#she's literally too perfect linke not only is she gorgeous - like the most beautiful woman I've ever seen

[cherrygarden]

if it's too good to be true then it probably is if it's too good to be true then it probably is if it's too good to be true then it probably is if it's-

[cower-before-power]

Naked Attraction

Summary: A typical day in your art class turn into anything but when you’re introduced to your nude model for the week- a devastatingly gorgeous man named Levi.

Pairing: Modern AU Levi Ackerman x F!Reader

TW: Nudity, swearing, suggestive content, age gap (reader is 20, Levi is 30), dick jokes, reader is thirsty and lewds Levi hard, perhaps poorly written stuff about art and drawing because I literally know nothing haha

(minors please do not interact, just to be safe)

Link to A03 here

A/N: Hello all! This is my entry for @ghost-party’s Meet Cute Collab with my darling husband Levi. I’ve never written for him before so I was a little nervous haha, I hope I did him justice! Thank you to everyone who reads, likes, comments, and reblogs- you are all wonderful and I appreciate your support! I hope you enjoy, my sweet potatoes!

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“Morning,” Jean greets you with a crooked smile and a steaming cup of coffee. It’s the good stuff from the café by his apartment, your favourite thing to help your brain shift into creative mode. “You’re later than usual.”

You grab the cup from him, sighing as you feel the warmth bleed into your hands. “Overslept. Barely had time to get dressed and brush my teeth.”

Jean’s eyes rove over you as you sink into your chair, humming to yourself as you sip on your drink. “I can see. Do you know you’re wearing two different shoes? And I think your sweater is on inside out. Why do you still even have that ugly thing anyways?”

“Thank you for your comments,” you roll your eyes. “I know I look like a hot mess and I don’t need any words from you, Mr. I Asked The Nude Model Out And Got Shot Down.”

Jean’s ears turn red, and he shoots you a dirty look before busying himself with arranging his pencils. “Shut up.”

You snicker to yourself as you set up your own area. Last week’s model had been a soft, pretty brunette that had instantly made Jean all starry-eyed, like a teenage boy with his first crush. It was generally considered a bit taboo to ask out the nude models, but he’d thrown that aside and gone for the kill after she’d slid back into her clothes. She’d laughed and patted his cheek like he was a naughty child asking for candy before dinner. Then proceeded to walk out and climb onto the back of her boyfriend’s motorcycle (but not before making out with said boyfriend for a good 5 minutes, minimum).

Jean had been left with red cheeks and no date, and you’d been left with great blackmail material.

“I wonder who will be our victim today,” you decide to take mercy on your poor friend and change the subject. “Most likely a guy, since we had a woman last week.”

“We’ll know in about 5 minutes,” Jean looks up at the clock on the wall. “Old Cueball is never late.”

Sure enough, in exactly 5 minutes your very bald and very punctual professor casually strolls through the door. A short man in a green coat is following him, presumably your newest subject. You crane your neck, trying to get a better look at his face, but all you can see is dark hair falling like a curtain over pale skin.

“Good morning class,” Professor Pyxis greets you, tossing his briefcase down on his desk with his usual nonchalant air. “I see you are all ready, so let’s get right to it.” He gestures to the person beside him. “This is Mr. Levi Ackerman. He’s your model for the week.”

The class murmurs in curiosity as the mentioned Levi Ackerman turns to face the room.

You swear your heart actually skips a beat.

Steel gray eyes observe the room from a face that practically begs to be immortalized through art. Every line is hard and strong, covered in clear skin that looks like it would slide under your fingers like the smoothest silk. Your eyes drink in his features greedily, from the regal bridge of his nose to the proud edge of his jaw. You decide your favorite thing though, is his cheeks. They are utterly cherubic, round and full and dusted ever so lightly with the lightest shade of pink.

He’s possibly the prettiest man you have ever seen.

“Hey, I know him,” Jean whispers, cutting off your entranced thoughts. “That’s Mikasa’s distant cousin, the one I told you she found on Ancestry.com last year. I’ve met him once, he’s got a stick so far up his butt, he’d need surgery to remove it. Never would have pegged him for the type to do this sort of thing.”

You vaguely remember a previous conversation involving Jean’s childhood friend and some long lost relatives.

“He doesn’t look that uptight,” you muse, too busy admiring the way his lips glint temptingly under the fluorescents to really process Jean’s words. “He’s beautiful, like something out of a Renaissance painting.”

Jean opens his mouth to reply, but Pyxis begins to speak.

“As usual, draw whichever side of him is facing you, all angles will be graded equally,” your professor plops himself down in his chair, already scrolling through his phone to find the playlist for the day. “Completed drawings to be submitted to me by the end of class on Friday. Please remember be respectful and courteous to our guest. Mr. Ackerman, whenever you’re ready.”

The man nods to your professor, already slipping out of his coat as he steps up onto the platform in the center of the room. You watch, mesmerized, as he proceeds to shed himself of his clothes. It’s rigid and methodical (he folds his clothes like he’s worked his whole life in a department store), but somehow oddly endearing. Every inch of his body that is revealed is consumed eagerly by your shameless stare, and you sincerely hope you don’t start drooling. By the time he carefully removes his final items, you feel like you are vibrating in your seat.

Holy fucking shit, he’s built like a god. Like Michelangelo himself carved him out of a block of the most pristine marble. You trace your gaze down the column of his throat, over the strong shoulders and sinewy arms, the impressive set of abs, the thighs that look like they could crush your head and you’d be nothing but happy about it. It takes a minute before you’re able to make yourself look between his thighs, and when you finally do, you have to looks away immediately. Good grief, even that is stupidly handsome. You can’t help but wonder if it would feel as nice as it looks.

Your face heats from your lewd thoughts, and you grip your pencil so hard it almost snaps. Beside you, Jean snickers.

“You okay over there? It looks like you’re about to explode.”

“Can it,” you hiss, glad that the ambient music Pyxis chose will probably keep your conversation private. “I can’t help it that I’m looking at the most gorgeous dick attached to the most gorgeous man I think I’ve ever seen.”

“You haven’t seen mine.”

“I don’t own a microscope.”

“Ooooh, see if I buy you coffee tomorrow, bitch.”

You stick your tongue out at him before turning back to your easel. As you move, you catch the gaze of Levi, his expression unreadable. Warmth creeps up the back of you neck, and you duck behind your sketchpad in embarrassment. You seriously hope he didn’t hear you, he’d probably report you to Pyxis for being creepy. You decide to lock all your stupid horny thoughts deep within the recesses of your mind, and take a few deep breaths to clear your head.

It works, and as you touch pencil to paper, the desire to create overflows inside of you.

Unsurprisingly, you become utterly engrossed in your work, your pencil sweeping over the pad with almost a mind of it’s own. Levi is the perfect model; you swear he’s not even breathing as he majestically hold his pose without even a quiver. The contours of his body spring to life on the page, and you can’t stop the joyful smile that blooms on your lips as you work. It’s times like these, when everything is so perfect, that you truly realize just how much you love making art.

Before you know it, Pyxis announces class is over, and you’ll resume with Levi tomorrow. The man of the hour begins to re-dress as your fellow classmates pack up their supplies and file out. You absent mindedly wave to Jean, who is practically sprinting out the door so he can make his next class all the way across campus. You’re still engrossed in your drawing, staring at it with critical eyes. It good, one of the best starts you’ve had all year, but now that the high of creating has worn off, you can see where you need to improve.

“You’re very good.”

You gasp and jump, whirling around to find Levi standing behind you, eyes fixed on your sketch. How did he even get there? You hadn’t seen him or heard him.

“Oh, uh, Mr Ackerman!” You squeak, your heart racing like you’ve just run a marathon.  “T-that’s very nice, I mean, thank- thank you very much!”

“It’s Levi,” your muse says, seemingly unbothered by your stammering. “Yours is going to be the best one here.”

You blink stupidly at his bold statement. “Did you look at all of them?”

“No,” Levi’s voice is firm, a tone that brokers no argument. “But you had the most joy on your face while you worked. That much passion doesn’t churn out stuff that looks like shit.”

“Oh, that’s only because you are such a great model,” you gush, insides turning warm at his praise. “You stayed so still and you looked so damn regal and you’re just so pretty and-” Your eyes go wide as you realize the absolute words vomit leaving your mouth, mortification slithering up your spine.

“I’m pretty?” Levi raises an eyebrow. “You think I’m pretty?”

“No!” You shout, and the man’s other eyebrow joins the first. “No wait, yes! I mean, fuck, I mean you are probably the most handsome man I’ve ever seen!”

Levi’s eyebrows have now practically become one with his hairline. You wring your hands, wishing the floor would just open up and swallow you. “I-well- come on, people must tell you how good looking you are! I can’t be the first.”

“No, but you certainly are the most enthusiastic about it,” Levi deadpans.

Oh, someone just put you out of your misery now.

“I’m sorry,” you offer, cringing internally at your complete ineptitude to hold a conversation with an attractive man. “I....get carried away sometimes.”

“It’s fine,” Levi’s stoic expression softens just a little. “It’s kind of nice to hear, actually. Usually I’m told I’m good looking, but ‘far too short’.”

“That’s bullshit.” you say vehemently, honestly shocked people would deny this man his godhood over something as trivial as height. “Who cares if you’re shorter? It doesn’t detract from you. What’s that phrase again? Good things come in small packages? Well, not that you’re small, I’m not saying that, I just meant-”

“Yes, you did seem to find my package....good,” Levi interrupts, and you swear you see the corners of his lips twitch upwards.

Your eyes widen in horror as your brain replays your hushed conversation with Jean. “You heard that?!”

“I’m told I have exceptionally good hearing.”

“Oh fuck me,” you groan, burying your face in your hands. “I am literally so, so, sorry. That was completely out of line. I have no excuse other than it’s clearly been too long since I’ve gotten some, but that’s no reason to make you uncomfortable. Please, if there’s anything I can do to to make it up to you, I’ll do it!”

“Have tea with me.””

Your head shoots up, surprise coloring your features. “What?”

“Tch, you heard me,” Levi tuts, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out his phone. “I haven’t got free time till Saturday-stupid Shitty Glasses wanting to trade shifts-but if you want to go out, give me your number and we can work out the details.”

You stare at him with your mouth open, unsure if this is really happening or you’re vividly daydreaming again.

“Umm, are you sure?” You ask, wondering if you should pinch yourself to see if you are indeed imagining things. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m wearing two different shoes and my sweater is inside out. Believe me when I say these sorts of fashion statements happen more often than not. Plus, I practically salivated over you like some sort of horny middle aged suburban housewife who hasn’t been laid in years.” You pause to take a breath, once again unable to stop the words from spewing forth like a fountain. “And I’m so awkward! I mean, are you comfortable in this conversation? And I can’t stop talking once I’ve gotten going, and I say the weirdest shit, and, and-”

“I like you,” he says simply, as if he’s just declared something as obvious as 1+1=2. “I couldn’t give a flying fuck about all the stuff you just said, you’re just... you, and I like it. So, do you want to go on a date or not?”

“O-oh,” you suddenly feel shy, your tummy filling with butterflies at the look of sincerity on his handsome face. You’d never met anyone quite like Levi Ackerman before, and you weren’t about to pass up the opportunity to get to know the man behind the drool-worthy muscles.  “Uh, yes, please, I would like that. Very much.”

An almost relieved expression crosses Levi’s face, and he hands you his phone to type in your number. You notice the time as you do so, and sigh sadly as you hand him his device back.

“Well I better go,” you say reluctantly, suddenly fervently wishing it was Saturday already. “I’ve got another class in 15 minutes.”

“I’ll walk you there,” Levi says briskly, slipping his phone back into his coat. “To make sure you get there safely. Someone might murder you on account of their eyes being assaulted by that garish sweater. ” The corners of his lips twitch upwards once again, and you grow warm all over, from both his gentle teasing and the knowledge he isn’t quite ready to say goodbye yet either.

“Excuse me, I thought you said you didn’t give a ‘flying fuck’ about my attire,” you huff, but you’re grinning as you quickly pack up your bag.

“I don’t care it’s inside out, but you have to know that is the ugliest fucking color know to man,” Levi says, holding out his hand. Your brain malfunctions slightly for a moment, until you realize he’s offering to carry your bag for you. The butterflies inside you whip themselves into a frenzy as you pass him your stuff, your hand just grazing over his. Handsome, funny, honest, and sweet? How is this guy even real?

“I’ll have you know, this sweater is an absolute delight. When it’s inside right,” you stick up your nose, but unable to stop he laugh that slips past your lips.

Levi rolls his eyes in an almost playful manner. “Doubtful .”

You’re not sure where it comes from, but a sudden rush of confidence fills you. “If you’re so offended by it, maybe you should just rip it off of me.”

The tips of Levi’s ears turn a delightful shade of pink. You’re sure your own skin is hot enough to cook an egg on.

“Wear it Saturday then,” Levi’s ears may be flushed, but his eyes flash with something that makes your spine tingle. The insinuation of his words has your gut clenching and your mind whispering fervent prayers to please please please make Saturday get here faster, I don’t ask for much, please!

“Only if you wear your modeling outfit,” you manage to say, trying your best to sound coy when you feel like you might combust into a pile of lust and giddiness. “I’ve never seen someone wear it so well, and I want a closer look.”

If possible, Levi’s eyes grow even darker, and you just know Saturday is going to be one of the best damn days of your entire life.

“Deal.”

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Taglist: @clovertitan @millenialfanfictionaddiction @stigandr-the-cat @axoxtxhxh @bowandcurtsey​ @chaotic-nick​ @manjiroarchiviste​

[jackrrabbit]

spank bank HCs /// Oikawa, Atsumu, and Kuroo x s/o (18+)

A/N: Been thinking about how the hq boys practice self-love 😏 Kind of a palate cleanser, I want to do this for more characters haha

Tags/warnings: pornography, masturbation, sex, edging, lots of mentions of different porn categories, Kuroo is a little shit, all characters are 18 or older

Oikawa Tōru

Oikawa has a weird relationship with conventional porn. On one hand, he’s a young healthy guy with an equally healthy sex drive, and what can he say, he likes watching girls get pounded

On the other hand, the kind of porn you find on sites like PH is always ugly men fucking beautiful women, and as a pretty boy Oikawa finds it hard to identify with. Like where is the justice??? How is it supposed to be believable that a gorgeous woman in her twenties is really moaning that hard for an aging male pornstar with more hair on his chest than on his head?

So he opts for the perfect alternative: camgirls!

He has three or four different channels that he bounces between. His favorites are the ones that are well-lit, nicely produced, high quality film and lots of eye contact. He never interacts or chats with them though, he’s kind of a lurker

Very very into solo acts and toys. You know those sites that let you control the speed of a girl’s vibrator by donating certain amounts of money? Oikawa lives for those. All his pocket change goes toward camgirls, it’s a real problem

Once the two of you start dating, Oikawa’s sexual needs are mostly sated because…well, he’s got you, and you’re a hundred times hotter than any random girl on the internet. But once in a while it’ll still happen that your schedules don’t line up or you’re on your period or it just doesn’t work out, and he’ll get pent up again

When that happens, he’ll return to his old stand-by channels. It’ll be kinda nostalgic getting off to girls fucking themselves with glass dildos or grinding on vibrators in front of the webcam

But the problem, the problem is that he can’t get you out of his head, and when he’s looking at “jasm1neXXX” doing her cute little striptease, he keeps feeling like he’s betraying you :(

So Oikawa bids a regretful goodbye to his old favorite camgirls, and begins the search for one who looks like you. The resemblance doesn’t have to be perfect, it can be something small—hair that matches your color, a moan that falls into a huff of breath like you do—just enough that he can imagine that she’s you

Definitely never tells you that he gets off to porn. Feels guilty about it even if you wouldn’t care ➳

Miya Atsumu

Kinda the opposite of Oikawa when it comes to porn. His preferences are extremely fuckboyish

Into a little bit of everything. Lesbian, gangbang, bondage, creampie, step-sibling, whatever. You name it, he’s seen it, and he’s probably jacked off to it. The only thing he’s resolutely not into is amateur stuff. Atsumu doesn’t fuck with that low-budget bullshit

Definitely not here for the storyline though—he’ll skip ahead in the video past the setup (seriously, who gives a fuck about why the babysitter decided to spread her legs for the the pizza delivery guy) so he can get to the good part

Into edging. To spice things up a bit if he’s got at least an hour of free time he’ll go through a bunch of different videos, jerking himself off slowly while he watches a pretty girl get wrecked, up until he feels his stomach drop and he’s riiiiight about to cum when he’ll stop. Wait. Let himself fall down a little bit, hold back, drop away from the edge. And start another video just so he can do it all over again

Atsumu doesn’t really know…why he likes edging. It’s very frustrating. It makes him antsy and horny and tense, so he’s not sure why he does it. Once when he was doing it, he got interrupted and couldn’t finish until ages later and it was probably the most unpleasant thing he’s ever felt that wasn’t physical pain. He was seriously this fucking close 👌 to smacking the shit out of the person who interrupted him (it was Osamu complaining that he was sick of getting sexiled for over an hour)

It just…feels good, okay? It feels real good to finally get to cum after he’s been edging. Jerking off every other day can get old, so a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do

Favorite category is probably public sex! The possibility of other people overseeing is so fucking hot

Overall, Atsumu has a pretty high sex drive and feels zero guilt about watching porn. Even if you guys are dating, he has needs and you’re not always around to help with them, so that’s where PH and XV come in

Absolutely not shy about it with you. Legit if he’s watching something he wants to try that he just saw in a porno, he will not hesitate to text you the link and be like “hey watch this n tell me what ya think”

Even if you’re not the type to be appreciative of his porn recommendations, he will still def take notes from what he watches and apply them irl. Atsumu is plenty aware that porn is unrealistic, but he’s more than capable of sifting out the good from the bad, and it helps him be…let’s say creative in bed

Want to know where he learned that new move or that extremely bendy position? You don’t have to wonder. It’s porn. He learned it from porn ◎

Kuroo Tetsurō

Kuroo tends to get in a bit of a dilemma because he likes sex and his sex drive is through the roof, but he Does Not. Like. Masturbating.

He much, much prefers to have sex with a partner—to be fair, who doesn’t?—but Kuroo will take it to an extreme. If he’s not able to see you, he’ll go weeks without touching his dick for any reason that isn’t pissing or washing

Literally...a couple months after you started dating, his family made him come on a three-week vacation to Hawaii and when he came back he complained that it was the worst three weeks of his life

“You were in a tropical paradise getting a tan and you’re acting like it was a war zone. Stop whining.” “But baby, you weren’t there! I was so horny, you have no idea, I thought I was going to die, I thought my dick was going to fall off—“

It gets annoying.

When he gets his hands on you after a decent period apart, he’ll be like “I saved myself up for you baby <3” and you’re like “um, ew, why are you so gross”

If he doesn’t wear a condom with you, be prepared for the fact that he cums a lot. A lot. You’ll be in the shower afterward cleaning up and it’s like, there’s more? There’s still fucking more???

You ask Kuroo once why he doesn’t like jacking off, kind of awkwardly, after a four-round fuckfest that left you too shaky to even hold your hips off the bed, and he pauses for a second to think about it before answering

“Well…imagine you have a choice between two meals. One of them is a gourmet steak from a five-star restaurant, and the other one is…hm, a McDonald’s hamburger. You can have the burger whenever you want it, but the steak is only available once in a while because it’s rare and you have to appreciate it when you have it. Which would you choose?”

Okay, fine. That’s kind of cute

It’s less cute when you guys are apart and Kuroo gets really desperate, desperate enough that you get 6 texts in a row from him at 1 in the morning implying that he’s in some kind of dire emergency

“babe”

“BABE”

“911”

“🆘❌⚠️🆘”

“please I need ur help it’s important”

“call me asap”

You call him all frantic, asking him if he needs you to call the cops or something. Is he in trouble? Hurt? Is there a home invader threatening his life?

Nope, he’s totally fine, he’s just horny and wants to have phone sex. That son of a bitch

If you tell him off badly enough, Kuroo will relent and make do without you. He will, however, request nudes to help him through this difficult time

Send thoughts and prayers instead ✷

[iriel3000]

Natasha's Blind Date - Clint POV

written for the be-compromised Summer Promptathon 2021. kiss_me_cassie's prompt "you were so hot that when you asked if I was the blind date you were looking for, I lied and said yes, but before i can make a bigger mess, your actual date comes up and introduces themselves and I'm so embarrassed"

It was a busy Saturday night at Lucky’s Bar and Pizza. Clint stood by the waitress station for the beers he ordered for him and Kate. While the bartender grabbed the bottles, he looked around and watched a group of girls walk-in.

Cute, Clint thought as the blonde and brunette walked by. But when the redhead followed, Clint's stomach dropped. She was the most gorgeous thing he had ever seen.

A mane of wild red hair framed her heart shaped face and hung past her shoulders down to a figure that had been carved into statues.

When she looked around the bar, Clint quickly ducked his head and fiddled with a napkin. Glancing to the side, he noticed half the men at the bar staring at her. When he dared to look over, she seemed to be looking at him and gave a little wave.

Clint whipped his head left then right and behind him but didn't see anyone waving back at her. He turned and suddenly she was standing right in front of him, bright green eyes shining with the most brilliant smile. Clint almost forgot how to breathe.

