoyed sigh, his irritation evident as he turned to face the approaching figure—Penguin.

As Penguin jogged over, Law’s annoyance only deepened.

“Do I know you?” Law deadpanned, cocking an eyebrow at the young man who now stood grinning before the two of you.

You wished you could run away and hide immediately, trying not to admit that you recognized Penguin from Law’s social media. A sense of shame crept in—stalking his profile hadn’t been your finest moment, but curiosity had gotten the better of you. And now here you were, face-to-face with one of Law's closest friends, feeling oddly exposed.

Penguin, unfazed by Law's sarcasm, chuckled. "Ha, ha, very funny. What are you doing out here?"

Before Law could answer, Penguin’s eyes shifted to you, his smile faltering briefly as surprise flashed across his face. Then, as if putting pieces together, his expression morphed into a knowing grin that made your stomach flip. Law could see it coming a mile away.

He glanced back at Law with a mischievous glint in his eye, clearly ready to stir the pot. “Is this your girlfr—”

“No.” Law cut him off sharply, his voice cold and final, giving Penguin a glare that could have frozen water. “What do you want?”

Penguin raised his hands defensively, the grin still plastered on his face. “Alright, alright, geez. Just wanted to say hi.”

For a moment, you stood awkwardly between them. Law’s frustration with Penguin was unmistakable, but it was hard to miss the closeness between the two. Still, the tension in the air was thick enough that you almost wanted to step away and give them space.

Law rolled his eyes, sighing quietly before shoving his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. "Studying and reading over your thesis. I’m not finished yet, though."

Penguin waved it off with a casual gesture, looking genuinely grateful that Law had even taken the time to read through it. You were surprised by how civil Law was being—especially after all the grumbling he'd done earlier about the puns. But he didn’t bring that up. Not a single complaint. This brief interaction gave you a deeper glimpse into Law. You couldn’t help but hope that cold, cutting stare would never be aimed your way, even though Penguin seemed to be used to it and taking it lightly.

"No biggie, take your time," Penguin replied, still grinning. Then his eyes flicked between you and Law. "Hey, you guys walking home? Mind if I tag along?"

You felt a twinge of disappointment, secretly wishing you and Law could’ve had just a bit more time alone together, but you knew better. Penguin was his friend, and you couldn’t exactly say no. Law, true to his nature, simply nodded, giving you no real choice in the matter.

The three of you started walking down the street, the night air cool but not uncomfortable. It wasn’t long before you realized you’d have to split off, your route separating from theirs. From their easy back-and-forth, you figured out that they were flatmates, heading home together. When the time came to say goodbye, the parting was brief—Law’s nod short and polite, Penguin throwing you a casual wave.

You boarded the bus, your thoughts still lingering on the evening, hoping you'd have the chance to arrange another study session with Law soon.

As you disappeared down the street, Penguin couldn’t help but shoot Law a sidelong glance. “So... who’s she?”

“Uni colleague.”

Penguin raised an eyebrow, a knowing smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. “You never meet up with people from your uni.”

“Apparently I do.”

“Since when?”

“Since now,” Law snapped, his voice a little sharper than necessary. “Now leave me alone, for God’s sake.”

Penguin chuckled, but didn’t push further, knowing well enough that Law didn’t like talking about his personal life. Still, he couldn’t shake the curiosity. In the years they’d lived together, Law had never met up outside of classes with anyone from med school. He always studied alone, either holed up in his room or in the quiet corners of the library. Law had always claimed studying with others was inefficient, a waste of time.

Yet, here he was.