“Hi, I'm Natasha, are you Steve?”

His heart sank, she was here to meet someone.

“Sam said to find the cute guy who looked like he could be in the Olympics.”

Did she mean him? And was he imagining it or did her cheeks turn pink?

It took Clint way too long to realize he was staring at her and hadn't answered.

“Steve, I'm Steve.” He said rather unconvincingly.

Her smile brightened and Clint now planned to propose.

However, 'real' Steve ruined it.

“Natasha?” They both turned.

When Natasha said she was expecting someone that looked like they could be in the Olympics, she wasn't kidding. Real Steve was a perfect example of a supreme athlete.

He was taller than Clint with blonde hair, blue eyes, dazzling white teeth and a broad chest that had muscles on muscles. Clint suddenly hated life.

“Hi.” She said with a head tilt.

“Sam told me you were beautiful but, wow. I’m Steve, Steve Rogers.”

Clint really wanted to punch his face, but he kind of found him charming at the same time. It was annoying.

“Thank you.'' Natasha said politely and shook his hand.

Her smile definitely wasn’t as bright this time, Clint thought. Then he remembered he lied and tried to sneak away, but the stupid barstool blocked his path.

Natasha spoke before he could escape.

“You said you were playing pool in the back, right?”

Clint’s eyes widened. She wasn’t mad? He wished he wasn't so smitten right now because he swore there was hope in her eyes. He played along praying he read it correctly.

“Yeah...I know you said you wanted to play but I don't want to interrupt your evening or anything.” He gave her date a pointed look.

“Oh no I'm sure Steve would love to play, we'll be back in a little bit after we get our drinks.”

She turned and gave the tall blonde a winning smile. If she were his date Clint would have easily caved but Steve seemed put out.

“Of course, sounds fun.” He said tightly.

Clint grabbed his beers, flashed Natasha a quick smile and walked back to the pool room to find Kate.

He probably looked like an idiot almost running to the back but damn if that beautiful woman didn't wink at him making his adrenaline surge.

“Drink your beer and get the hell out.”

He shoved the bottle in Kate’s hand.

“What the hell got into you up there?”

“You have to go now. I'll explain later. Just go.”

“What? No! You said I could finish my beer. Thought we were playing another game?”

Clint looked back at the bar anxiously.

Real Steve and Natasha were headed their way. Kate made an understanding noise.

“Hi. Ready to play? Is this your partner? Hi, I’m Natasha.” She introduced herself to Kate.

“Yes, this is my friend Kate.” Clint overemphasized the word ‘friend’ and Kate rolled her eyes. “Kate, this is Natasha’s friend Steve. Oh, sorry, forgot to introduce myself earlier. My name’s Clint.”

He shook Steve’s hand and looked at Natasha. She rewarded him with that little smile.

Kate gave him a what's going on look but Clint just wagged his eyebrows.

Of course, Mr. Olympian was good at pool. He was probably good at everything. Clint tried not to scowl. He also tried not to stare as Natasha bent over to make her next shot.

Halfway through the game, one of the waitstaff came to him with a problem.

“Clint, a couple of the keg lines are down.”

Clint handed his pool stick to Kate and apologized to Natasha.

“I'll be back in 10 minutes.”

As he hustled to the cooler room, Clint overheard Steve comment.

“He works here? That’s nice.”

“He owns here. It is nice.” Kate defended.

Thirty five minutes and three clogged lines later, Clint came out to find Kate alone.

“Her boyfriend wanted to leave.”

“He wasn’t her boyfriend, he was a blind date.”

“Ah.”

“I’m sure Mr. Perfect probably whisked her off somewhere fabulous.” Clint grumbled.

“Where is more fabulous than Lucky’s Bar and Pizza?” Kate nudged his arm.

“Thanks, Katie Kate.” He half smiled. “Come on, you can kick my ass in darts.”

The next day Clint sat at the bar and worked on the previous night's receipts.

Actually, he wasn’t working. He was staring at the numbers not really concentrating. He wondered how Natasha's date went. How the hell was he going to find her? He only knew her first name.

Lucky’s didn't open for another hour but the front was unlocked. Clint didn't look up when he heard the door thinking it was Kate or one of the other employees.

“Hi.” A melodic voice greeted him.

Clint's heart literally stopped. He looked up and there she was, back in his bar with those big green eyes and killer curves.

“Hi.” He jumped up and pulled out a stool for her beside him.

“Thank you. Is it Clint? Or do you prefer Steve?” She teased.

He had the decency to look embarrassed.

“Uh, sorry about that. I don't think anyone has said I ever looked like an Olympian before, so you kinda had me floored there…”

She laughed.

The sound was addicting. He wanted to make her laugh again.

”I’m sorry we left so early last night. I felt rude not saying goodbye so I wanted to stop by today.”

Barton unclenched his hand so he wouldn't fist pump the air and embarrass himself. She had come back to see him!

“Sorry I took so long, it's bad enough when one line is clogged but three were down last night. Speaking of, can I get you something?”

Natasha looked down and played with her purse strap.

“No, thank you. I came here on my lunch break, I only have a few minutes.” She looked up nervously. “Are you busy tonight? I could come by after work and we could finish our game?”

Clint's eyebrows shot up.

“Yeah that would be great,” he paused and frowned, ”except Kate won't be here tonight.”

He was happy for one whole minute and then realized real Steve would be back too.

Natasha bit the corner of her bottom lip. Clint couldn't help but be mesmerized by the little tongue that darted out.

“Oh that's ok...Steve said he didn't like pool.”

She stood up and looked at Clint somewhat expectantly.

A big grin spread across his face.

“6:30? I'll have the cooks make their best pizza.”

Natasha smiled and scrunched her nose in the cutest way.

“No olives tho, ok?”

And Clint knew he was in love.

Thank you for reading!! Please feel free to stop by my page on AO3 to read other stories, plus the link to the promptathon is below.

[oftenderweapons]

Introducing the girlfriends: the looks.

Hello puppets! In this post I’d like to show how I imagine the OC Girlfriends in terms of face and looks, mostly in terms of fashion.

I won’t state how many times my self esteem abandoned the conversation as I made this post, so let me do a disclaimer before I make y’all suffer with me (sorry). These pictures come from my Pinterest board called “Simply incredible people”, which contains mostly photos of people that have very unique facial traits and that I use for reference. Now, ALL OF THESE ARE MODELS. They were photographed BECAUSE after hours of makeup and hair and clothes chosen perfectly for them, a set made up specifically to enhance their good looks, a fair bit of photoshop and unfairly good genetics they were put in the position of being beautified. Don’t think that these gorgeous folks are The Thing: I picked them because of specific reasons explained under each picture, and in my opinion all the guys are pretty far from dating perfect young women with perfectly symmetrical features and flawless complexion and... all of that. However, yes, in my mind they date regular, “unbeautified” versions of these women. If your self esteem can’t handle disgustingly beautiful models, then please, don’t open the “read more”. Also, you’re absolutely free to keep imagining your ideal girls and not check out this post, no hard feelings ✌️😘

However, if — like me — you are incredibly attracted to girls with pretty unique facial features, then do open. If you’ like girls, I’m sorry, you might have one (or more) new crush(es) after this post.

Now, all of the girls have Asian traits — because according to my plots and headcanons, (which you can find in my masterlist) the guys have always met their s/o while in Seoul/Korea and also because I’ve always imagined the girls Asian. However, I’m not saying that they like these specific types or looks, or that they’ll end up with a person with traditionally Asian traits: I am simply assuming in statistic terms. Also, since I write memberxFem!reader, they’re obviously all girls.

I only know two of the people inserted here (that is Vixen and Kitten). I might have accidentally inserted someone famous, however that was not my intention. Also, the girls have been chosen exclusively for facial features: there is no shipping going on between real people here.

After this lengthy introduction, let me move on to the real deal.

In case you need my masterlist, here it is! (Remember to vote for next prompt!!! Link in bio 🥰)

Enjoy✨💜

Vixen - (Namjoon)

— The face —

Baby face: yes

Doll lips: yes

Very intense, borderline scary, November-baby glance: yes.

This is Vixen, with her baby cheeks, her sharp, refined looks and a doll-like face that mixes innocence and seduction. Top that with deep red lipstick and artsy jewellery. Her eyes show ten thousand different feelings and her face is suitable for acting, being extremely expressive: every little sensation and emotion can be found in a quirk of the mouth or an arching of the eyebrow, a little curl of the nose or a pursing of her lips.

— The Look —

Total black winter look, basic and classy, thigh-high boots for her long legs, simple, plain bags and purses, and finally a long coat to keep her warm over her dresses usually characterised by a high neck and a generous slice of leg. But don’t let that fool you: her favourite looks are oversized sweaters stolen from Namjoon’s wardrobe — that obviously fit like dresses on her —, fluffy woolen tights or stockings and comfy shoes when they go on breakfast dates, but also thick jumpers, large jeans and comfy sneakers when they go for walks and bike trips.

Angel (Seokjin)

— The Face —

Traditional Korean Beauty: yes

Big eyes: yes

Soft pink lips: yes

Angel is the definition of Korean Beauty, looking young and innocent. She could easily have the face of an idol, with the purest of charms. And her cute bangs... yes.

— The Look —

Even though her job requires a total black look, which often means pretty flats, black trousers and a turtleneck, in her free time she likes wearing preppy looks, with lots of plaid prints and cute dresses that match Korean standards, with not-too-revealing necklines and a skirt that hits just above the knee. Match it all with cute, warm coats and small bags.

Kitten (Yoongi)

— The Face —

Intimidating look: yes

Angular jaw: yes

Plush lips: yes

Kitten has angular, almost aggressive facial features, characterised mostly by the rectangular shape of her face and her jaw, and quite jutting cheekbones. She has a rough, tough beauty which can be difficult to understand but absolutely charming to observe.

— The Look —

Another one with total black, but unlike Vixen, who likes coloured clothes once winter ends, Kitten keeps the black look all year round, inserting tiny splashes of colours with accessories and jackets. Expect a lot of turtlenecks and blazers for her work attire, but also fancy shirts for more elegant occasions, mostly silk blouses that offer a generous view of her bosom.

Giggles (Hoseok)

— The Face —

Strawberry blonde: yes

Freckles: yes

Too cute: yes

I’ve always imagined Giggles with a mop of messy reddish-blonde hair, may it be natural or dyed. I know the combo is pretty rare; still, she’s a fictional character so... a girl can dream.

— The Look —

A vintage mess of prints. She messes around with flowers and stripes and plaids and colours. You could most definitely spot her in a crowd. Even when she’s working (remember she’s a vet), she has very colourful scrubs and bright coloured clogs/nurse shoes. Overall too cute and tiny for her good, her being so small makes it easy for her to shop in the children department and find even more coloured, fancy prints.

Princess (Jimin)

— The Face —

Overall cute: yes

Gaze to command a photo shoot: yes

Borderline scary both in terms of beauty and power: yes

This small girl has the power to supervise everything, you can read it on her face (remember she works for a fashion magazine and organises photoshoots). Sheer calculating, organising force. And with a gaze like that, ready to make you wither and die were you to deny her, you see specifically why I chose her.

— The Look —

Smart attire, comfortable flats or slippers to dash from a place to another. Comfy, fashionable, practical. She’s always on a rush from an appointment to the other and she uses bags big enough to hold a skirt and a pair of heels in case she needs more elegant attire for a last-minute evening appointment in fashionable clubs and restaurants. She’s more than happy to play Barbie for Jimin, letting him choose how to dress her.

Lace (Taehyung)

— The Face —

Louder big dick energy than your ex: yes

A neck to die for: yes

Eclectic charm: yes

Honestly, I think Lace is too particular — strange even — to find someone who could possibly embody her. What made me pick this specific woman was her very incisive choice in clothing and accessories, but I’ll update her sooner or later, I think. As me and my friend said: you don’t find Lace, is Lace that finds you. (Also, if anyone has a Lace to suggest, please send links 💖)

— The Look —

Black tight dresses, all the time. Tight pencil skirts and anything that screams Fifties housewife; lots of robes, unusual cuts and premium fabrics — she is a designer and lingerie maker, after all. She doesn’t follow trends, she makes them. She is literally one of those people who looks good even with the most hideous, unfashionable things on. However, the moment she wears a silk slip dress, her power intensifies by a few thousand times — do not expect Taehyung not to get weak in the knees. In the house she’s absolutely comfortable wearing a robe with nothing underneath — and sometimes she doesn’t even tie it close. Taehyung is perfectly okay with that.

Candy (Jungkook)

— The Face —

Biggest smile: yes

Cutest lil nose: yes

Very squishable: yes

The small happy bean is a very gentle bean too. She is a graphic designer and a cartoon artist and it shows in her whole being, even in her facial features. I imagine her hair not too long, soft and wavy — though the most valuable asset to Jk is their scent. And look at those sweater(shirt) paws!!! Adorable.

— The Look —

First rule of Candy and Jk’s relationship is “my flannel shall be thy flannel”. Their wedding rings will probably be flannel shirts. Candy likes to pull them off with oversized sweats or coloured jeans. She also wears oversized sweaters — probably stolen from Jk’s wardrobe — together with leggins and mid-calf socks, especially since her workplace is not too strict with dresscode. She likes oversized and layered fits, using light cotton shirts and tank tops in the summer and fleece/flannel shirt and warm woolen turtlenecks in winter. Comfort always comes first. Expect her to use biker shorts and giant T-shirts and bulky shoes in the summer on her spare time.

An extra — since I’m sooooo gay for these two

Sora Choi and Yoon Young Bae are the two models that I immediately spotted respectively for Kitten and Vixen and the fact that they posed together made me super soft (I literally fell in love with both of them). Oh also!!! Yoon has posted on her insta the sweetest picture of her with a snow bear and it was like... a sign, but also so endearing and I’M SMITTEN, HEAD TO TOE IN LOVE WITH THIS SMALL CUTE LIL POTATO. She’s a cutie and Sora has the prettiest smile I swear to God I’d give the world for these two. *bisexuality upgrades*

Did you imagine them differently? Are there any of the girls that match or challenge your ideas? Leave your impressions in the comments!!! 😚☺️

[blue-bird-kny]

How bout a fluff headcannons sanemi, rengoku, genya, and an uzui with an s/o that's come home from a mission so tired that she doesn't want anything else but to lie down with them and sleep.

Uzui and more Genya all in one request?! Amazing! Thank you for your request, I hope you like it. Enjoy!~Amanda

Warning:Language

(1.7k words)

Sanemi:

Four long, strenuous days you were stuck in the Village in the Northeast. It was the usual situation: a demon was causing havoc for the people that lived in the village and, naturally, you were dispatched to go take care of the situation. However, this stupid demon had you running circles, playing some sick verison of hide-and-seek. You caught him of course, but not before he’d taken the life of at least ten helpless villagers.

As you returned home, your feet felt as heavy as your heart, mourning over the lives you didn't know but couldn't save. “I need a warm bath, a long nap, and lots of food” your wishful thoughts were the only thing keeping your dreary eyes open and sore feet moving.

You reached to open the door of your home, pausing to listen to the commotion that was coming from the other side. A smile came to your face, there was only one person who’d be getting into such trouble on the other side of the door, “and Nemi, I really need him to”.

“I’m back” you called, the loud clattering of pots and pans could be heard from the kitchen. You hurried over only to run straight into the barricade that was your boyfriend's exposed chest. “What’s going on?” you questioned as you tried to peer over his shoulder. “Nothing!” you yelped in surprise as Sanemi diverted your gaze into his neck in some sort of tight hug. You melted, forgetting your original goal immediately.

“Long mission?” Sanemi noticed your weary eyes and slouched posture, how you relied so heavily on his body to keep you standing upright. You could only hum in response, eyes already straining to stay open, maybe all you needed was Sanemi’s comforting warmth. He took that at his que to carry you to bed, you obviously needed the rest. He fondly watched as your body flopped onto the cool sheets, curling into a ball. He turned to leave before a small voice spoke

“If you don’t come cuddle me I’ll kick your ass”.

Sanemi’s smile grew “I’d like to see you try” he crawled under the sheets nevertheless, his arm involuntarily wrapped around your waist. Just as your eyes began to flutter shut, you remember something from earlier. “Nemi what were you doing in the kitchen?”

Pink dusted Sanemi’s cheeks as he looked away bashfully, “Definitely not trying to make dinner for your dumbass”.

Rengoku

It had only been 24 hours since you’d been dispatched to a rather large village just a few hours from the Demon Slayer headquarters, however you were utterly exhausted. For weeks, you’d been swamped with missions near and far with little time to rest in between, “Don’t these damn demons take a vacation? I sure need one”

Your sore limbs continue to run on autopilot as you are lost in your own little world; a world filled with warm sandy beaches or maybe a nice hot spring up in the mountains with an elderly woman (because they are the best) fixing delicious meals, your mouth waters at just the thought.

“Y/N!” a cheerful voice shouted, the sound resonating throughout the forest, bouncing off the trunks of the trees. There, standing in his full fluorescent haired glory, was your amazing boyfriend. You beamed, breaking out into a full sprint with a new found purpose: to be smothered by his two muscular arms. Your bodies clashed in a tight hug “Rengoku!” you cheered as he gracefully spun the two of you in a circle. You smiled gratefully into the crook of his neck as he gently set your feet on the ground.

You missed this, you missed him; the influx of demon activity had put a halt on the time you spent together. You both were barely home, sometimes going days without so much as a letter saying “hey, I’m alive”, which was incredibly nerve-wracking for the both of you in this line of work.

“What are you doing here?”

He smirked, his hands linking just below the small of your back “I was tired of waiting to see your beautiful face! Besides I have a surprise for us!” he looked as giddy as a child who’d just received candy. “What is it?” “I may have pulled a few strings and gotten the next two weeks off for the both of us” your eyes welled with tears, all your exhaustion and stress finally reaching the surface “What...how..?” you stuttered, unable to believe that finally you have time alone with the man you loved.

“The other Hashira may have helped a bit” his thick finger wiped away your joyous tears. He swept you off your feet, literally and figuratively, carrying you bridal style the rest of the way home. “I declare that our first order of business on vacation is sleeping for at least 15 hours, no less!. No training either!” you passed a teasing glace up at Rengoku, whose face slightly wavered.

“I’ll lay with you all you want my sweet, but how about a little training?” you couldn't help but chuckle, oh how you knew him so well.

Uzui

You were desperate to be home, back in the arms of your tall ass, but oh so lovable, boyfriend. To say that you missed Uzui was an understatement, you two hadn’t seen each other in almost three months. Your body itches to feel his long finger caress every inch of your skin as he so often would, admiring every blemish or scar that he finds. He made you feel so loved, so perfect.

“Not much longer till your home”

You groaned in annoyance, all you wanted was to go straight home but no, they demanded you give a full report of your mission the second you get back to HQ. You begrudgingly gave your report, your words left your lips only to be inked onto a scroll of parchment for later review.  You grumpily turned to leave when a boisterous voice called in disbelief from across the yard, “Y/N?!”.

You met in a passionate embrace, Uzui effortlessly lifted your body off the ground for your legs to wrap around his waist. Before you could even utter a word, Uzui was already peppering your face with rushed kisses. “Uzui we’re in public” you warned, this only caused him to smile wider. He caught your chin between his smooth finger, eyes demanding you every ounce of attention, “I’m sorry but my gorgeous girlfriend just got back after years of our separation, excuse me for being a little handsy” you snickered at his exaggeration.

“I missed you, you know” his eyes grew softer as they gazed into yours, his pointer finger tracing your features. “You wouldn’t believe how much I wanted to see you and half the crap I had to deal with. Some of those demons were almost challenging” you complained with a pout. “Don’t look so sad my love! Tonight, you and I are going to have a magnificent feast, filled with all your favorites!” he briskly walked  toward his Estate, your slumped body bouncing with every step looking like a child who missed their nap.

“You must tell me all the fabulous details from your flamboyant adventures!” his excitement was obvious to anyone, he was overjoyed to have you home and safe with him at long last. “First you and I are going to take a flamboyant nap!” your enthusiasm almost matched his, although it was almost impossible. He chuckled low and deep, the husky sound emitting from his throat quietly. He didn’t care if you wanted to spend the rest of the afternoon nestled in bed, so long as he was there with you everything was alright in his book. “Fine, first we nap, then you get full on delicious foods”

Genya  

You searched everywhere for that half-shaved head, slight agitated that he was so difficult to find when you needed his presence the most. You were attempting to surprise him because you weren't supposed to be home for a few more nights, but you quickly and swiftly took care of those demons; you knew Genya became distressed when you went on an individual mission and usually made life hell for anyone he ran into because of it.

You round the corner at full speed, running straight into the hard wall that was someone's chest. “Watch where you’re going you ass...Y/n?” his tone shifted instantly after he realized it was you and not some other idiot. “Surprise?” you looked up into his disbelieving orbs as they stared into yours, unwilling to look away. “Come on aren’t you happy to see me? I was gone for soooo long” you exaggerated,

Almost as if his limbs were being held back by invisible wires, Genya stiffly placed his hand on your head in an attempt of a pat. He looked away, too embarrassed to see your reaction as warmth coated both your cheeks, “Nice job not fucking it up” he almost cringed at his own choice of words but you knew better, what he was really trying to say was “I’m glad you made it back safely”

Your grin reached from ear to ear, both your hands coming to cup his on your head “Aww you're such a softy Genya! I missed you too” you cooed causing his blush to increase by ten fold. “H-hey what the hell are you..” he froze as if the world itself had stopped. Ever so gently, you brought his hand down to your lips, placing a small kiss on his open palm, “I’m really glad  all that fighting was worth it so I could come back to you” you muttered against the palm, your lips lightly brushing against his skin with each syllable you spoke.

“Come on” you tugged his unresponsive body behind yours, “Let's go cuddle in bed, my feet are sore and I really need some rest” you called. The poor boy gulped as registered what you’d said;, not only had you kissed and held his hand, but now you wanted to be in the same bed as Genya, he could only take so much in such a short time. You knew it didn’t really bother him though, he craved your affection just as much as you wanted his. Besides, Genya would do anything to make you happy and comfortable, especially after a mission, even if it meant cuddles.

Main Masterlist

Thank you for your time and patience, ik I haven't been producing a lot of pieces but I hope you enjoy these nonetheless. Just a head’s up, very soon I will be doing another Writing Night to keep ya eyes open!~Amanda

[queenofthefullmoon]

An exhaustive list of Dark Souls 3 bosses I would or would not date

Iudex/Champion Gundyr

We’re starting off this list with a strong yes. Our boy Gundyr has had a hard, difficult life, and he deserves some good company. He’s tall, strong, and I trust him to protect us as we set a lovely camp site outside of the fire link shrine.

Vordt of the Boreal Valley

Vordt is big and he is feral which are truly the only two qualities I look for in a man. Together we’d be unstoppable. I mean, think about how easy it would be to go around with him: just climb on his back and let the rodeo begin, baby. This argument alone should be enough to convince you that Vordt is a suitable boyfriend, but here’s another one: if you get too hot in the summer, worry fucking not for your gigantic man can hold his equally gigantic hammer over you and cover you with snow like an italian man covering his pasta with parmesan.

Cursed Rotted Greatwood

Now while I’m certain it would be a perfect partner for some people, the Cursed Rotted Greatwood isn’t for me. For one, I am not fan of curses, or rot, or weird sticky balls, or strange orange acid, or pale white and slightly viscous hands bursting through a living tree. Secondly, I feel like the crowd of Hollows who group up around the tree would be a big impediment to our intimacy, and I’m not ready to be the mother of 20 Hollows.

Crystal Sage

No offense but you’d be an idiot for not wanting to date the Crystal Sage. All wrapped up in one package, you get a super competent sorcerer bf, who wears the coolest hat in the galaxy and an equally cool cape, and who overall looks like the upgraded version of a plague doctor. In addition to that he also has a pretty rapier so you can both engage in some sparring (which we all know is the most romantic couple activity).

Deacons of the Deep

Probably one of the worst options on the list, they’re all crusty, rotting men moaning around a biggass coffin. There are many technical questions. If I dated a deacon, would I have to date all of them? Can we go out on dates or are they obligated to stay next to the coffin at all times? Can I even date them at all?? Not that I would, because I have standards. The only pro to entering this relationship(s?) would be that I’d probably get one of their robes for free, but the cons are so numerous that I’d rather buy it myself.

Abyss Watchers

Let’s be real and honest even if it hurts. Would I date an Abyss Watcher? Yes. Maybe I’d even date two. However, would an Abyss Watcher date me? No, because they’re all in love with Artorias, and I can’t blame them for that.

Old Demon King

At first I considered dating the Old Demon King like a Russian Instagram model dates an old, rich American man: with a great deal of fake love but above all great patience in order to be the only person on the will. But then I thought about it more, and what does the Old Demon King have to offer, really? A big firework show that will leave him exhausted like the old creature he is, and maybe some pyromancies. Truly, it is not worth it, especially since I’d have to take residence where he lives, in a big old room filled with the corpses of his kin.

High Lord Wolnir

I’ve got nothing against Wolnir personally, but I have no interest in skeletons, nor in his army of skeleton children. As stated above I’m not ready to be a mother. I feel like if we got in an argument and he sighed, he would poison me with his awful breath and I would die a horrible death. Also, living on the brink of the Abyss doesn’t appeal to me that much. However I would like Wolnir to be a good friend I can talk jewelry with because let’s be honest, the man (skeleton?) is blinged the fuck out even in death and I respect that.

Yhorm the Giant

Yes, I would date Yhorm. He was nothing but a sweet, misunderstood giant who always tried to get people to trust him and he convinced me. I would put my life in his big hands. Think of the possibilities. Just like with Vordt he could carry you everywhere but in a less reckless way if you prefer proper manners. You’d never have to worry about not seeing anything at a concert. Also, may I add that waiting for you to show up while sitting on his biggass throne is an absolute power move? Yhorm is a Lord of Cinder, but above all, a Lord of this heart.

Pontiff Sulyvahn

Would I date him because of his appealing aesthetic? Yes. Would I date him for anything else? No. Sulyvahn is absolutely terrifying, completely unhinged in the most frightening way, which is that he doesn’t look bat shit crazy. I could be thinking that everything is going well in our relationship then suddenly he’d lock me in a dungeon then would feed me to his weird friend because I put a fork in the knife drawer. He could pretend to propose and give me a weird fucked up ring with his eye in it and the next thing I know I’d be running in a field on all fours. I don’t trust like that.

Aldritch, Devourer of Gods

I’m so sad about Aldritch because literally everything about him is completely unappealing, unacceptable, unnatural, unholy, abhorrent, but he has the delicate and beautiful face of Gwyndolin. While our lovely Gwyndolin looks gorgeous as ever it doesn’t make up for the fact that Aldritch devoured people and probably wouldn’t find love to be a good reason to not eat his partner. The only reason I can find to have a friendship (not even a romantic relationship) with him is if you really like experimenting with cooking and you really, really need someone to taste your inventions.

Dancer of the Boreal Valley

I feel attraction, which means that just like any other being who feels attraction, I would date the Dancer. She is beautiful, graceful, a bit feral, and would not hesitate to put a flaming knife to my throat, which is the description of my dream woman. Imagine walking the streets with her, trying to hold her hand while it dangles 3 feet above you and she insists on holding her sword, actually, so she might slay anyone who tries to approach you, which she communicates through icy breaths and murmurs. The date of a lifetime.

Oceiros, the Consumed King

Another awful choice on this list, Oceiros is RABID and also, as far as we know, still a married man. You really want to date a man that hasn’t even gone through his divorce but already looks like this? Me neither. I’m already not big on dragon fucking but the fact that he’s all viscous and has weird growths all over him is not helping. Also, he has children, and we know how I feel about that — although, given how he treats them, he probably won’t have kids very soon (too far?).

Ancient Wyvern

So I’ve stated that I’m not very big on dragon fucking. With that said, do I think the wyvern is sexy and beautiful? Absolutely so. You’re probably like « Blue you’re sending mixed signals, are you gonna date the lizard or not? » and to that I say, date? Perhaps not. I would however like to form a lifelong bond with this wonderful force of nature and fight by its side, live a long and fulfilling life travelling along with it, only to die at the same time atop the tallest mountain in the world, where our skeletons will be discovers hundreds of years in the future by brave explorers, who will confirm that the legendary songs that were written about us were in fact not just a myth.

Nameless King

You’ve just read what I said about the wyvern. I feel like the Nameless King really understands me and would respect me for that. We could bond over our love of dragons and other flying scaly beasts and perhaps share some chaste kisses while soaring the sky on our companions. It’s nice to date someone who loves pets as much as you. I feel like he would be a fun guy to hang around in general, maybe he’d let you braid his hair or try on his crown. He can arrange personalized fireworks shows for you with his lightning powers. I don’t think you’d ever be bored around him.  

Dragonslayer Armor

Dating an empty suit of armor has never bothered me (see: ds2 Ruin Sentinels), however I have beef with the dragonslayer armor. Is it a beautiful armor? Perhaps a bit worn off, but the reply remains affirmative. However, it is controlled by Pilgrim Butterflies, which basically means I’m dating one to multiple of these things in the shape of an armor, and I’ve gotta confess that I’m not down for that.

Lorian Older Prince and Lothric Younger Prince

Here comes the delicate moment where we have to make a choice without offending anyone. I personally, speaking for myself, in my own opinion, would rather date Lorian. Reason: he is big, strong, and a bit rabid, which I’ve made very clear is my type. I don’t dislike Lothric, but I feel like we’d be better off as best friends who have a really snarky group chat where we shit talk the entire kingdom. That’s pretty good because if I even just slightly disliked Lothric I’m pretty sure Lorian would sense it and would not hesitate to murder me on sight.

Champion’s Gravetender and Champion Greatwolf

Well the full name is just a formality here, I’m not completely insane so I don’t want to date this rabid wolf. I feel like the Champion’s Gravetender is just a normal dude who’s a bit in over his head and it’s not his fault but he just seems a bit boring compared to all my other options. Instead of a date I think he’d be more of an awkward flirt I had when I was bored and then I came to my senses but didn’t know how to disengage, but in the end it worked out because he was more interested in his work anyway.

Sister Friede and Father Ariandel

Again a choice has to be made and I will have to be predictable and say I’d date Elfriede. Just like Dancer she’s what the woman of my dreams is made of. She’s graceful and could easily take my life and I think it’s awfully sexy of her to be like that. I think I’d be accepted into the family pretty easily, which is important since Father Ariandel cares about Friede so much. I’d go visit him sometimes, play chess with him, bring him his flail, normal interactions with your girlfriend’s dad.

Soul of Cinder

I’m gonna be a tiny bit freaky here and say I’d date the Soul of Cinder. Dating it is just like opening a Kinder Surprise egg, you never know what you’re gonna get (sorry Americans for excluding you here). That makes life exciting and doesn’t let routine stall your relationship. Every day you can wake up with the question « What weapon will my darling walk around with today? The flaming sword, or the sorcery staff? » and be surprised by the answer. Truly ideal, but I understand it’s not for the faint of heart.

Demon Prince

I’m gonna go with a maaaaaaybeeeee? leaning towards no. I mean yes, the Demon Prince is a weird fleshy flaming demon, and that may be a bit gross, but I’ve gotta admit I admire his style, the drama of it all. The care he puts into his entrance, the attitude in his moves. If we don’t date I’d at least want to be friends so he can teach me his ways.

Darkeater Midir

I have very intense and contradictory feelings towards Midir. In one hand, holy shit, absolutely epic dragon, the spirit of companionship is growing in me. On the other hand, this beast is RABID and pretending I could tame him is foolish, and pretentious. I guess in the end the answer remains that I don’t date dragons, I just want to adopt them as my extremely exotic pets.

Halflight, Spear of the Church

Yeah I’d date Halflight, I know it’s the easy answer but look at him. I mean shit he’s walking around like a little thotty with his shirt open and you mean to tell me I’m not supposed to wanna date him because he looks pretty much like a regular dude? My boy Halflight WANTS me to date him or else he would not show up with his tiddies out to a sword fight, which as an activity already has enough erotic implications on its own.

Slave Knight Gael

I’m gonna say it unashamedly and I’ll say it again: I would date Gael. He’s been nothing but helpful and when he tries to attack you it’s to help his little lady that he’s adopted as his niece. We love a chaotic parental figure. Maybe he’s a tad bit old and dirty but there’s nothing a good bath can’t fix and I’m sure he’d appreciate having someone taking care of him for once. Again, he’s got that slightly unhinged quality to him that makes him delightful. When I walk around with my partner I want us to instill both fear and fascination in people which we would be able to accomplish perfectly well.

Dark Souls 1: Remastered date list // Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin date list

[maknaesdancersrappers]

Devoted 2.

part 10

Overall warning/s: kinkier smut (eg. voyeurism, exhibitionism, etc.) character death, dark themes

Chapter warning/s: vulgar language, violence

Just how devoted is Jaehyun to you?

prev: part 9

wc: 6.3k

You, your mom, Jaehyun’s mom, Yebin, and Minkyung had arrived at the resort a little past noon and were immediately served lunch as the resort staff brought your bags to the room. After eating and resting for a bit, Jaehyun’s mom led everyone to where the wedding venue could be and visualized it for them.

The pathway to the recreational garden had butterfly bushes on each side that lead to a spacious circular area that could fit just enough for your target wedding entourage. There was a gorgeous fountain offset from the center of the area that had beautiful, healthy, large kois swimming about in the basin and a metal fence that had Chinese honeysuckles creeping through the bars that separated the area from the beach.

“What do you think, sweetheart?” Jaehyun’s mom turned to you, eyes sparking and hopeful. A resort staff brings over a tray of champagne for everyone and leaves after everyone has their own glass.

“It’s beautiful, definitely.” You looked up at the looming cherry blossom trees over the fountain, imagining what it would look like when spring comes with the petals filling each basin and flowing down with the water. “But I feel like there’s something missing.”

Minkyung took pictures for you on your phone to send to Jaehyun and for his mom to use as reference for planning. “What’s the color scheme again?”

“Pink and gray.” You answer, although a bit unsure if you wanted to push through with it. “Unless it’s too pink? With the cherry blossoms and all?”

“It depends on the shade of pink you want.” Jaehyun’s mom interjects, “I suggest something a bit deeper… like watermelon.”

“Wouldn’t that be red already?” Yebin curiously speaks up, already finished with her drink, hanging it haphazardly by the flute’s foot between her fingers.

“No, not literally watermelon red.” You explain, “It’s a darker shade of pink. Ah, I wish I had my paint swatches.”

She waves her other hand, “No, no, it’s okay. Just don’t make me wear anything short as a bridesmaid.”

“Isn’t the trend to use infinity dresses for bridesmaid gowns? That was my plan.” You walked over to her and linked your arm with hers. The sea breeze was cool despite the afternoon sun; it was a perfect day to lounge by the pool or wade in the shallow waters of the beach. You leaned your head on Yebin’s shoulder and sighed, “I don’t think I want to get married here. It’s a nice venue, maybe for a reception, but not the ceremony.”

“Then let’s go to my aunt’s place! I haven’t even been there, but knowing her, it’ll be gorgeous.” Yebin leans back on you, “She’s a landscaper.”

The private property was completely walled off with 2-story cement walls with vines creeping up from the ground. From the metal gates up to the parking space in front of the house were tall pine trees and the road leading up to the majestic water fountain surrounded by rose bushes was gray gravel. There was a woman that stood just where the gravel stopped and was replaced by ceramic tiles; she had salt and pepper pixie cut hair and wore high waist trousers with a simple tank top. Something about her screamed ‘boss bitch’ and you’re not doubting she’s related to Yebin.

“Eunyong!” Jaehyun’s mom greets once the car comes to a stop, throwing her hands up as the woman approaches her. They kiss their cheeks and hug each other, “Thank you for this.”

“Oh, honey, you know this is nothing. Who is she? Who’s the lucky girl marrying your son?”

Jaehyun’s mom holds her hand out to you and you bashfully greet her, “Hello. I’m [Y/N].”

“To be marrying Jung Jaehyun and having his mom plan the wedding?” She takes your hands and smiles fondly at you, “You’re a lucky girl. You must be so happy.”

“I still can’t believe it myself.” You admit, “Thank you, again, for lending your property.”

“Anything for the Jungs. Oh, Yebin! What a small world, you’re friends with [Y/N]?”

Yebin gives her aunt a kiss on the cheek, “We were roommates all our college life with Minkyung.” She gestures to her, who bows her head in greeting.

“My! I think I’ve seen you in a fashion show in Europe, my dear.”

Minkyung blushes, “Well, I am a model.”

After you introduce your mom and a few more pleasantries, Eunyeong gives you a tour of her property. She first led everyone to the 3-story mansion and explained that it had 15 ensuite bedrooms, 4 extra bedrooms, and the first floor was mostly an open living area with a luxurious kitchen and pantry to the right and an olympic sized pool, with half under the building and the other half exposed under the sun. She then walked through the marbled floors, guiding everyone to the garden. Like the resort, there were hedges that separated the grass from the sandy beach. Tall trees, among them were cherry blossoms, were lined along the walls and varieties of bushes and shrubs grew beneath them.

“This area is a blank canvas for you, [Y/N].” Eunyeong puts a hand on your shoulder, gesturing to the wide space of grass in front of them. “Tell me what the color scheme is and I’ll have the perfect flowers ordered so they’ll be ready by the wedding.”

“Pink and gray, but I’m still on the fence about it.”

“Don’t worry, dear, I’ll take care of it. I have a few ideas already.” Jaehyun’s mom assures you, opening the iPad she had and taking a picture of the landscape. “And if you’re still unsure, then it’s fine. We have months to go.”

A ringtone erupts from behind you and Minkyung exclaims, “Oh, [Y/N]! Jaehyun is calling!”

You had almost forgotten she had your phone, thanking her as she hands you the phone and you take a few steps away from them to answer the call. “Babe?”

“Hi, baby. Just thought I’d check up on you.”

“I’m alright. I was going to send you pictures so you can help me decide but,” You paused; staring at the open garden. Eunyong was right, it was like a blank canvas. You weren’t able to visualize it awhile ago, but now that you’re hearing Jaehyun’s voice, your mind just paints the picture in your head and it almost makes you tear up, “I think this is where I want to marry you.”

“Is it that beautiful?” There was that specific teasing tone in his voice that you would have rolled your eyes at, but instead you let yourself chuckle, eyes still fixated forward; taking notice of the waves past the green hedges.

“It’s perfect.”

After meeting with Eunyong and having a meal there, they return back to the resort where the mothers spent most of their day at the spa, while the quote-unquote younger generation lounged by the pool to get a tan. Yebin and Minkyung tried to plan a bachelorette party, but you turned them down, not wanting one at all. They all met up again for dinner, enjoying the 5-course meal by the window that opened up to the beach. Minkyung and Yebin fill the silence with stories from their work; Minkyung shares some runway mishaps and minor wardrobe malfunctions she’s had and Yebin tells them about the business ventures she’s been tackling. When it came to you, you expressed your concerns about starting your own company, adding the fact it stemmed from Jaehyun’s wishes for you to stay at home instead. You couldn’t help but catch the disappointed and worried look on his mother’s face before she covered it up by drinking her glass of wine.

When they all retreat into their suite, Jaehyun’s mom opted to head out to the balcony and sit out there. You hadn’t paid much attention to it, going to your room to get ready for bed, but when you’ve done your nightly routine and talked a bit with Jaehyun on the phone, you stared up at the ceiling, unable to fall asleep. You slipped out of your room, thinking Jaehyun’s mom must have gone to bed, until you were proven wrong as you see her still seated outside holding herself from the cold, night air. Grabbing a spare blanket from the cabinets, you walked over to her and put it over her shoulders.

“Mrs. Jung, you’ll get sick.” You quietly said, taking a seat on the adjacent chair.

“Oh, sweetheart, you’re marrying my son. You can call me mom or mother now.” She softly chuckles, “And I hadn’t realized that I’ve been out here for too long. I just remembered something, that’s all.”

“If you’d like, you could talk about it to me.” You offered, folding your hands over your lap, “I’ve learned the hard way that it’s not best to go to sleep with a heavy heart.”

“It’s nothing, dear, you don’t have to worry.” She looks over to the dark abyss of the night sea, unable to see the waves crashing into the shore despite hearing them clear as day. Every now and then an owl hoots somewhere in the trees. She looks back at you with a smile, eyes tired from the day’s activities, “How about you, dear? It seems like you can’t sleep either.”

You wanted to tell her everything; from what Jaehyun had done in college to the current issue at hand. This woman is going to be your in-law, yet she’d been acting like your second mother since you’ve met her. A part of you always feared she’d be wicked and mean towards you, but all those thoughts were thrown out the window once you got to know her more.

“I…” You started off, and her perfect brow just lifted up ever so slightly, “I know about Jaehyun’s disorder; the BPD.”

In an instant, there was shock in her eyes as if she had heard you wrong, but then it morphed into something similar to fear. “Oh. H-how did…?”

So you told her everything you could in the steadiest voice you can muster; from the incident in college, to the therapy sessions, to the threats against you, you told her everything and it amazes you that you were able to admit it without crying. You’re not going to lie; telling someone else felt relieving, especially since it’s someone who knows Jaehyun — literally raised him. You only stopped when you noticed her eyes tearing up and you internally panicked.

“You know about my son’s condition?” Her lips quivered, brows finally burrowed and a hand flies over her mouth to contain her sob.

“M-mother…” You stuttered, holding your hands out to her. “I— no matter what happens, I’m not going to tell anyone else about it, I promise—”

“Oh, sweetheart,” She quietly cries, “All these years, I’ve feared my son won’t be able to find someone to love and understand him. [Y/N], you’re godsent. You know what goes through his head… he’s shown you what he could do… yet you stayed? You still want to marry him?”

This makes you tear up, somewhat understanding the fear of a mother for their child. “I’ve thought about it for so long honestly, but no matter what excuses I come up with, I can’t imagine a future without him.”

She cries a little harder, hiding her face into her palms. You move to sit beside her, putting an arm around her and hugging her gently. After a while, you pull away and she looks at you with a smile. “Thank you for loving my son.”

“Thank you for giving birth to him.”

This makes both of you laugh as she pulls you into a hug, “[Y/N], sweetheart, if ever his BPD acts up, if  he ever scares you again, please come to me, okay?”

You replied with a promise, hugging back and feeling your eyes stinging at the sudden weight being lifted over your chest.

“Now,” She says, pulling away and holding onto your shoulders, “Tell me more about these threats. I can’t believe Jaehyun wouldn’t tell us about it.”

“He probably thinks he has it under control and I trust him. We don’t want any of you to worry.”

“That’s nonsense! We’re your parents, we’re always worried about you.” She scolds, “But knowing Jaehyun, he probably has done the most he can do. I’m sure this issue will be resolved soon… and I’m sorry for the things Jaehyun has done in the past. I wish I could say I would have done something to stop him, but his father—”

She stops mid-sentence, lashes fluttering as she realizes the words that were about to come out of her mouth. She inhales deeply, “You’re marrying into the family. You have the right to know. Most of the Jungs have BPD; it’s horrible that it’s genetic, but with proper therapy it would mean nothing.”

You licked your lips, already knowing this fact. “So… Jaehyun’s father…”

“His father and I were arranged to be married. It made sense because our parents were business partners so we didn’t have any qualms on it, his father was quite handsome — I’d have to admit that Jaehyun is practically the carbon copy of him now. But then eventually, I learned that his father had personally requested to have us arranged. When I confronted him about it, he chalked it up to him liking me but being shy around me. He first showed me his true colors when he demanded me to quit my work; I’m an event planner, I travel all around the country for my work if needed and he didn’t like that. He accused me of cheating and such, which were all false of course, but he just couldn’t believe it. He started getting angry, very vocal, never laid a hand on me though, but I still got scared. It was when we found out that I was pregnant with Jaehyun that he finally told me everything about him, how he was scared he’d inherit it. That was the first time I’ve seen him so vulnerable and raw. It was then I decided to obey him and quit my job.”

“I thought you left your job to take care of Jaehyun.”

“No,” She sighs, “I left my job because his father told me to.”

“I’m sorry, baby.”

You smiled, although your brows were furrowed. It was Monday morning and you were preparing lunch since Kyungwon was coming over to work things out for Yuta’s apartment. Jaehyun was supposed to arrive later that evening until you received a call from him and put him on speaker.

“Jaehyun, it’s fine. I understand. Work is work. Do what you have to do.” But you have to admit you’re a little disappointed his trip had to be extended for a few more days since he had to go to China to meet up with Sicheng.

“I’ll make it up to you.”

“You don’t have to. Just stay safe, okay?” You silently hissed when you accidentally touched the metal knob of the pot lid. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. Tell Kyungwon I said hi.”

“Okay. Bye, baby.” You glanced over to your phone and waited for him to drop the call before checking the penne pasta you’ve been boiling. Kyungwon had originally told you to come to the office, but you insisted she came over instead and she had no qualms about it. You’ve already laid out your laptop and papers on half of the dining table so you two could get things done quickly.

She arrives a little past twelve since she came from the office and right off the bat, you could tell something was off with her. She was still her bubbly self, but something wasn’t right. You couldn’t question her about it because she commented about being hungry and it would be rude to keep your guest waiting for food.

“Oh my god! So you’ve chosen a wedding location already? Ah! [Y/N], I’m so excited for you!” She squeals, vibrating in her seat so hard that the pasta she’s stabbed through her fork has fallen back onto the plate. “And a spring wedding? Gosh! It’s going to be beautiful.”

“Enough about me, Kyung. How about you? What’s been going on back at the office? Are the old employees back?”

“Yes. Ugh! Somehow they got it into their heads that they’re so great because they got rehired by the company.” She scowls, rolling her eyes and shoving pasta into her mouth. “But aside from that, it's the same old, same old. Oh! Eunbi from finance is pregnant with her rebound.”

“Rebound? She broke up with her boyfriend?”

Kyungwon shakes her head with a smug look on her face, “No, honey, her boyfriend dumped her last month.”

“Oh my god, is the rebound going to take responsibility?”

“It looks like it. She’s a lot happier — and good for her! Her ex was rude whenever he got invited to any of our hangouts.”

You nod your head, picking up your glass of water, “So how about you? Have you gotten laid yet?”

She uncharacteristically falls silent, eyebrows shooting up to her forehead as she avoids your gaze momentarily until she snaps it back to meet your stare. In one breath, she says: “Okay, don’t be mad but I slept with Yuta.”

You pushed your chair back, trying to hold yourself back from spitting the water you had just drank. After forcefully swallowing, you breathed in deeply and looked back at Kyungwon, who now covered her blushing face with her hands. “Whoa.”

“You said it was okay!”

“I’m not scolding you!”

She threw herself back on the seat and whined, “I’ve kept this secret for so long since I can’t blab about it back in the office. Oh, [Y/N], he’s a fucking god.”

You pursed your lips, “I don’t think I need to know the details about my client’s sex life.”

“Okay, but he’s a fucking god.”

You laughed, shaking your head in disbelief. “It’s either that’s true or you’ve been out of the game for too long.”

“Please. None of my exes can compare to what that man did to me.” Her dreamy smile slowly falls, “But we made it strictly physical and he seems pretty closed off, too.”

“Wait, it wasn’t just a one night stand?”

She flicks her hair off her shoulder and clicks her tongue, “I guess he’s lonely, too.”

“But good for you, Kyungwon. At least you’re getting laid.”

“Why do you sound like you’re not getting laid? You’re getting married to a Greek god.”

“It’s not that.” You laughed, “Did it sound like that? It’s just because he’s overseas at the moment and I’m feeling lonely.”

Kyungwon snorts, side-eyeing you as she takes a drink from her glass. “Honey, don’t tell me you solely depend on Jaehyun to get off.”

“I—” You feel your face heat up. Come to think of it, you haven’t masturbated in a while. You’ve touched yourself, but those were in front of him and he’d never let you come undone with your fingers alone. “Well, no, I don’t. I can do it on my own, but it’s just not gratifying.”

“Is it bad that I’m curious what he’s like in bed?”

“Only if you try to find out.”

“God, no, of course not.” She recoils, “Just one of the many curiosities I have that I won’t act on. This thing with Yuta is a weekly thing, you know. Unless he calls me.”

You finish your meal, “You’re a booty call.”

“I’d do anything for that dick.”

“Hey, he’s our client, remember. Don’t get hypnotized by the dick.”

“Oh, [Y/N], if you only knew.” She lets out a dreamy sigh and you laugh, throwing your napkin at her.

“I don’t plan to. Get your head out of his pants, we have to work on his apartment.”

After putting away your dishes, you and Kyungwon began to work; making final checks for orders and deliveries, browsing for more design pieces, and the likes. It took longer than you two expected, extending up two hours than what you had originally planned. You finally decided to stop when you spy from the corner of your eye Kyungwon stifling a yawn, uploading all your work onto the shared drive between the three of you before stretching your arms upwards.

“Are you hungry?”

“Please tell me you have some good ol’ ramen in your pantry.”

You scoffed, “Of course, I do. I’ll go make some right now.”

You have the ramen cooked and ready for consumption in no time; each of you had a full bowl with a few side dishes you were able to put together while the water boiled. Instead of work, you and Kyungwon talked about your new house; told her about the materials you wanted, your plans for each room, the layout, and she even offered her own insight that you considered.

“4 bedrooms on the second floor?”

“Well, 3 bedrooms and the nursery. The fourth room will be turned to a walk-in closet for me and Jaehyun to share.”

“Oh my god, that would be a dream to design!”

You purse your lips, “Well, the two extra rooms are for our future kids. I’m sure they’ll want to renovate as they grow older. Would you like to work on their rooms when the time comes?”

She fakes a gasp, covering her mouth, “I would be honored! But gosh, when’s this happening? In 20 years?”

Both of you laugh as you finish your noodles. Kyungwon offered to do the dishes, but you refused, and fortunately, she received a call from a different client that forced her to leave. She thanked you for the day and you walked to the door, where both of you were surprised to see Hyunwoo about to ring the bell.

“Good evening, ma’am. These came in for you.” He smiles, holding out the flowers and teddy bear.

“Oh, thank you.” You glanced at Kyungwon, showing your confusion at the situation.

“I’m totally not jealous that your fiance sent you apology gifts for not coming home today.” She shrugs her shoulders, feeling the teddy bear’s ear between her fingertips. “But I’m oddly really happy for you. See you soon, [Y/N].”

You kiss her cheek and wave her goodbye, “See you, Kyungwon.”

After they leave, you heaved a sigh and inspected the gifts. Red roses, like always, and a pretty hefty teddy bear. You thought it was odd, but Jaehyun has his cheesy moments, excusing the teddy bear as a stand in for himself so you won’t get lonely until he gets home. You walk back to the dining table to put the gifts down and pick up your phone, dialling his number to thank him, but the call wouldn’t connect. He’s either on the plane already or he doesn’t have a signal. Instead, you put the flowers in a vase and placed it on the dining table as a centerpiece.

Before having a late dinner of some scrambled eggs and spam, you worked on both the interior of the mansion and looking for a wedding gown inspo. Sooyeon told you to prepare what you had in mind for a wedding gown and she’ll hook you up with any of the top wedding dress designers in the industry. You’re torn between empire and A-line dresses, liking both fits on your body but couldn’t decide which is better for the theme. You also didn’t know if you wanted lace or tulle, what type of neckline, the accents, etc. All the dresses looked so good and you already know not to bring it up to Jaehyun because he’ll make some bullshit excuse to buy all of them. Although you don’t mind having different dresses; like changing into something more simple for the reception. You were also concerned about what shoes to wear since it’s a garden wedding, you wouldn’t be able to wear heels that you would have preferred. 

You have a shower before heading to bed, taking your time in lathering your body with lavender-scented body wash to help you relax. After breezing through your nighttime routine, you walked out to the bed while tugging your hair loose from the haphazardly tied bun you put in. Seeing the empty bed reminded you of the teddy bear you had received earlier and you quickly went out of the room to grab it on the dining table to retrieve it. You weren’t really going to sleep with it, but you’d like to put it on the accent chair you had on the opposite side of the room.

Your phone rings just as you were about to put on some lotion and you smile to yourself seeing Jaehyun’s name. You put him on loudspeaker, “Hi, baby.”

“Hi, baby.” His voice drawls, “Sorry I couldn’t pick up earlier. I was on the plane and I couldn’t get to you when I landed because Sicheng and his friends took me to a bar.”

“Jaehyun, baby, are you drunk right now?”

“No, baby, just a little tipsy. Did you get my little gift? Toss the old flowers out.”

“You didn’t have to, but thanks.” You hummed, unscrewing the cap of your favorite body butter tin. “Where are you now?”

“Don’t worry, I’m already at my hotel room. I wanted to hear your voice before I go to sleep.”

“I miss you.”

“I miss you, too.” He pauses on the other side of the line and you hear what sounded like him getting into bed, “Were you about to go to sleep, too?”

“Yeah, I’m just putting lotion on.”

A long, low moan echoes from your phone and you halt your movements. A tipsy, lonely Jaehyun could only mean one thing.

“Baby, can we video call?”

The next two days were uneventful; you visited the mansion to oversee the renovations being done and was pleased to see it going smoothly as it was exactly as you envisioned it. Other than that, you also spent a lot of time going through IKEA and other home decor stores, picking out possible pieces you’d purchase. It’s still a stressful thought to think you have an entire mansion to design AND you get to live in it. Whenever you had clients for projects like these, you always mused to yourself how you would like it if you were the one living in the said space but now that the time has come, you’re overwhelmed.

Just as you got home, you get a call from Jaehyun.

“Hi, baby.”

“Hey. I just got home.” You closed the door and locked it, while kicking your shoes off.

“Oh, good. Could you do me a favor? There’s an important file on my computer that I forgot to upload to the drive. Do you mind sending it to Sicheng using my email?”

“Sure, which file is it?”

As Jaehyun explains the file to you, you made your way to his office and flipped the light switch on. Plopping yourself down on his chair, you powered up his computer and waited for it to start. Meanwhile, you two updated each other of your days and plans for tomorrow.

“Okay, I found the file. What’s Sicheng’s email?” You typed in the address after Jaehyun dictates and clicked send. “Done! Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?”

Jaehyun chuckles, whispering into the phone, “You can be ready in bed when I come home on Friday.”

“Alright, sir.” You purred, leaning back on his chair. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. See you on Friday.”

After hanging up, you reach for the mouse to turn the computer off until your eyes gloss over the name ‘Jeong Yoonoh’ as one of the names listed in Jaehyun’s mailboxes. You remember seeing it a few weeks ago and it completely left your mind, but now you’re curious about it. Your bottom lip is caught between your teeth; it’s wrong to snoop around Jaehyun’s email like this, but you give into temptation anyway.

A relieved and incredulous sigh leaves you when you spot the prominent subject and sender, even letting out a little chuckle when you see the dates of the emails. This was Jaehyun’s burner email for porn sites back when he was in high school. You wanted to tease him about it so badly, but then you had to tell him that you were snooping around in his computer. Other emails looked like spam that came with signing up for the porn sites so you didn’t pay much attention since most of them involved viagra, online dating, and the likes. You were about to click out to hide evidence of your snooping around until you read the sender’s name: Detective Go Hyunmo of Gangnam P.I. Agency. You thought it was odd, but maybe it was spam like the rest, unless this email got caught accessing porn sites. It didn’t have a subject so you couldn’t really tell, but you still didn't open it and closed the computer after clicking out of the browser. As you switched the lights off and closed Jaehyun’s office door behind you, you can’t help but feel like you’ve heard Gangnam P.I. Agency before.

Jaehyun comes home today and you feel like a child waiting for their parents who’d been away for too long. He said he’ll be dropping some documents at the office and will be home after lunch. As he requested two days ago, you were going to be ready in bed for him when he returns and that means a tedious DIY spa session after you had breakfast. Once you were showered, exfoliated, and moisturized, you put on the new lingerie set you bought yesterday; a black sheer bra that had crocheted flowers and matching crotchless panties that had a string of pearls that ran right over your slit. It felt incredibly embarrassing when you tried it on, especially when the pearls move along your clit every time you moved.

“Honey, I’m home!” You hear outside the room just before the door closes. You booked out of the walk-in closet and ran, as quietly as you can, back into the bedroom, sparing a glance down the hallway to make sure Jaehyun doesn’t catch you. You ungracefully flung yourself to the bed, scrambling to find a position to present yourself to him, but you accidentally elbowed your phone off and it makes a loud thud on the floor.

“[Y/N]?”

Cussing under your breath, you stretch your arm out to grab your phone to put on the nightstand but then you hear a long whistle that makes you drop it again. You whipped your attention to Jaehyun, who now stood at the door frame with the first few buttons of his dress shirt already undone, and you smiled, “Welcome home?”

“Wow.” He drawls, dragging his eyes down your body, “When I said be ready for me, you really took it a step further. Is that new?”

“I got it yesterday.” You leaned back on your arms, folding your legs a little, “It’s a little more special than the others.”

“How so?” He takes slow steps towards you, tossing his blazer off.

Peeling your legs apart, you spread them out for him to see just what you were talking. You feel heat rising to your cheeks as Jaehyun’s eyes stared at your pearls and his tongue just darted out of his lips. An easy smile grows on his face, walking up to the bed and running a hand over your inner thigh.

“Damn, I didn’t know pearls looked good on you.” He runs a finger over the shiny beads, “But nothing can compare to my favorite pearl.”

Pushing the pearls aside, he presses your clit with his thumb and your hips instinctively buck upwards to meet his touch. He keeps his thumb on your clit while he runs two fingers between your pussy in a languid manner.

“You look so good, baby.” Jaehyun leans down to kiss the spot above your navel. “I hope you’re ready for me.”

“Always.” 

He pulls away to remove his belt and as he does so, his eyes flutter to the other side of the room and he cocks his head, “You bought a teddy bear? Were you that lonely when I was gone?”

“What?” You sit up, glancing at the stuffed toy, “You got me that. It came with the roses.”

Jaehyun looks back at you, face completely stoic, before stepping away to walk over to the item in question.

“Jaehyun?”

He picks the toy up and inspects it, turning it over a few times until he squints at the bear’s beady eyes. A low growl escapes him as he closes his fist around the toy’s head and rips it away from the body, the distinct sound of thread snapping and cloth ripping filling the silence of the room.

“Jaehyun, what the fuck?” You scoot over the edge of the bed, ready to stop him until he swiftly turns back to you. His expression sends shivers down your spine; you’ve seen that look before and you can’t believe you’re seeing it again.

“I never gave you this fucking bear, [Y/N].” He hurls the decapitated head to the side with so much force that the cotton filled toy makes a resounding thud against the wall. He forces his hand inside the bear’s head and takes out a small black cube. “There’s a fucking camera in it’s head. Who handed these to you?”

“H-Hyunwoo did… Wait, Jaehyun, can we—”

He slams the camera onto the floor, breaking it into pieces, before storming out the bedroom. You were frozen from flinching at his outburst that it took you awhile to collect yourself, scrambling off the bed to grab his discarded blazer and running out after him.

“Jae, wait!” You yelled, slipping his jacket on and clutching it close over your chest.

“Hyunwoo, did the flowers I had delivered here last Monday come with a teddy bear?” Jaehyun was on his phone, pacing by the couch. “It came separately? Which came first? The flowers? Fucking— go find out who delivered them and report back to me ASAP.”

He ends the call and angrily throws his cellphone to the floor, rubbing his forehead with his fingers.

“Baby…” You silently gulped, approaching him cautiously; you don’t know what to say, however, completely at a loss for words at the revelation. “What’s happening?”

Jaehyun still doesn’t look at you when he tears his hand away and puts them to his hips, glaring down at wilting begonias. In a split second, he grabs the pot and hurls it across the room; shards of clay, dirt, leaves, and petals exploding against the wall. You gasped, instinctively hugging yourself to block off any debris in case it reached you.

“Jaehyun, what the fuck?!”

“I didn’t give you that damn plant and I didn’t give you that fucking bear either!” He yelled, nose flaring and veins popping out of his neck. “I don’t know who the fuck this shithead is, but I’m going find and kill him.”

He starts walking to the front door with wide steps, fixing the belt he had previously undone.

“Jaehyun, wait!” Your chest clenches in panic, “Jaehyun!”

When he was a few more paces away from the door, you gave one last scream of his name; you’re sure your neighbors heard you and are a phone call away from the police if they also heard the things Jaehyun had thrown around. He looks back at you, still visibly infuriated at the situation, but his expression softens into concern when he sees your face.

You don’t know when you started crying, but you were suddenly aware of it when a few tears dropped onto your hand that still clutched onto his blazer. “Why didn’t you tell me you weren’t the one who gave the begonias?”

“I—I didn’t want you to panic…” He licks his lips, fully turning his body to face you.

“A-and now… and now w-we just found out that I was being… being secretly recorded for—for d-days,” Your vision starts to blur as fresh tears spring from your eyes, “And you’re just going to leave — again?”

He looks absolutely crushed to see you like this, “Y-you’re right. I’m sorry — no, okay, I won’t leave, come here.”

He wraps his arms around you, squeezing you tight and repeatedly kissing the top of your head while you hide your face in his chest to sob.

“What do they want with me?”

“No, I don’t think they’re after you, baby.” Jaehyun whispers, still kissing your hair while running his hand down your back to console you. “I think they’re after me.”

This doesn’t make you feel any better. You cry a little harder, body shaking in his hold as you looped your arms around his waist. Jaehyun’s enemies are your enemies, if he truly had any. This should have been common knowledge to you already. It’s no secret how important you are to him and it only makes sense that they’ll pick on you to get to him. You’ve already handled the demon in his mind; you’ve learned to accept it. Dealing with someone — an actual human being — from Jaehyun’s world is wading through murky waters. You’re either the target or the bait, and it’s upsetting to think that whichever you’re treated as, someone’s going to get hurt. No, there’s this horrible gut feeling, a nagging voice in the back of your head, that just tells you that chances are…

Someone’s going to die.

a/n: it’s a little shorter again, but we’re getting closer and closer to the climax and aaaaaah the trailer drop!!!!! like always, please please please let me know what you guys think here 

next: part 11

~ buy me a peach? why?

[annab-nana]

House Party - Colby Brock

To celebrate the Trap House 2.0, the boys throw a pool party with all of their friends. Kat brings her friend, y/n, and Colby can’t seem to keep his eyes off her.

@sncnetwork project with: @lonely-xplr @sunnynsoft @reddesertcolbs @goddess-of-time-and-magic @xolbyz @reinad-snc @mariadotcom @cartiercolby @colbylover99

Warnings: some curse words

Word Count: 2.4k+

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

“Can you help tie me?” I ask Kat as I hold the blue strings together behind my neck for her to grab. She nods before gripping onto the bikini top strings and tying them together. Once she is done, I step back to look at myself in the mirror as she sneaks a peek as well.

“Dude, blue is your color. It looks so good on you,” Katrina tells me as her eyes watch me through the mirror in front us. I roll my eyes and a chuckle escapes my lips.

“Says the literal queen of blue,” I say, pointing up at her blue locks. The girl literally has blue hair and rocks it on the daily, then has the audacity to say that it is my color. Um, no Kat, it’s yours.

“Well then you ought to believe me, considering it’s coming from the queen,” She tries to speak in a royal sounding accent and waves her hand in the air, showing me her queen wave. She stops for a second before we look at each other and bust out laughing.

“Okay your majesty, we need to hurry up getting ready for this party you’re dragging me to,” I inform her as I pull up my black shorts before running to her closet to steal a shirt from her. After searching for a little bit, I decide to where her white shirt that says, “I think she wants to be me” and tie it in a knot in the front.

“What do we think?” I ask Kat as I turn around and show her the fit. She turns around, still blending her eyeshadow, and smiles.

“Beautiful as always. Are you wearing your white vans? Those would be cute with that outfit,” She tells me as she turns back around, concentrating on blending.

“Katrina, when do I not wear my white vans?” I scoff as I slip them on.

“Oh, I know. They are barely even white anymore,” She jokes, moving on from eyeshadow to mascara.

“Hey, I will have you know that I cleaned them just for this party that you have been talking about all week long.” She rolls her own eyes at me before continuing on her makeup. I plop down onto her bed and watch her as she perfects her already gorgeous face with a little bit of highlighter and then completes her look with a touch of lipstick.

“I thought you said this was a pool party so why are you putting on makeup? I mean I have on waterproof liner and mascara and a little bit of lip gloss, but this will stay on in the water for the most part,” I tell her as she goes to her drawer to pick out the perfect bathing suit.

“Well, I don’t plan on actually swimming, like diving my head underwater and stuff. I’m just going to keep my head above the water because I didn’t do all this for it to wash away,” She says as she gestures towards her face. I chuckle at her before speaking again.

“But didn’t you say Sam is roommates with a bunch of goofballs? You’re definitely going to get splashed or something,” I inform her, and she shakes her head before pulling out a bathing suit and putting it on. She slips on some clothes to go over it and grabs her keys.

“Ready to go?” She looks at me. I stand up, sliding my phone into my back pocket, and nod before walking behind her to her car. After a car ride full of loud singing and cringy dance moves, we pull up to Sam’s new house.

“Woah,” I say as my eyes gander upon the huge house. With all the palm trees and the beachy vibe the place gives off, no wonder Sam keeps saying he’s “moving to Hawaii”.

“Wait til we get to the back. It is so pretty back there,” Kat tells me as she puts her car in park. There are a good amount of cars here, but not too many. We get out of the car and I follow Kat through the house and out to the back.

“Kat!” a small brunette girl with two blonde streaks in her hair yells as she runs up to Katrina. The two embrace before Kat steps back and pulls me in front of her.

“Tara, this is my friend, y/n.” Tara turns to smile at me and grabs my hand before pulling to another group of girls. Kat follows behind us with a huge grin on her face. I just roll my eyes and let the little woman pull me to wherever she desires.

“Guys, this is Kat’s friend, y/n. Y/n, this is Devyn, Cassie, and Xepher,” the small girl says as she gestures towards each girl as she says their name. They each give me a wave and say hi.

“Well y/n, we were about to hop in the pool if you want to join us,” Cassie suggests, and I smile and nod at her.

“We are going to go put our clothes in Sam’s room and then we will be right out with you girls, okay?” Kat spoke as the girls nod their heads and walk towards the tropical looking pool. Their whole backyard looks like a straight paradise. I follow Katrina back into the house as she takes me to a room.

“This is Sam’s room by the way,” Kat informs me before stripping off her clothes and setting them down on the bed. I do the same, folding my shorts and Kat’s shirt and placing them at the end of Sam’s bed. Kat flips her head over, throwing her hair up into a cute messy bun.

“I will never understand how you do that so effortlessly,” I say as she finishes doing her hair by pulling out little hairs to frame her face. She gives me a grin before we leave to go back outside.

“Oh wait, there’s Sam. You have to meet the roommates,” Katrina tells me as I follow her to the group of guys standing near what looks like a tiki hut thing.

“Hey y/n! I’m glad you could make it. I haven’t seen you in a while,” Sam greets me as he pulls me in for a hug. It’s nice to see a familiar face. Besides Kat, he’s the only one here that I know.

“Hey Samuel,” I say softly as I wrap my arms around his torso. I’ve always liked Sam, as friends of course. I love how he treats Kat and he is honestly such a nice guy. We pull away from each other before he introduces me to the guys around him.

“Guys, this is y/n. Y/n, this is Corey, Jake, and Colby,” Sam tells me, gesturing to each of his friends similar to how Tara did earlier when introducing me to her friends. Just as Devyn, Cassie, and Xepher, each of Sam’s buddies gave me a wave accompanied by a smile.

“We are going to head to the pool with the girls, but we will see you guys later,” Kat tells the group and then leads me over to the pool. We walk over to the girls who were sitting on the underwater stools that surrounded the rock table, talking. We join them and talk for a little while.

“I’m going to actually swim for a bit, okay?” I say to Kat as I nudge her to get her attention. She nods at me before joining back into the conversation.

I lean backwards before floating on my back. My ears are underwater so that I can’t hear anything clearly and I shut my eyes, letting the water take me wherever it pleases. Being in that state felt so calming. My eyes flutter open and I gaze up at the night sky, focusing on the tiniest of stars in the darkness above me.

Once more, I shut my eyes and kick my feet lightly to propel myself further, but my head hits something. I open my eyes to see one of the guys that Sam introduced me to earlier, but I can’t remember his name. I go back to standing up and turn around to face him.

“Oh sorry, didn’t see you there,” I awkwardly chuckle. Damn y/n, why do you have to be so weird? I’ve never been the best with new people, so that could be the reason.

“It’s no problem. You are Kat’s friend, right?” He asks me as he flashes a smile. Not gonna lie, this guy is really cute. I nod at him in response to his question before he continues to ask me another one. “How’d you get to know her?”

“Well, we both sing, but our managers linked us up and we’ve done a few songs together. But you know Kat, she’s literally impossible to not fall in love with. We just clicked as friends,” I tell him as he leans against the pool wall.

“Yeah, she’s really cool. I think I have heard some of your songs from her. You’re pretty good.” I blush at the compliment and shake my head.

“I don’t know,” I let out another awkward chuckle before continuing, “Tell me a little about yourself.”

“Well, I’m Colby. I post videos on YouTube with my roommates and I like to-“ His sentence gets cut off by someone behind me. I turn to see one of the roommates standing on top of the rocks on the edge, about to jump in.

“CANNONBALL!” The boy with grayish platinum hair with black tips yells before hopping off the stone wall. I turn into Colby to shield myself from water that splashes in every direction. He wraps his arms around me in reaction to me going towards him. I look up at him into his gorgeous blue eyes that I didn’t notice before. After staring for a little longer than I intended to, I back away from him.

“Sorry,” I whisper before looking over to where Kat was and the sight I saw was quite funny if you ask me. She was covered in water from the enormous splash that the guy made. I can’t help but bust out laughing. I told her earlier that something like this would happen.

“I like your laugh. It’s cute,” I hear Colby say. Again, I feel my cheeks warm from the blush that rises to them.

“Stoooop,” I say as an awkward giggle escapes my lips. He smiles hugely.

“Do you play basketball? We’ve got a hoop over there if you’d like to play,” He informs me as he gestures towards the basketball hoop.

“I’m no good at it, but I’ll go over there with you and maybe try a little if I feel like embarrassing myself even more than I already have.” He chuckles lightly before leading the way to the basketball court after we dry off a bit. He grabs the ball and hands it to me.

“Show me what you got, y/n,” He jokes before standing back, watching my attempt at a shot. I get into a stance and place one hand on the side of it, the other under it. Trying my absolute best, I throw the ball and it hits the rim but comes bouncing back towards Colby.

“See? I told you. I am ass at this,” I sigh in defeat as I turn to face him. He laughs at me before shooting the ball towards the hoop, making it perfectly.

“How do you do that?” I ask, my mouth wide open in amazement. He grabs the ball before walking over to me.

“First, close that pretty little thing before you catch a fly or something,” He says, using his finger to push my chin up and close my mouth.

“Second, would you like me to show you how?” I nod my head and Colby grabs my hand to lead me to where he was previously standing. He hands me the ball before standing in front of me.

“Okay so first we have to hold the ball correctly. This hand goes here…” He trails off, placing my left hand on side of the ball. He then grabs my other hand placing it slightly underneath it.

“Next, we need to fix your arms.” Colby lifts my right elbow and pushes it inward so that it is straight in line with my hand.

“Then, your stance…” He is so focused on making sure this is all correct and it is super cute to watch. He grips my shoulders and pushes me down a little so that my knees bend slightly. He steps back to get a good look at his work and gives me a proud smile before walking behind me, placing his hands back on my shoulders.

“Okay now focus on your target and then shoot by straightening your legs with a jump and use your right hand to push the ball. Don’t forget to follow through with your hand as well,” He says right into my ear before patting my shoulders and backing up. Doing exactly as he said and giving it my all, I push off the ground and use all my strength to push the ball, letting it roll off my fingertips and fly towards the hoop. Surprisingly, the basketball went through the hoop and fell into the net.

“Way to go!” I hear Colby cheer me on as I looked at him wide-eyed.

“That is the first time I have ever made a shot before. Do you know how many times my brother has tried to show me how to do that? Oh my God! I fucking made it. Thanks, Colby!” I shout as the feeling of excitement washes over me and I run over to him to give him a hug. In the moment of it all, I pull away from the embrace just a tad, but our faces are still very much close. A smirk falls upon his face and a smile plays onto my own.

“Want me to show you something else?” He whispers seductively into the small space between us.

“And what would that be?” I ask, returning the same sexual energy he was giving off. I guess making that shot was giving me some newfound confidence and I didn’t mind it.

“Well, it would start with this…” He lets his words fade as the space between us does as well. His lips press against my own, but before we can get any farther, he pulls away from me. A pout replaces what was a smile on my face and he chuckles.

“Get us out of here, Colby, and show me what you were talking about.”

[sailormoonandme]

My thoughts regarding the Usagi/Mamoru age gap

I am writing this in response to this thread.

To be clear as crystal here, this is just my take on the situation.

With all that said, for the sake of argument let's say we are in total agreement that in real life a 14 year old middle schooler and a 17 year old college student shouldn't be dating.*

But that is the key phrase here: 'Real life'.

The thing is...there is no end of fairy tales or media aimed at children that at best start to fall apart or at worst become extremely creepy when you apply a realistic lens to it.

That is the joke about the majority of Disney's canon in fact. For instance, Aladdin was 18 whilst Jasmine was 16. I'm British and over here 16 is the legal age of consent for sex but even so I'm at least iffy on a 16 year old dating an 18 year old. And to trade off some of the comments elsewhere in the above linked thread, you could absolutely argue there was a 'mental gap' between Al and Jas given how she was a sheltered and somewhat naive princess who'd never left the palace and he was a streetwise older guy who'd obviously flirted and charmed his way out of trouble before.

But let's consider a different Disney classic, perhaps their most famous movie, the Lion King.

The Lion King is a beloved and rightly iconic movie but if you take it at face value and realistically (albeit ignoring the fact that animals can talk, sing and are capable of human emotions and cultural references) it's guilty of:

Promoting incest because Simba and Nala would have at best been first cousins (Nala being Scar's daughter) at worst brother and sister. Because that is how lions work. Male lions murder the cubs of other males with the possible exceptions of their brother's cubs where they co-rule a pride. Even with the best case scenario, deleted scenes had Scar try to make Nala his queen and those scenes were reinserted for the hit Broadway musical. So either a brother and sister hook up or two first cousins hook up and a Dad tried to have sex with his daughter.

Promoting racial/class segregation: The Hyenas are from the 'dark shadowy' place and are given traits you can easily interpret as associated with black, Hispanic, Latinex or mentally disabled people. They are also framed with Nazi imagery and it is Scar's decision to let them roam freely that causes famine. Simba beats them, they are forced back to 'where they came from' and all is well.

Promoting authoritarian absolute monarchies. That's the whole movie's plot. Simba must embrace his destiny as the 'rightful ruler' of the pridelands whereby all other animals bow down to him. It's not even like the lions are the ruling class and they are at least democratic amongst themselves, it's literally this ONE specific bloodline that is not only in charge but is SUPPOSED to be in charge. Even if the wrong person from that bloodline is in charge the entire land suffers until the 'right' person takes the throne. That's a pretty terrible and pretty anti-democratic message isn't it, and that's coming from someone who lives in a country WITH a monarchy.

And, I admit this one is a serious stretch, but you could even argue that it's saying two men raising a child is a detriment to said child. Because Timon and Pumba raise Simba into an adult and the movie is very clear that he's grown up wrong, he is not the person he should be because he's embraced Timon and Pumba's upbringing.

So you see...the Lion King is mega terrible.

Except it isn't.

Because we all have the cognitive ability and understanding to grasp that you are not SUPPOSED to take it that realistically nor at face value. Even as children we grasped that, hence the generation that grew up with the Lion King (by and large) obviously don't think incest is okay, don't oppose same sex couples raising children, don't think segregation is a good idea and clearly do not think monarchies are the bee's knees.

Maybe as kids people couldn't put it into words, but material like this essentially exists in this realm of symbolism, psychological shorthand if you will.

In fact all fairy tales do that.

And Sailor Moon IS a fairy tale, or at the very least it borrows a whole lot from fairy tales.

In addition to being a fairy tale though Sailor Moon is a wish fulfillment fantasy story intended for a female audience (or at least a predominantly female audience).

Now of course what one woman's wish fulfillment fantasy might be may not be another's and I wouldn't be so presumptuous as to argue that Sailor Moon even clicks with the wish fulfillment fantasies of MOST female audience members. But I think it's fair to say from the cultural impact it has had, and how it's fanbase is clearly mostly made up of women, that the wish fulfillment fantasy it offers clicks with a sizeable enough number of women.

The reverse is true of something intended as a male wish fulfillment fantasy. James Bond was obviously intended as a male wish fulfillment fantasy, and it's success speaks to how it clearly clicked with a sizable enough number of people. And I don't think I'm being overly presumptuous here when i say MOST of those people were male.**

Both SM and 007 are wish fulfillment power fantasies but they are also romantic/sexual fantasies too.***

I don't think it's unreasonable to argue that for a sizable number (but not necessarily the majority) of women, including the tween/teen girls SM was aimed at, having an OLDER lover is a romantic wish fulfillment fantasy. On the flipside I don't think it's unreasonable to argue that for a sizable number of men and boys having an endless string of casual and completely consequence free sexual encounters with (traditionally speaking) gorgeous women who find you incredibly attractive is a sexual wish fulfillment fantasy.

And the thing is BOTH those things can become bad when you apply a realistic lens to either of them.

James Bond's sex life realistically would involve at least a few sexually transmitted diseases, unintended pregnancies (one of which occurs in the novels) and at least a few callously broken hearts. Even when you look at it strictly from Bond's POV that life only seems glamorous at first glance. Perhaps it is a fun fantasy, but only when it remains in the realm of fantasy. Because in real life that kind of life if lived long term is ultimately incredibly empty and unfulfilling. Even James Bond media has acknowledged this because there have been occasions in the novels and films where he has at least attempted to settle down with a stable partner. Many Bond fans (understandably) decry this as undermining part of the appeal of the character hence Bond inevitably defaults back to being single because that is a baked in part of the wish fulfillment fantasy the character offers.

Let's consider some other ways the Sailor Moon anime offers a wish fulfillment fantasy, namely the future of Crystal Tokyo.

At first glance it seems wonderfully utopic right. It is a beautiful crystalline world where everyone lives in peace and harmony, hunger disease and even aging having been functionally eliminated.

Well, that isn’t the case if you apply a realistic lens to it.

It's an absolute monarchy wherein everyone is functionally immortal and children don't reach maturity even after 900 years. Chibi-Usa clearly chafes at this reality so how do you imagine other children (who aren't royalty) might feel? How might their parents feel having to raise their children and be responsible for them for centuries as opposed to around twentysomething years? What if you became immortal in your 80s, you might be a very healthy 80 year old but you aren't in the prime of your life and you are stuck that way for what is essentially forever. Not to mention what if you don't like or do not agree with Neo-Queen Serenity's policies? What if they are actively detrimental to you, your family, your livelihood, etc? You can't vote her out of power and you can't even hope for things to change because everyone is healthy, provided for and lives forever. The chances of someone else coming to power are at best very, very, very slim.

Then you have the fact that it’s surely a society that would’ve stagnated because everyone is provided for. That’s the whole point of a utopia. It is perfection. But what if you are someone who defined your live by striving for improvement? What if you were a doctor and now found yourself redundant. Sure, you might acknowledge that’s for the greater good but you are still yourself left completely without purpose in this world.

And that’s not even considering the inevitable monotony of existing for hundreds of years. Modern medicine and science has allowed human beings to extend their life spans FAR beyond how long we’d live if we were still just cave people. As biological organisms are concerned we never evolved to live for 80-90 years. Even if your body isn’t breaking down across the centuries the human mind would never realistically be able to cope with centuries worth of memories and life experiences. Mental illnesses and conditions would be rife. If nothing else living in that world would sooner or later become utterly BORING!

Hate to say it and obviously it doesn’t justify their methods, but the Black Moon Clan kind of have some valid points against the world of Crystal Tokyo. At least they do when you break things down REALISTICALLY.

And that’s my thesis here. Sailor Moon isn’t supposed to be dissected realistically, at least not to THAT degree. It is a wish fulfilment fairy tale fantasy and demands a certain amount of suspension of disbelief and understanding of what the fantasy is offering.

And for the record I can 100% assure that no teenager in real life has, or could, ever get into a harmful relationship with someone older than them BECAUSE they watched Usagi and Mamoru’s relationship in the anime.

The human mind is a very complex and very powerful thing. At a younger age it’s impressionable and can therefore be influenced. But it’s not so susceptible that the romantic relationships in a cartoon about schoolgirl super heroes is going to influence a viewer into making any major life decisions that OTHER factors weren’t also influencing them to do.

In other words if a real life 14 year old girl began dating a 17 year old college guy it would’ve happened regardless of whether they watched Sailor Moon as a child or not.

Indeed, one of my frustrations with the podcast Sailor Business is how many guests on the show cite how they liked Usagi and Mamoru as children but now think their relationship is bad and creepy. I disagree with them for the reasons I cited above, but the fact that those panellists nigh universally give that same narrative proves how nobody was ever going to be prompted to do anything potentially harmful to themselves in real life by the show.

*Personally speaking that is certainly my own off the cuff attitude.

**Not to dismiss the fans who aren't, same goes for the non-female SM fans.

***Although I think you could argue SM is more on the romance side of things and 007 on the sexual side of things.

[fanfic-scribbles]

Lunch Buddy: Chapter Nineteen

Masterlist

<<Previous Chapter Next Chapter>>

Overall Story Facts: Fandom: MCU Captain America/Avengers

Story Summary: Steve Rogers makes a friend. A prickly, generally people-averse friend, but they’ll both take what they can get.

Quick Facts: Friendship (/Eventual Romance) – Steve Rogers & Reader (leading to Steve Rogers/Reader) – Female Reader

Story Warnings: Reader-insert that verges on OFC, written in 1st person past tense

Chapter 19: Twelve Strikes

Chapter Summary: Honestly, New Year’s Eve is usually mostly uneventful for most people. Usually. Mostly. For most people.

Chapter Word Count: 5380

A/N: This chapter was kind of fun and I hope you enjoy it. I really hope you enjoy it actually because while I know sort of how I want the next chapter to be I have no idea how it’s going to go, so an update might take a little longer. Also, just housekeeping news: I’ve been thinking about it for a while and I decided to make this story a series. Part one is this, the getting together. Part two is tentatively titled “Dinner Date” and it’s pretty much going to be the cute couple shit I’ve been wanting to write. I haven’t decided how yet I want to organize it, whether I’ll just be adding a new section to the LB masterlist or making a new post and linking it. I’ll let you know by next chapter as it will be the last one for this story before I start the next.

Anyways, please enjoy!

  ~

 This was a bad, bad, bad idea. Me, alcohol, Steve, Steve’s friends, Steve, Steve in a tux, me, alcohol–

“Are you hiding already?”

I almost leaped out of my skin, but Sam just laughed at me. Jerk. But I hugged him because it was good to see him. And, if I was being honest, it was literally good to see him– Sam was a beautiful man and looked no less in his dark blue suit. However when I hugged him I was fine and normal. Why couldn’t I just appreciate Steve as an objectively beautiful man the way I could appreciate any of his friends as objectively beautiful people?

Although Natasha was so stunning in her long glittery black dress that I had run to the bar so I’d have an excuse not to babble “you pretty lady” at her like the caveman I was. So maybe I was just a mess.

“I’m just– getting a drink,” I said and gestured, only to accidentally hit the glass and scramble to keep it from sliding right off the ridiculously smooth and utterly unblemished “wood” counter. That’s what the whole place felt like actually– bright and shiny with nary an imperfection to grab onto.

“You okay?” Sam asked and leaned against the bar. His body blocked me from a happily chattering couple just as they made it to the space next to us, and I tried to calm the fuck down. Steve invited me, I got in just as easily as anybody, it was fine; I was fine.

“I’m okay. Can’t remember the last time I went to an actual party but other than that.” I picked up my drink but it was already almost gone so I put it right back down. Even if I wasn’t trying to monitor my alcohol intake that would have been worrisome. I breathed. I was here and I (and everyone else) was going to have to deal with it.

“Yeah, it’s not really my scene either, but.” He shrugged and smiled. “It’s New Year’s Eve; why not live it up a little?”

Said the man who looked like he belonged here. “I guess,” I said and looked around. I still wasn’t sure if I wanted to see Steve or avoid him.

Sam motioned for a bartender and made a few smooth hand gestures that got me a refill and him a copy of my drink. He took a sip, paused, and then raised both eyebrows at me.

“Don’t you judge me,” I said and sank closer to my cup. “Steve promised good alcohol. And this isn’t even the top shelf.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s all top shelf. But I wasn’t going to say anything.” He pushed away from the bar. “Come on; you found the best thing about Tony’s parties and now I’m going to show you the second best thing about them.”

That did make me perk up. “The food?”

Sam grinned. “The food.”

~

Second best had yet to be claimed, as first place was a tie.

“Do you think they’ll miss it if I just steal the whole tray?” I asked, staring at the waiter walking around with the really good wraps. I didn’t know what the hell was in them but I didn’t care. If I ended up poisoned later I would have no regrets.

“Thor’s done that before,” Darcy said. “It was awesome.”

Jane’s expression told me why Darcy used past tense. Too bad, but I could tell why he would have towed the line. Darcy (“Avengers wrangler extraordinaire”) and Jane (astrophysicist and Thor’s partner) were kind, smart, beautiful, and fun. That guy kept really good company.

“I think Steve’s done it too,” Sam said. “At least once.”

“Hm.” The tray was getting low, so I looked around the room for another one to pick at. “Do you think if I say I’m eating Steve’s share they’ll just hand it over?”

“What am I sharing?”

I took a moment to, again, chill the fuck out, and then I turned to look at Steve. Somehow it was easier to see him all put-together in a suit now than it had been the night he had shown up all disheveled, but he still looked stupid handsome in straight black and combed hair.

“I’m going to eat all the food on your behalf,” I said and swatted at his stomach. Lightly, because I wasn’t a jerk (and otherwise I would have just hurt my hand). “I’m helping you watch your waistline.”

“I've seen how much Steve eats,” Natasha said, coming around him and somehow making Steve look boring with her dark red matte lips, sparkling chandelier-like earrings, and flawlessly fitting gown. She smiled at me and raised a single perfect eyebrow. “I’d like to see you try.”

“Would you like some?” I asked her. “I’ll share. Just not with Steve; he owes me, like, at least three more grocery bags of snacks.”

“So much for hospitality,” Steve said. He sounded like he was trying to be flat but the smile he couldn’t wrestle off his face fucked that up. But it was a good thing. “If I give you all my food here are we even?”

I thought about it. “The food is pretty good…”

He laughed and opened his arms, and I went in for the hug. When he squeezed me my heart did a happy little somersault and I briefly considered letting him break it. Any more of this and I would have small woodland creatures following me pretty soon. Talk about a dead giveaway. “Easy, easy,” I said and tried to straighten up. “I have delicate alcohol here.”

“Oh, right; I forgot about what’s really important,” Steve said, still smiling widely as we parted.

“I’ve got priorities,” I said and took a sip. “Alcohol, you.”

“I come before food?”

I had to think about it. “Alcohol slash food, you.”

“I come before–”

“Take a fucking compliment Steve,” I said and downed the rest of my drink. A few of his friends laughed and I gave myself a mental pat on the back.

“If only,” a new person said. A beautiful blonde woman who had somehow sidled up right between Steve and Natasha without me noticing. Without Steve noticing too, by the way he jolted. But he looked delighted to see her. “Sharon,” he said and hugged her carefully to keep her full flute of champagne from spilling over her ash grey silky smooth dress. For fuck’s sake; could Steve have one friend who didn’t look like a goddamn model?

When Steve turned to introduce us I realized, oh yeah, that was me. My glass was far too empty but I swallowed back the bitterness on my own. Sharon was very sweet and had no problem turning her attention away from Steve to properly greet me. Unlike the people starting to gather and gawk.

“That’s a lovely bracelet,” Sharon said. “May I see?”

“Sure,” I said, feeling my mood lift at the mention. She and Natasha admired it. As well they should have.

“It’s beautiful,” Natasha said. “Where did you get it?”

“Um…” I looked around at all the strangers, some of whom were trying to sneak in closer to Steve– who looked a little uncomfortable while some woman chatted him up. I decided to play it safe and said, “A friend gave it to me for Christmas.” Hopefully my smile didn’t look as big as it felt.

“A friend?” Sharon pressed.

“A very good friend,” I said.

She tilted her head and smiled like we were in on something together. I wished I knew what it was. “Are you sure they’re just a friend? That’s a pretty special m–”

“Hey, do you want me to go get you another drink?” Steve asked me.

I was sort of relieved Steve stomped on the conversation at that point because I was just going to be miserable if we tread that road too far. However I couldn’t believe what he was asking me; he must have been desperate to escape his conversation. “Do you have any idea what I’m drinking?”

“I can guess,” he said, which…he never drank, so how… “Fine; then come with me?”

I looked at Sharon who was seemingly unbothered by the interruption. “I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah, it was nice to meet you,” I said and Steve, acting the perfect gentleman, gave me his arm to hang onto while we made our way through the crowd. Hanging onto Steve, good alcohol, his friends being nice and not looking at me twice; I actually felt…okay.

“Are you having a good time?” Steve asked, sounding hopeful.

“Did you see that? I had a perfectly normal conversation with another human being,” I said proudly.

“You’re doing very well.”

I jumped as Natasha came up and took his other arm. “Hello again Natasha,” Steve said, sounding annoyed. Apparently he didn’t like her sudden appearing act either.

“You're not the only one wanting the bar, Steve,” she told him. She then looked past him to smile at me. She did ‘reassuring’ shockingly well. Well, she was a spy; she could probably do anything she wanted. “How are you doing?”

“Oh, I’m fine, thanks,” I said. “You look gorgeous, by the way.”

She batted her hand at me, but it was her coquettish smile that made me laugh. “Be careful with complements like that, or I’ll steal you from Steve so I can hear them more often.”

It might have been a joke, but a woman like Natasha was so beautiful maybe people just assumed she knew. “You should hear it more often,” I said sincerely.

Natasha’s smile smoothed out– in a good way, I thought. She gripped Steve’s arm hard enough to make him flinch. “I’m glad you got yourself someone with sense,” she said and slipped away just as we got to the counter.

“It’s a little sad you make me look sensible by comparison,” I said and ordered another drink for me, and something for Steve to try.

“It’s a low bar,” Steve admitted and put his arm around behind me. It was just because the space was crowded, but it felt so nice. When the drinks were delivered I grabbed mine with one hand and slid Steve’s over to him with the other. “Am I carrying your drinks now?” he asked.

I elbowed him and looked around for one of the less-populated areas of the room I had scoped out earlier. “I think you’ll like the taste of it,” I said and grabbed the edge of Steve’s jacket to lead him. “Come on; let’s go catch our breath.”

He didn’t complain then; he just followed along.

“Captain Rogers!”

Or tried to.

A woman (beautiful, of course) with wavy blond hair came right up to him– and I got my first red flag when Steve tensed up. I got my second red flag in flashing lights when she practically shoved in between us. Had I stayed where I was it would have been literal, but I managed to save my dress and drink from combining. And, when she failed to apologize (or even acknowledge my existence) I considered turning my glass up over her head. Instead I took a sip to quell the growing rage and glared daggers at her perfectly-made-up head.

“Hello,” Steve said and looked at me. I lifted my cup and mimed dumping it on her. It got a smile, at least.

“It’s so good to see you again; I missed you at the last party,” she said and gave me an aneurysm when she wrapped her arms around his arm. Steve tugged but man, she had him worse than a boa constrictor. It was almost admirable, if I didn’t want so badly to take some hairspray and a lighter to get her off.

I took another drink. ‘Down girl; he isn’t yours,’ I told myself. It didn’t do much.

“I wasn’t at the last party,” Steve said, looking at me and drawing her attention.

I got my polite face on just before she turned her head my way. She sized me up and I stared at her. Yeah, pretty, sure. But Sharon was prettier. And nicer. “Hello,” Handsy said, perfectly icy. “Do you need something?”

‘Yeah– for you to fuck off,’ I thought. “Oh, I’m just waiting for Steve,” I said and smiled. It felt bland and fake and I didn’t care if it looked it.

“Well, we’re going to be a while,” she said even though Steve’s face clearly said that no, no they weren't.

“That’s fine; I’ll wait!” I said, a little more chipper than I wanted but, fuck it, she was pissing me off. She glared at me, so at least the feeling was mutual.

“STEVEN!”

We both jumped and Steve took the chance to extract himself from Handsy’s grip. “Thor!” he said and the two of them gave (and therefore received) hugs that looked like they would crack lesser spines. Wow Thor was even bigger than I thought he would be. Objectively he wasn’t that much bigger than Steve, but it felt like he filled the room. It was a little intimidating. But Handsy smiled patiently, and she was the reason I stayed close by– I didn’t want to risk leaving Steve alone with her.

“I want you to meet someone, actually,” Steve said and that was all the warning I got before Steve reached around Handsy to grab me and pull me in front of him so he could introduce me to Thor, Thor to me.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” Thor said and shook my hand with very measured strength. It was easy to forget that Steve was strong, but I had a feeling you couldn’t forget it with this guy. “I’ve heard many good things.”

That sounded a little rehearsed, so maybe he was nervous and awkward too? I ran with it. “Likewise,” I said, because it was polite, and also true. Steve really respected and liked Thor and I wanted to make a good impression. I just didn’t know what to say. “I, uh, met Jane and Darcy earlier.”

He brightened at the mere mention. “Are they not wonderful?”

“They’re great,” I said and (only partly joking) added, “You’re a lucky guy; you must have done something pretty good to deserve them.”

Thor froze.

I froze too and started a chorus of ‘shit shit shit shit shit’ in my head. However I didn’t get a chance to even plan my apology before he let out a loud laugh that made me jump. “Oh, I am sorry!” he said and put his other hand on my arm. “It is true, but I did not expect to hear it from you.”

Weird, but I had the good sense not to say so. I was still coming down from the almost fuck-up so I missed what Steve said, but when Thor enthusiastically responded with a flurry of words that were unrecognizable despite being in a mostly-English sentence, I stepped back to let them geek out. Some people were coming and I really did need a breather, so I waited for Steve to look at me. When he did I held up one index finger, he nodded, and then he put his arm around Thor to lead him in one direction while I went the other.

The gaggle followed them. Or maybe people simply went in that general direction, I couldn’t tell and didn’t really care. I got to a little offset spot where the walls met awkwardly and took a few minutes for myself. I spent most of that time staring at a dark-haired woman who went between Steve and Natasha and I wondered if I had met her yet. She looked familiar but maybe she wasn’t? This was frustrating.

Handsy showed up again just as I was thinking about going back to the bar for some water. “So,” she said, still smiling politely but without even trying to introduce herself. ‘Handsy’ it was then. “How did you meet Captain Rogers?”

Trying to reconcile Steve with the image conjured by “Captain Rogers” caused a cognitive dissonance so strong I nearly had to physically shake it out of my head. “Oh, um…we met at a coffee shop we both happened to be at. Became friends.”

She waited for a few seconds, but since it wasn’t really her business I didn’t go on. “How cute,” she said blithely and smoothed out her dress. Admittedly she did cut a lovely figure in it. “The captain and I met at one of Stark’s parties a while back. We really hit it off.”

“That’s nice.” Thankfully I caught sight of Pepper heading my way so I straightened up at the prospect of a distraction.

Handsy turned to face her too and while I couldn’t see the look on her face, the high-pitched (super fucking fake) excited squeal of Pepper’s name from her mouth and look of absolutely strained politeness on Pepper’s face made me want to merge with the wall to avoid what was almost certainly going to involve bloodshed. But they hugged and, though stiff, they miraculously came out of it with all eyes and limbs intact.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but if you don’t mind,” Pepper said and gestured at me.

“Oh, of course; it was lovely to see you,” Handsy said.

And then left.

I gawked and when Pepper said my name in a tone of “what’s wrong” I wanted to ask her what the hell that was– in a polite, reasonable way befitting an adult who got invited to a Very Fancy Party– but what came out of my mouth was, “I thought you two were going to fight.”

I glared at my drink in betrayal, but I was so unaffected that it wasn’t even funny so the glass was just a convenient scapegoat. Pepper laughed at least– and smiled to show teeth. “It wouldn’t have been much of a fight.”

I laughed. And then, because I was a (mostly) functioning adult: “Thank you for letting me tag along on Steve’s invite; I appreciate it.”

“‘Letting you’ nothing; I’m glad Steve finally got you to come to one of these,” Pepper said. “How are you doing?”

“I’m all right; taking a breather,” I said. The dark-haired lady was talking to Jane now. “I’m trying to remember names now before I wade back in.”

Pepper nodded. “That’s Maria Hill.”

“Oh thank god, I don’t think I’ve met her yet.” I then realized Pepper was hosting (mostly, I thought; Stark was being loud elsewhere so maybe it was a two-pronged approach) and I looked her over. She looked perfect, but still. “How are you? It must be tiring.”

“Oh, a little.” She waved a hand carelessly. “It gets easier.”

“That’s good,” I said. And had nothing else. I looked around but the bar was busy– Plan B then. “I should go find Steve so he doesn’t think I ditched him.”

“I think I saw him at that end of the bar,” Pepper said and gestured to one of the crowds, because of course. As she motioned though, she saw someone she knew and waved.

“Thanks Pepper. I’ll track him down,” I said as the other person brought his partner over to say hi. Well, that was one hiding place completely ruined. Hopefully the others were all right.

“If you have any problems, just come find me,” she said and went to greet her friend with actual joy and excitement. That was a nice offer that I absolutely wasn’t going to take her up on. I could handle a crowd of people and bitchy partygoers. Weddings were way worse than this scene. So I shored up and went to the place where Steve apparently was. Which he was– in the middle of a crowd of people who had gathered around to listen to Thor tell a story.

I didn’t even try to nudge my way in. I made a trip to the bathroom, snagged a new drink from a small open spot at the bar, and went over to the food table. Natasha and Phil Coulson were talking to their friend (Maria). They looked up when I got closer and I nodded, trying to be unobtrusive as I grabbed a little crostini-thing with some stuff on top of it, but they turned to face me and I stopped before I even got the thing to my mouth. “Uh…” I said, looking at all of them. I lowered the hors d’oeuvre. “Sorry; I didn’t mean to…intrude?”

“You didn’t,” Phil said and extended his hand. I had a drink in one hand and food in the other, and nowhere to put the food. So I shoved it in my mouth, switched the glass to my food-tainted fingers, and shook his hand while I chewed like I was trying to take a prize at an eating contest. Not easy with how crunchy it was but it was good, at least.

“It’s good to see you again,” he said like I hadn’t just done a disaster dance right in front of him. Nice man.

I swallowed. “And in a better situation,” I said, trying to pretend at dignity.

Natasha said my name and then introduced me and Maria Hill to each other. She added, to me, like she was telling me a funny secret, “Don’t worry; she doesn’t bite.” Natasha even winked. Wow; who knew a woman that gorgeous could also be such a fucking dork? I was a little in love.

“Oh Natasha, don’t lie to her like that,” Maria said and very obviously scoped me out. Honestly, I might not have minded the biting. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

‘Finally?’ What the hell was Steve saying about me? “Uh–”

“Ooo, is this a new spy induction ceremony?”

Tony Stark sauntered up and I tried not to laugh at him outright but the idea was so ridiculous I couldn’t help but snicker. Stark raised an eyebrow at me and I shrugged. “I’m clumsy, would rather walk under a ladder than walk past a gym, and avoid people if I can help it. I would be the worst spy ever.” I swirled my glass. “All that said, thanks for letting me tag along with Steve. I like your booze.”

“At least you have taste,” Stark said. “Are you the reason I saw Rogers walking around with a half-full glass himself?”

“Still half-full huh?” I asked and looked around, but there was no Steve in sight. With the one second loss of attention Tony Stark moved on to talking to the other three. Since I was hemmed in in a way that would attract attention should I leave (and I was right by the best snacks that just got replaced) I stayed and socialized. Or ‘socialized.’ Stark was a talker– not as fast as I had expected but fast enough that whenever he looked at me for a response I only had time to make a facial expression before he was on about something else. He was kind of funny, but also kind of an asshole– like, he was okay, but I still felt cautious and I could see how he and Steve might be at cross-purpose more often than not.

I felt pretty pleasant though. Nobody was glomming onto the Avengers just for being Avengers anymore (even Handsy was off laughing with a group of friends), people were talking around me without making me participate, the lights were bright in a sort of haloed way, I had good food and drink in hand, and the room was comfortably warm. I just needed one more thing and it would have been perfect. Or maybe I was better off without him.

…No. I still wanted Steve around, even if I was being the world’s biggest idiot about having a dumb crush. Even if this only ended in heartbreak and I had to watch him hook up with other people for the rest of my days, his company was worth that much.

I was only half-listening to Tony when he made some dumb joke and I had sussed out his personality enough to comfortably and casually tell him, “Go fuck yourself.”

His mouth dropped open and he gasped. “Cap!” he said and pointed at me like he was a lawyer in a courtroom drama and I was this week’s case. “Your plus one just told me to go fuck myself!”

Warm chuckles drifted on high from behind me and I felt even more comfortable when Steve came around to stand at my side, just slightly behind my arm. “Is that all? She tells me that almost every day.”

I was taking a drink so I flipped Steve off without looking.

“See?” Steve said. “Sometimes even nonverbally.”

“Well,” Tony said, pouting. “Now I don’t feel special.”

I gave him an awkward consolation pat on the shoulder.

Pepper arrived then so Tony turned his mania onto her. I turned my head to look up at Steve. His shoulders were loose and his expression leaned closer to a smile than not. “Hi,” I said, trying not to smile too big.

“Hey,” he said. “Having fun?”

“Mm hm,” I replied. His smile was soft and sweet and the light formed a glow around him.

Someone coughed next to us. Steve jolted and I turned my eyes as far away from him as I could. “I’m sorry,” Steve said to someone else and lightly tugged at the shoulder of my dress as he said my name. “I want you to meet someone.”

I looked back but didn’t let myself get to Steve. I settled my eyes firmly on the (of course, handsome,) wavy-haired brunet next to him. Steve then introduced me to his friend, Bruce Banner.

“Sorry for the terrible first impression,” I said as we shook hands.

“I’m sure Steve deserved it,” Bruce said kindly. “And I know Tony did.”

“Hey,” the two of them said in near-unison.

“You are right,” I said. “On both counts.”

“What is this rudeness at my party?” Tony grumbled. “I could kick you both out.”

“You promise?” Bruce said, which was much funnier than my response of grabbing a few hors d’oeuvres and hastily wrapping them in a napkin.

Steve tugged at my sleeve again as the conversation turned to Who Can Roast Tony The Best. I leaned in closer to Steve and he came down to my ear to ask, “Do you still have that corner open?” in a low voice that made me shudder.

‘Boy do I,’ I thought but kept that to myself. I grabbed his sleeve and pulled as I slipped out of the group, and he followed easily.

The party picked up in noise and excitement but Steve and I stayed in my second-favorite corner for a while, sharing my napkin-wrapped snacks and drinking the water he had momentarily stolen away to grab (and which he refused to replace with alcohol until I had drunk the whole thing).

It was getting a little chilly since we were right by a patio door but I was content and tried to show as much. Steve left momentarily to go say hi to someone and I rubbed my arms, trying to warm and wake myself at the same time. While it wasn’t necessarily past my bedtime it was just…tiring. I was a little relieved that Steve had stepped away, because it gave me a few moments to rest my eyes.

“Hey.”

“Back already?” I asked and opened my eyes as I smiled at him.

“You don’t mind, do you?” he asked and hesitated, like he would actually leave if I said so. Dork.

“Of course not,” I said. “I just…I know you have friends here; you don’t have to keep me company if you don’t want to.”

“What if I want to?” Steve said and glanced around, coming back to me with a shy smile that was begging for a kiss.

I swallowed the urge and smiled at him. “Well. I’m certainly not going to chase you off.”

His eyes brightened and he retook his place next to me. We went back to staying in affable silence and it was good to have a reminder of why I didn’t really want to kiss him. This was the most comfortable I had been with a human being in a very long time and I couldn’t stand the thought of losing him. Not for awkwardness, not for regret, not for anything.

Apparently I was worse at concealing the chill than I thought. “Here,” Steve said and didn’t wait a second before he draped his jacket over my shoulders. “Is that better?”

I was caped with a warm, surprisingly soft jacket that smelled like Steve. ‘Better’ was a wildly inaccurate term; I was lucky I wasn’t fucking catatonic. God, I had problems. “You don’t need it?”

“Nah,” he said. And put his arm around me. “Is this okay?”

“Warm,” was the only word I could form.

“Good,” he chuckled and did not pull away from me, even when the door didn’t open for a while. I was so comfortable. Too comfortable. But I ignored the warning bells and leaned my head against his shoulder, letting my eyes droop a little in comfort.

And then I noticed his friends were staring at us and my eyes opened right back up. Fuck, shit, fuck, did they know? He had at least two spies for friends, they had to know, I was lucky Steve hadn’t yet noticed; how did I get so fucking sloppy? I sat up straight.

“Are you all right?” Steve asked.

“Uh, I think your friends might need you,” I said and nodded in their direction. While he looked over them I swirled the remainder of my water and then tossed it back. “I need a drink.” Understatement.

“All right then,” Steve said and stood with me. “It’s my turn to show you my favorite corner.” And so it was my turn to follow and I did, but when he slipped his arm around me, as we pressed together to squeeze through people, I leaned into it and stole yet another little, selfish moment for myself.

As soon as I got my replacement drink he then led me all the way down the bar, then around and over to a lesser-used part of the wrap-around counter that was away from most of the fun and in an awkward corner that was even out of the light and shaded.

“Nice,” I said. “It’s a little small though. Are we going to rock-paper-scissors or just shove each other out of the way for it?” If I angled just right I could make him shove me into it. Granted, I would probably be made one with the wall, but sacrifices must be made sometimes.

“I have an idea,” Steve said. And he sat down. But just as I was about to commend him on his deviousness he

1) put his hands on my waist

2) pulled

and I

3) turned to grab onto something

4) failed

and 5) fell.

Into his lap.

I sat, frozen for a moment. But I didn’t say anything. Steve didn’t say anything. And I didn’t get up. I just kept…sitting on him. Eventually I found my voice. “Did I crush you?” I asked, feeling a little hoarse, and probably drowned out by the sounds of cheering.

“No,” Steve said, hard to hear through the excitement of the countdown as it started. I turned my upper body to look at him, but whatever joke I was going to make about ‘comfortable seats’ died before it formed.

Steve, half-cast in shadows and whatever scattered lightshow was going on behind us, stared at me, something inscrutable. A spot of red light splashed over his lips for a moment and I couldn’t tear my eyes away. They were slightly opened, dry from the air, and I felt so warm, so…what could it hurt? Just one little moment; would he mind so much just one little ta–

His arms tightened around me and he moved, bringing those lips to meet mine as the room erupted in cacophony. After just a second I slid my drink onto the counter, wrapped my arms around him, and returned the kiss with everything I had.

<<Previous Chapter Next Chapter>>

[anythingyoucanimagine]

The Phillips' 'Yandere Gene' Explained (And how they act after they snap)

Warning! 18+ Facts approaching! MINORS DO NOT INTERACT!

The link to the Picrew used for the pics in this...

The gene itself

Only surfaces when they fall madly in love with someone

Always surfaces when they fall madly in love with someone

No way to reverse it

Once the gene has been awakened they will love that person no matter what happens, and be incapable of loving anyone else, ever again.

It came from hundreds of years ago when one of their (crazier) ancestors pissed off some gypsies by killing one of them in an attempt to steal the affection away from another.

Spoiler alert, the person failed but the curse is still very much here.

Something changes in their eyes, it's a constant warning to the crazy fucker that lies beneath.

Crazy Jaime

Will adore him and love him no matter what

What? He doesn't love him back?

Lies

Of course he loves him, he just need some time to realize that.

He's a patient guy, he can wait.

God forbid anyone tries flirting with his man

He'll find a place to hide the body later

Needs to be touched by his guy

P l e a s e just touch him

Only thing that's worse than trying to TAKE his man?

Talking shit on his man.

Ooh, he's gonna make sure you hurt if you do that.

He knows no-one could beat him in bed, so that's not a problem.

If his guy is supportive of him when he finds out...

He's gonna be shook???

He's a murderer and his guy is SUPPORTING HIM?

Th ank-

He'll still be extra careful the next few days, and goes extra out of his way to do nice things for his man.

If his guy is upset when he finds out?

Jaime'll be...

Unhappy.

He'll constantly spam his phone with calls and texts and wHY ARE YOU AVOIDING HIM HE ONLY WANTS TO LOVE YOU

He tries to go to the cops?

Please.

He's already become friends with half the police force, and the other half he gives free coffee to as a barista.

Always good to have the law on your side, that's how he sees it.

So he'll wait until his man has realized there's no escape, and there's no one that'll ever love him as much as Jaime does.

He'll make him come back.

There'll only be minor punishment, because he really doesn't like hurting his guy

Don't expect him to go easy on him in bed that night, though.

Ooh, no. He'll be rough.

But he'll take good care of him afterwards, making sure to kiss every spot he marked to show the world what's his

Pretty sadistic when it comes to the people he's decided to kill, every delicious expression of pain, every bit of beautiful crimson that spills out of them...

He keeps a tally of everyone he's killed, NOT on his neck because that is a no-no zone (Long story, one for another post.) Probably on his wrist, or maybe his lower back... Somewhere he can cover with a shirt, because tattoos raise questions. And only his guy gets to see his tattoos...

Actually prefers hand-to-hand but if he's going for a cleaner kill he'll use a knife.

Or strangle them. He knows from experience that isn't the quickest way to go, and it has more of a possibility to get out of it, but it's a good one.

That's reserved for the worst of them.

Only doesn't want to get hurt so he doesn't make his guy worry

But he secretly likes being worried about, just doesn't like that it causes distress.

Gonna be way more into tying his partner down now

And being tied down (But again, nothing around the neck!!)

Also gets a little bit more masochistic

But only with his guy

Only his guy gets to hurt him

He'll r e l i s h the pain

Crazy Brie

She n e e d s her darling's attention

She'll do whatever she has to to get it.

Fetch things for her? Done.

Do tasks for her? Absolutely.

Shank a bitch if they get too close? Obviously.

She's a little bit more of a sloppy kill than Jaime, but she's not afraid to call him for help.

Especially if he's already had his own 'snap'

Not above kidnapping her darling to have all her attention

She WILL tie her darling down if she has to, or hurt her just enough to remind her who's in charge.

She WON'T force herself on her darling.

Will still try to make her darling as comfortable as possible.

No matter how much she wants to feel her...

She will always respect if she doesn't want her to get any closer.

This may result in her calling Jaime in tears a few times, trying to find a way to get her darling to let her touch her

Hates seeing her darling upset, but understands that it's necessary for them to ultimately be happy together.

She knows how to look at her darling just right to make her feel bad about her for a moment

She uses that to her advantage every time she tries to escape.

Doesn't mind a mess, found out she actually likes the taste of blood

Will not admit that she likes the taste of blood

Prefers knives above everything else, but she'll do whatever she has to so she can 'take care of' any 'distractions'

Very careful in a kill, they won't be able to lay a hand on her.

If her darling actually returns her feelings?

She will be so surprised???

She's... Loved???

By the woman she loves???

ALREADY???

Yes please

She will try not to be overbearing

She'll constantly be complimenting her darling, telling her how beautiful she is, telling her she's perfect, thanking her for choosing her

Tries to keep her darker side hidden

One night coming home late covered in blood and that goes out the window

She will b e g for her darling not to leave her

If she does anyways?

She'll always find her.

There is no running

She might let her think she can escape, only to come in at the last moment and bring her back.

And then she's stuck with an obsessive, emotionally wounded crazy girl.

But if her darling supports her even with her crazy side?

She'll do a n y t h i n g to keep her close

Literally

If she asks her to rob a bank she'll find a way to get it done.

All reason is lost on her at this point. She just needs her darling, nothing and no one else.

Always keeps her inhaler on hand, even after the 'snap' she's still asthmatic and gets plenty of gay panic from her gorgeous darling every day...

Crazy Brandie

Why two pics? The original's filter is 👌 but hides a lot of her design with the sheen and the handprint. Plus I haven't shared any @momma-phillips here yet!

Much more logical than her children

She understands that her s/o is a normal person, and she keeps her darker side neatly tucked away around them.

But God forbid someone gets too close to them, or ever tries to take them from her.

She's subtle about her devotion, simple pet names and happily helping them with any task no matter what...

Also, she'll be latched onto their side at all times.

Holds them in higher regard than her children.

Actually has a lot of preparation before each kill, she plans it out depending on how much she wants them to hurt.

Always wears gloves for a kill

Ties her hair back so she doesn't get blood in it

Her preferred method of kill is dragged out through hours of her victim tied to a chair bound and gagged while she carves their 'sins' into their skin. (Ex: 'Thief', 'Blasphemer', etc. (Depending on how they've wronged her and her S/O))

Of course, she doesn't always have time for that.

Once, she burned down their house with them in it.

Listened to their screams

They deserved it for trying to touch what's hers.

Very possessive.

Will always want to be touching her S/O

It might be a little annoying at times, but it comes from a place of love

A little too much love

She'll verbally lash out at anyone that wrongs her S/O, and then subtly destroys the wrongdoer and their life over the course of a month (at most)

Never lets her S/O discover her darker side, but if they do she'll do whatever she can to make them stay of their own free will

They want to leave anyways?

They won't get far.

She really hates her S/O hurt, but if they want to leave like that...

She has no trouble with a little punishment to get them back in line.

A week in the basement should suffice, somewhere she can still dote on them

Whether they want her to or not

She'll make them love her again...

Eventually.

Absolutely capable of inflicting Stockholm Syndrome

She'll make them see things her way

No matter what she has to do.

But if they support her after learning what she's really like?

There's no stopping her now.

She'll constantly dote on them with affection and gifts

From now on, she'll completely refuse to leave their side unless she needs to go for a kill.

Refuses to let them come along, even if they ask.

Her precious S/O doesn't need to be exposed to that...

Of course, they probably know how to plead right to get anything by now

And if they do that, well of course she can't refuse...

But she'll do her best to make that one a clean kill.

(And unlike her children, she's bi, not just gay.)

That's all, folks!

[brownhardyho]

Fluffy Alphabet: Ben Hardy

Pairing: Ben Hardy x Reader

A/N: Decided to write another alphabet HC for Ben, but a fluffy version! I was also inspired by @sweetlygwilym ‘s piece on Gwilym Lee, thanks sis for the fluffy inspo! Happy reading fam! 😊

Warnings: MAJOR FLUFF AHEAD 

Word count: 2,132 (I got kinda carried away haha)

A = Attractive (What do they find attractive about the other?)

Ben finds everything about you attractive: how kind and genuine you are to the people you encounter, how funny you are without even trying, how soft your skin is, your sense of style, and let’s not forget about your HOT BAAAWDY fam! The list goes on and on and Ben is just in shock sometimes about how on earth he is lucky to have you in his life.

Aside from his tight, fit body that Ben works hard for, you absolutely love Ben’s gorgeous green eyes. Whenever he looks at you it’s like his eyes are looking into the depths of your soul. You also adore how kind he is, how big his heart is, and how genuinely curious he is about everything.

B = Baby (Do they want a family? Why/Why not?)

You both definitely want to children, but not at this point in time. Both your careers are taking off, and you enjoy traveling with each other so much that the idea of welcoming a baby into the world is a HUGE responsibility that you’re not quite ready for. With that said though, Ben’s heart swells whenever you are baby sitting your best friend’s little girl. So kids are definitely something you both want in the future!

C = (How do they cuddle?)

Ben ‘Cinnamon Roll’ Hardy is the cuddliest man you have ever known. You’ve always loved that Ben is a touchy feely guy, but you didn’t realize exactly how much until you first moved in together. Cooking in the kitchen? Ben will stand behind you and hug your body against his chest, his chin resting on your shoulder. “What’s cookin, good lookin’?” Just lounging around the flat on a Sunday morning? Ben will have a bear hold on you, blowing raspberries into your neck so that he can hear you laugh. Had a long day at work? Ben will cuddle with you until you both fall asleep. Feeling emotional, overwhelmed, happy, or sad/tired? BEN WILL GO IN WITH THE CUDDLES

D = Dates (What are dates with them like?)

Dates with Ben never fail to surprise you. Whether it’s spending a Sunday afternoon visiting a museum, taking Frankie on a walk through the park, or getting dressed to the nines to go clubbing, Ben always has something up his sleeve. You both also really love staying in and actually binge watching Netflix, too!

 E = Everything (You are my __ (e.g my life, my world…)

Person; Ben knows that he can talk to you about anything. First and foremost, he trusts and respects you. Ben admires you for who you are and how you can be his number one supporter and confidant BUT you never hesitate to call him out on his shit. He knows you will always be honest with him and that your love for him knows no bounds. Ben loves you with all of his heart, he would do anything for you. You make Ben a better man, you are the love of his life and his person.

F = Feelings (When did they know they were in love?)

Ben knew he was in love with you the moment you started playing with Frankie on the day you first met. Frankie is very protective of Ben and most of the time it takes her a while to warm up to new people. But not with you. She ran straight into your outstretched arms and basically tackled you, licking your face. It’s as if she had known you for years and Ben’s heart melted at the sight of you two.

G = Gentle (Are they gentle? If so, how?)

Benny boy is the softest man you have ever known. He is comfortable with himself, his sexuality, and expressing his emotions. He has always been really gentle with you, his strong hands softly caressing the sides of your body when he pulls you close. Ben wants you to feel comfortable, loved, and safe with him at all times.

H = Holding hands (How do they like to hold hands?)

Ben was shocked to feel how naturally cold your hands were in the beginning of your relationship, so he intertwines his warm fingers with yours. Whenever you are both walking through a crowded place, he’ll tighten his grip so that he doesn’t lose you. When you are both in bed reading, his pinky will find yours and link them together.

I = Impression (First impression?)

Ben’s very first impression of you was hearing you laugh. He was walking Frankie at the park and you were sitting on a bench, Skyping your sister, and you were laughing aloud as she was telling you an embarrassing story. To Ben, your laugh literally lit up his world, so he threw a ball in your direction so that Frankie could fetch it. His plan worked because as you turned to look to see if the owner of the cute beagle was near, your eyes met his and you smiled at him. Ben swear that it was love at first sight.

J = Joker (Are they into pulling pranks?)

Oh fam, does Ben have jokes! He’ll pull low key ones around the flat, like hanging mistletoe when it is in the middle of July. “Ben you don’t need mistletoe to kiss me” “I know but now you won’t have an excuse to NOT kiss me, love!”

You got jokes too. One time when you visited him on set, you had the help of the costume ladies in acquiring a fake baby bump. When Ben first saw you, his eyes beamed at you. “Why aren’t you shocked?” “Baby, jokes on you because I want you to be the mother of my children.”

K = Kiss (How do they kiss?)

Ben is both a sensual and soft kisser at the same time. He’ll kiss your temple and cup your cheeks at first, then his hands will move to the back of your neck and you hip to pull you closer to him to that he can deepen the kiss. Morning kisses are the best because he’ll place small pecks starting from your shoulder, to your neck, all over your face, eventually meeting your lips.

L = Love (Who said ‘I love you’ first?)

Ben said I love you first. Albeit, even though he was plastered, he said it first and he meant it. It was about 2 months into your relationship and Ben took you with him to meet up with his BoRhap family at a local pub. You were dancing with Lucy and when you went to find Ben, he was at the bar with the boys taking shots. You went up to stand next to him and just when you were about to ask if he was ok, Drunk Ben goes:

“Wow, you’re pretty” he hiccups, his green eyes scanning your body.

“Thanks, you’re not so bad yourself stud,” You smirk, raising your eyebrows at Rami, Gwil, and Joe.

“What’s your name?” Ben smiles

“Y/N,” you reply

“Wait, that’s my girlfriend’s name!” Ben exclaims, flabbergasted.

“Ben, I am your girlfriend!” You chuckle, the boys are dying laughing right about now.

“You mean to say that I come home to a gorgeous woman like you?!” Ben asks, shocked

“Imma ‘fraid so,” You nod.

“God, I love you!” He happily shouts, pulling you to him, making a scene and dipping your body to give you a kiss. The boys cheered rowdily and this is also the moment when you realized you are in love with Ben.

M = Memory (What’s their favorite memory together?)

When he surprised you for your birthday by taking you on vacation. You literally had just gotten home and you were welcomed by the sight of Ben smiling from ear to ear with your suitcases by his side. You didn’t know the destination until you got there. Yu and Ben spent a week in Bora Bora just catching the sunrays and swimming in the beautiful, teal ocean.

N = No (What’s their pet peeve?)

Ben cannot stand rude and ignorant people that are close minded, as do you. You both also strongly dislike drivers that don’t signal.

O = Orange (What color reminds them of their other half?)

Red, because on the first day you met, you were wearing a red coat and also because that’s your power suit color.

P = Pet names (What pet names do they use? What pet names do you use on them?)

For you: Babygirl, Sweetheart, Love, Honey

For him: Hon, Benny (YOU are the only one allowed to call him this), lover, bubs

Q = Quaint (What is their favorite non-modern thing?)

He loves sending you postcards when he is away for work and you do the same thing too!

R = Romantic (Are they romantic during the relationship?)

Romantic might as well be Ben’s middle name! Ben always starts the day by telling you how beautiful you are and how much he loves you. It’s the little things like taking you out to lunch or even giving you foot massages at the end of the day that make you fall in love with him even more. Ben always wants you to feel loved and will do anything to make sure this happens every.

S = Smile (What makes them smile without fail?)

Seeing you play with Frankie makes him smile, seeing you dance like know one is watching makes him smile, literally anything you do will make Ben smile. When he sees you in your element, talking to passionately about your job and interests, warms his heart.

T = Talking (What do they like to talk about?)

If he is with you, Ben will literally talk about anything. From the most mundane things about how your day went to insightful conversations about culture and race, Ben is very comfortable about talking to you about everything. He learns something new everyday through your conversations, and that makes him appreciate your relationship even more.

U = Unbearable (What habit do they have that’s unbearable? What habit do you have that they find unbearable?)

As perfect as Ben is, on habit of his that you find unbearable is that he still has a smoking habit. He doesn’t smoke as much as he used to, but on the sporadic occasion that he has the urge to light a cigarette, he’ll step outside and take it. You have been very honest at the beginning of your relationship about your dislike of this nasty habit, and Ben really is trying to quit, for real this time.

The only habit of yours that Ben finds unbearable is that you leave your makeup out on the bathroom counter when you are in a rush to get ready. Unbearable isn’t really the right word, but Ben will never admit that he gets secretly turned on when he watches you do your makeup… Jokes on him because you do notice when he is watching you!

V = Vaunt (What do they like to show off? What are they proud of?)

Ben loves it when you come watch him play rugby with his friends. He prides himself in being physically active, so whenever he has the chance to show off his skills in front of you, he will take it! Ben absolutely gets a kick out of seeing you bit your lip and cross your legs when you watch him out on the field.

W = Wedding (How was the wedding?)

Your wedding is a destination wedding in Spain. The ceremony took place on a cliff during golden hour and you were both surrounded by your families and closest friends. The pure happiness and love provided the ambiance that day and when Ben saw you, in your beautiful white dress, walking down the aisle towards him, the world stopped and he was only focused on you. Happy tears filled his green eyes, as he was overwhelmed with all the emotions. The reception was LIT AF and it literally lasted until the sunrise on the next day. It was absolutely perfect, and you both would not have it any other way.

X = Xylophone (What’s their song?)

Everything by Ella Mai ft. John Legend

Y = You (You are the ___to my ___ (e.g. the cookies to my milk, the macaroni to my cheese)

You are the light to my life.

Z = Zzz (How heavy of a sleeper are they? How do they sleep?)

Ben is a deep sleeper and likes to be the little spoon. He loves when you wrap your arms and legs around him and has, on occasion, sleep talked. This usually happens whenever he comes home late at night after wrapping a long shoot. To your amusement, when Ben sleep talks, it’s really fast and incoherent. He will deny that this ever happened, but you have the receipts to prove him wrong!

[minnochu]

All Eyes On You

Cute little (when I mean little, I literally mean little) Tae Request

(A/n): In honor of my impending failure at my KIN Lab Practical. Here’s another requested scenario. Hope y’all enjoy it!

** Sorry if there’s any grammatical mistakes or typos, when I get out of my lab I’ll go over it and update my links and stuff for the masterlist v.v

*** Last minute title ‘cause I suddenly thought of All Eyez by Jeremih even though it’s pretty much a song about fuck buddies LOL.

“What are you guys doing?”

The group of boys are huddled on the couch, some standing behind to look over the others’ shoulders to catch a glimpse of the item in the middle. They snicker and whistle, on the verge of catcalling as Taehyung stands at the doorway confused by his group members’ odd behaviors. It’s not like he’s never seen them this erratic only when…

He pauses in the middle of taking off his shoes. Head rising slowly, his brown eyes narrow at his companions in suspicion. 

Only when one of his girlfriend’s magazines come in.

He told you to just have the subscription go to your house, but you whined that you wanted him to see it as soon as possible. Really though, his group members mostly always saw them by time he gets home from solo activities.

“Kim Taehyung!” Namjoon whistles, smirking as the others grin at the younger lecherously, “You sly dog, how were you able to get your hands on (Y/n)?”

He rolls his eyes, approaching the huddled group to look at the magazine held by Jimin and Hoseok.

Victoria’s Secret. No pun intended, but it was no secret to anyone that he was dating you, a Victoria’s Secret model. Speaking of which, you invited him to watch an upcoming fashion show.

“Aren’t jealous? All these other people get to see your girl in nothing but lingerie?” Jimin asks as brandishes the magazine to display a shot of you lying prone on a fluffy bed, head leaning on your crossed arms with the straps of your bra sliding down your arms. His eyes immediately focus on the way you bite your lip and perk your bottom just slightly up to emphasize them.

Damn. 

Realizing he’s be staring for too long, he looks away with a pout, cheeks burning as he glares at the others, “N-not really… She enjoys what she does, and I’m proud of her…”

“Then what about this?” Jungkook asks, blinking as he turns the page to a shot of you posing rather closely to a male model while scantily wearing a vibrant red baby doll chemise. 

“J-just shut up!” He stammers as the others laugh and tease him for his innocent reaction, “And stop looking at that already!”

“Why, are you jealous?” You ask teasingly when Taehyung brings it up on the day you walk the stage for the fashion show. Your body is covered this time and you’re looking your natural, and he can’t help but sit there and appreciate that he at least gets to see all the sides of you that others don’t get to. Even without all the touch ups and sexy lingerie. You were after all, his, and simply beautiful.

“Not really…” he mutters as he looks away from your doting eyes because he knows fairly well that you can see straight through his denial.

“Oh Taehyung, you’re so cute,” You grin widely as he pouts and buries his face in your shoulder, “There’s nothing to be jealous about!”

A noise is muffled at your shoulder before he rises and glares weakly at you, “I know, but I still don’t like sharing your body with other people’s eyes.”

You can only smile and flick him on the forehead for his adorableness.

“You’re a dork, I love you, and only you, dummy.”

.

He massages the bridge of nose, the more he thought about, yes he did get jealous. Even now as he watches from the sidelines alongside the audience. His chest tightens at the thought of all these people getting to see your body so intimately. 

He sighs as he remembers how excited you were to have him watching one of your shows. Despite his growing greed to have you all to himself, he just couldn’t rip you away from what you enjoyed the most.

And there it is. 

All eyes are on you as you step into the spot light.

His heart soars through the roof when you finally make your first appearance on the catwalk. Your hair and makeup is done all perfect, making you look almost ethereal as you strut confidently along the walk. Your eyes meet, and you almost break character to smile at him warmly, but he can tell you noticed him.

“Look at her! She’s super pretty!”

“I wish I could look as good as her!”

He perks up at voices around him appreciate your beauty and openly compliment you. They weren’t wrong, you were the most gorgeous woman in the world. His world at least. 

Despite his growing jealousy, he can’t help but grin and think to himself as his heart swells with pride.

“Yeah, that’s my girl.”

[kmindset]

Reconciliation in Currency: One

Summary:  Sometimes reconciliation comes at a cost. Literally.

On ao3     My Twitter

Chapter 1: Man in the pinstriped jacket

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay with me?”

Your friend’s worry was evident over the phone. “Su Na, I’ll be fine. Joey is letting me stay with her until get on my feet.”

She hummed in disapproval.

“Flight 301 to South Korea, section B, now boarding.”

“Unnie, I will be fine.” You stand, lifting your carry on bag onto your shoulder. “You’re still picking me up from the airport right?”

“Of course! After so many years away I know there are things you haven’t told me. You are spilling everything!”

“I would love to hear you rant some more but I’m boarding the plane.”

Normally, you would sleep through most of your flights but returning to Korea was making you restless. Unable to sleep, listen to music, read, or focus on a movie, you were almost out of options. Thankfully, you were right at the beginning of coach which was the perfect area to listen to the flight attendants. “My section is amazing! There is a man who gave me 60,000 won just for getting him a drink.” She was hidden by the crevasse of the cabin where they resided that separated business class from the rest of you but you could hear her clearly.

“Really? Why is someone like that flying commercial?”

“He said he was having trouble with his private plane.”

The other woman opened her mouth again but the wall behind her dinged signaling someone was calling for her. The first class stewardess walked back to her section with a dark colored drink.

Your curiosity made you tilt your head to see into first class. The stewardess handed the man his drink but all you could see was a hand, an expensive looking watch and the sleeve of a grey pinstripe suit jacket.

The moment the plane arrives at the gate everyone stands as if it won’t take 20 minutes to get even half the passengers off the plane.

You move your legs to allow the impatient older woman next to you to push her way onto the aisle. You busy yourself texting Su Na and Joey that you have landed and checking emails.

When you look back up almost everyone has cleared. You make your way off the plane

“That Kim takes my breath away.”

The same attendants.

“I finally saw him when he was exiting the plane.” the second says. “I have never seen someone so perfect.”

They go on gushing on the perfect businessman who apparently gave the first attendant his business card.

When they split for another flight you finally laugh at their teenaged ramblings.

“_____!!” Su Na’s voice covers the baggage arrival announcement you were calmly waiting for.

An embarrassed wave is all you can give before she is pinching your cheeks and fawning over how much prettier you have become.

“Unnie, we’re in public.” You say, pushing away her grabby hands. Though you’re more than mortified it’s nice to see a familiar face.

She gushed over you for hours, asking if you had eaten then taking you to stuff your face at your favorite restaurant you were happy was still there. She took you to refill your t-money card which you were also grateful for but the line was drawn at the fifth outfit she made you try on for your interview. As grateful as you were slightly jetlagged and had yet to see Joey.

When she finally dropped you off, you were greeted by a message from Joey. She’d texted you the house code as she was going to be late.

You helped yourself to the food she bought for your arrival. When she arrived there was a hug that you were pretty sure would leave a bruise.

The two of you talked as if no time had passed.

“Yeah, I have a job interview in the morning. It isn’t the best and It isn’t what I got my certification for but it’s something.” The defeat in your voice couldn’t be masked.

“A step in any direction is progress.”

True enough but it didn’t help your mood. You said your goodnights and laid down for a restless sleep. Sleeping with a weight on your mind was always hard, you couldn’t help but think back to the one person who could lift it.

“Taehyung.”

He heard the quiver in your voice right away. “______, what happened.”

“I can’t do it.” You sobbed into the receiver. “I can’t do it.”

“Aegya, I know you are nervous and scared but you can do this. You have done it before and you can do it again.”

You lean your head back against the wall. “Tae, if I don’t pass this test all my credit hours will have been for nothing!”

“But that wouldn’t happen anyway. All I am saying is I believe in you. You have the potential for greatness no matter what.”

It got quiet and you knew what he was thinking. “And you’ll be right there with me right?”

He chuckled lowly with what sounded like a sniffle. “Of course. There’s nowhere else I would rather be.”

A comfortable silence fell over the conversation as you calmed down and finally felt fatigue.

“TaeTae, can you sing to me?”

He was quiet for a moment before he began to sing. Slowed down version nobody by Wonder Girls in his soothing tenor.

There was no better sleep than sleep aided by Taehyung.

You didn’t have that anymore but you needed it right now.

Seoul sparkled like a diamond in the dirt at night.

It’s beauty served as the backdrop to many fantasies. A hand came to undo the expensive watch from the wrist of the man that loved to admire such a view.

He didn’t care for the price as he threw it on his nightstand, his pinstripe suit jacket joining it. All his attention was on the view. It made him think of her. The pain in his heart had subsided over the years but would he ever feel ok?

His mind drifted as it often did to a thousand what-ifs.

He urged himself to stop as his jetlag became more apparent. He needed a drink.

You stared at the search engine homepage with fingers slightly shaking. You wanted more than anything to look him up. You wanted to reach out and hopefully get a warm response. You wanted to tell him all about your time away and be filled in on everything you knew the extraordinary man accomplished in the years apart.

But the last interaction came to mind.

His handsome face scowling in betrayal. The same feeling of guilt from the day returned at the dismay in knowing you caused that scowl.

You closed your laptop quickly. ‘ Not tonight.’ You thought with a sorrowful heart.

Morning came far too quickly.

As you awoke, a fresh wave of nerves hit you like a truck. The thought of waiting until you found a better job crossed your mind as you disapprovingly examined your dark circles but your resolve strengthed when you saw the makeup to hide such bags was running low.

You weren’t sure how to dress for the interview as the listing was vague but it was clear on the payment. It seemed as though it would be clerical work or assistant- type tasks.

As long as it paid, it was currently good enough for you.

You were early arriving at the building the stood tall in the heart of Seoul. Everything about being there made you nostalgic. You breathed in familiar air with a content smile. As you entered the building your awareness of the oh so familiar city put you in a melancholy state. The heels you willed yourself into wearing took you almost on autopilot to where you were told in the interview announcement email. The elevator ride even sparked a memory that sat on the tip of your subconscious. There was no time to try and reach for it as the doors opened to reveal the most beautiful area you ever set eyes on. The beauty and meticulous detail applied to the whole of the area reminded you of him. It brought a smile to your face. An olive colored desk with white trim that swirled downwards at the end was the first thing you focused on. The words ‘Welcome to Kkangji’ were written beautifully on the front.

The name made you smile, mind drifting to the snow white kitten from times past.

“Ma’am.”

You looked up to see a woman smiling from behind the desk. “Are you here for the interview?” You nodded, a little embarrassed at the first impression you must have been making. “Ah, he will be pleased you are early.”

She picked up the phone and said a few quick words in the receiver before placing it back down. “Follow me please.”

You followed behind her quietly. The hall was as beautifully done as the waiting area. Expensive looking art pieces and their almost as equally as expensive frames were gorgeous. “He made most of these himself.” the receptionist leaned over and whispered with a smile. She must have noticed you looking. “He designed this whole floor of the building.” There was something deeper in all of it that warmed your heart now. His artistic soul was poured into everything.

Finally, she stopped in front of a large white door. It was simple yet powerful for some reason.

She opened the door to reveal the lavish office. You stepped in, eyes landing on a large desk. The chair behind it, obviously occupied, was spun facing the large window.

“Sir, here she is. Ms. ____________ ,  this is Mr. Kim Taehyung.”

Three things happened simultaneously. First. The receptionist left the room almost as quickly as she dropped you off.  Second, the memories from minutes before hit you full force. The company name. The building. The outstanding art. All linked to the man you knew better than anyone in this building.

And third, he spun in his chair to look at you. “________?” “Taehyung??”

You had to be dreaming. It felt impossible that your Taehyung could be the man running all of this. The first instinct was to run and hug* him but there was something about his blank expression. The picture of him dressed impeccably, sat behind that desk radiated a kind of power you were unfamiliar with. Only when his gaze traveled down to his phone had you noticed how long you had been stood there.

You cleared your throat and approached. The glare of his unreadable face now off of you made you confident enough to move. Right in front of him now, you picked up his name placard.

Kim Taehyung, CEO and Director of Art

“This explains the waiting area. It looks like something from your wettest art hoe dreams.” you tried to joke.

“You don’t know about my wet dreams, _____.” His tone was sharp and cold, like a knife cutting through the friendly air of your comment. He reached out as he stood to take the placard from your hands.

“I-I- uh”

“As articulate as ever I see.” Your mouth clamped shut like an offended child at the comment. “I won’t waste your time, Ms. ______. Do you have your resume’?”

His stoic demeanor shocked you but you nodded. You handed him the professional looking paper, complete with your most recent sources from the past few years. You smiled proudly trying to regain any confidence you had before you saw him.

He quietly looked over it. A hum here, a raised eyebrow there. It was painfully quiet. “I can answer any questions you may-” your sentence stopped short as he tore the paper in half then again.

“Tae what the hell?!” formalities were dropped as he must be out of his mind.

“There must have been a disconnect. This job isn’t one you would require this kind of experience for. I am already aware of your experience to some degree though.”

“Tae, what are you talking about?”

“I need someone.”

“I have always been here for you.”

There was brief silence before he scoffed ‘Have you?’ more to himself than you. “I refuse to stoop as low as some in my business so I’ve decided to opt for something mutually beneficial.”

You sighed, still very confused. “Use simple words, Taehyung.”

He learned from where he sat on his desk to get close to your face with a smirk that told you he knew his next words would floor you. “I want to fuck you, wreck you whenever I fucking feel like it, and give you money for it.”

Your mouth hung open like a dead fish now. You stared at that familiar face to see nothing you recognized. His boyish charm and triangular face shape now switch for a mature charm* and square jaw. His unique eyes that once were so playful now sinful and taunting. Even his dark locks were now a long greyish brown. This was not your TaeTae. This was CEO Kim Taehyung.

“H-How are you like this. I can’t believe that came from your mouth.”

“Because you don’t know me anymore.”

“I haven’t been gone that long.”

He straightened up, now glaring coldly. “Years, _______. Years.”

“I don’t want you to go.”

“I have to though.” This had been a common back and forth for weeks now. Though before where it was playful now it was desperate, pleading, and very much hurt. The chance to volunteer in your field was too much of a miracle to pass up. Only it meant traveling out of the country. Away from Taehyung. You were almost at the point where you had to say your goodbyes but he was making it difficult.

“Aren’t I important to you?”

You stop, your mouth opening some in shock. You wanted to believe it was a joke but his face held the betrayal he clearly felt. “Of course, why would you ask that?”

“Because it doesn't seem like it!”

“I can’t stay here for someone else. There is nothing here for me.”

“I’m nothing?!”

You open your mouth to tell him no, that he is wrong so you want to shout until your voice is gone but instead you turn to go through security.

“Looks like there were opportunities here.” An unreadable look with a tone of smug disgust.

“For YOU, Taehyung. You still aren’t getting it.” You shake your head incredulously as you pick up the remains of your torn resume.

“My success could have been yours too.”

“I wanted my own path not to crowd yours.”

“So you left me?”

“I obviously wasn’t gone forever!”

“How was I supposed to know that?!”

At this point you were so frustrated you had to take some deep breaths. “You were supposed to trust me.” You turned around to see him taking off his belt, jacket already off and tie loosened.

“What are you doing?”

“You still want the job right?”

You were silent not wanting to admit you need the job despite what it was. With much hesitation, you nodded. “Yes.”

He walked up to you, getting close to your face again as he slid off his belt with a snap. “Then strip, it’s time for your interview.”

[blustersquall]

Only Make Believe // Chapter 30: The Author’s Home

Hi everyone, thanks so much for your patience in getting this new chapter up. No warnings for this chapter that I can think of. I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think. <3

The link to the chapter on AO3 is at the bottom of the chapter under the read more because tumblr’s algorithm blows.

December 30th

--

One of the things Cullen liked most about Varric was that despite his wealth and his popularity as a writer, he lived modestly. His home in Kirkwall was a simple town house. There was nothing attention grabbing or vulgar about it from the outside. Situated in Kirkwall’s more ‘middle class’ district, it was at the centre of everything. Varric never was one to flaunt his money or the reach he had with his books. His grounded nature regarding money was one of his best qualities, in Cullen’s opinion.

After the ship docked in Kirkwall, it was a short ten-minute drive to Varric’s house. Out front there was enough space for several cars to park, so Cullen pulled in giving enough room for other vehicles to pass by. There were two other cars already parked side-by-side. One was Varric’s and one Cassandra’s.

Being by the sea, Kirkwall had been spared most of the winter weather. It was cold, a bitingly harsh wind cutting through the air and striking right down to the bone with every strong gust, but there was no snow. The wind brought with it the overwhelming smell of the sea. A pleasant scent, and one that Cullen would always associate with Kirkwall.

Given how the events at Kinloch affected him, he was always surprised that what happened in Kirkwall did not do the same. Perhaps it was because he had friends living in the city, or perhaps because he did try to help when everything happened, and the city was in pandemonium. Perhaps he didn’t carry the same amount of guilt with him when it came to Kirkwall as he did with Kinloch. Or he understood the grief better to deal with it as an adult from an adult’s eyes rather than Kinloch from a teens. He wasn’t sure. It wasn’t something he spent a lot of time thinking about… Not something he allowed himself to spend much time thinking about. So much of his life had been spent looking to the past. It was about time he started looking more towards the future.

Nevena was a bundle of excited nerves beside him in the car when he turned the engine off. He thought back to their arrival that first day in Haven and the contrast to now. It was like seeing a completely different woman.

Arriving at Haven she had been silent, stiff, and all the colour drained from her face turning her grey. He remembered how her breathing increased, how panic and fear took over her. He knew then that their arrangement would be nothing like he had dealt with before. That Nevena would need a gentle hand, guidance, and a silent support. No one had a reaction like hers without a reason. Once he learned the reason for her fear, he understood.

Now, she was excitedly looking around, eager to get out of the car. Her face was flush with almost child-like glee and wonder, eyes bright and wide. She leaned forward in her seat, pulling on the seat belt as if to get a better look at the house. Cullen’s chest swelled whenever he caught a glimpse of her infectious smile. He was gone. So very, very far gone. He hoped his closest friends would like her – but he knew even if they did not, he would still adore her.

“This is such a gorgeous house,” Nevena stated, walking around the car to the boot to help Cullen get their suitcases. “I would love a place like this.”

“What about your flat?” asked Cullen, placing his case on the ground and reaching for Nevena’s.

“Oh, I love my flat,” she shrugged, “but I’d love a bit more space. An office would be nice, a bathroom with a claw footed tub… and a separate kitchen.”

“Even though you can’t cook?” Cullen teased.

“Even though I can’t cook.” She poked her tongue out, “But a place like this with a nice big garden for a dog or two. It’d be perfect.”

Cullen slammed the boot closed, “that does sound nice.” After locking up the car, he grabbed his case and went to pick up Nevena’s. She beat him to it, lifting it off the ground and followed him towards the front door.

Before they reached it, the door opened wide to reveal two people standing in the threshold. Cassandra, tall, her dark hair still short with a braid around the crown of her head, her beautiful sharply angled face smiling at him stood beside Varric. He was shorter, broad across the chest and shoulders, his dirty blond hair beginning to grey a little around the temples was pulled into a short ponytail. Despite the cold, he still wore his shirt with a few buttons undone, displaying the top of an impressive chest of hair.

Behind him, Cullen heard Nevena gasp. “That’s Varric Tethras!” she almost squeaked.

“Curly!” Varric greeted, opening his arms wide and stepping down the steps towards them. Cullen put his suitcase on the ground, accepting the welcoming hug. “It’s been way too long!” Varric squeezed him and leaned back, lifting Cullen a few inches off the ground. Cullen sucked in a breath and was grateful when his feet found solid earth again, not used to being so easily lifted. That Varric managed not to give himself a hernia was impressive.

“I know,” Cullen patted him on the shoulder. “It’s good to see you, Varric.”

“Good to see you, Cullen.” Cassandra hugged him, tight and heartfelt. He returned it, happy to be reunited with his friends. Despite her sometimes austere appearance, Cassandra was one of the kindest women Cullen knew, and one of the sappiest. She always gave good hugs, and this was no exception. He viewed her as another sister… just slightly less nosy.

“You too,” he smiled at her when they released the hug. She looked healthy, and happy. Stepping away, Cullen reached out towards Nevena who was standing a few steps behind him. He placed his hand on her lower back, guiding her forward. “This is Nevena Trevelyan. Nev, this is Cassandra Pentaghast.”

“Nice to meet you,” Cassandra shook Nevena’s hand firmly.

“You too.”

“And—”

“Varric Tethras.” Varric gave her hand a brief shake before sweeping in to take Nevena’s attention as Cullen knew he would. “So, Curly tells me you’re quite the fan!”

“Uh…”

“Which of my books have you read?” He guided her up the steps towards the front door. Nevena threw a look at Cullen over her shoulder, eyes gleaming with what Cullen could only assume was both panic and awe.

“Uhm—all… of them?” Nevena replied, her voice a little stilted. Cullen found himself smiling. “Thank you for the copy of The Viper’s Nest, too,” she added hurriedly. “It’s my favourite, and my original copy, I read it to death – literally. I’m just… I really, uh—”

Varric laughed and turned back to face Cullen at the top step, “I like this one,” he said. “You should keep her.” Before Cullen could rebuff him, Varric was already leading Nevena inside the house, talking about showing her around and letting her see his office. Cullen overheard something about a new manuscript, which was drowned out by an excited shriek.

When both Varric and Nevena had disappeared inside, Cullen looked to Cassandra who gave him a fond, if slightly exasperated look, shaking her head a little. “He’s terrible, I know.”

“Just being a gracious host.”

“And leaving us with the heavy lifting.” Cassandra picked up Nevena’s suitcase before Cullen had a chance and took it up the stairs. He followed her in, closing the door behind him.

Their house was warm, and the air was filled with the smell of homemade mulled wine and pine needles. The pictures that lined the walls were a mixture of artwork, prints, and photographs depicting everything from high-rise buildings at night, to landscapes described in Varric’s novels. It was bright, but cosy, and felt lived in and well loved. Cullen felt comfortable and welcomed walking in, rather than the uneasy feeling he’d had entering the manor house in Haven. Cassandra led him first upstairs to where the guest rooms were situated, putting Nevena’s suitcase in a separate made up room down the hall from where Cullen would be sleeping.

He almost said that separate rooms weren’t necessary but caught himself. After all, Cassandra and Varric were under the impression that he and Nevena were simply friends, faking their relationship. They didn’t know that they had chosen to take a step forward and void the contract between them. He made a mental note to bring it up later, and to ask Nevena if she would prefer to share or stay separate.

After shedding his jacket, he went with Cassandra to the kitchen.

“How have you been?” asked Cassandra. She poured water from an old-fashioned tea kettle into two mugs, letting the teabags inside stew for a few moments. “After our conversation on Christmas Day, I admit I’ve been a little worried about you.”

“Ah,” Cullen took the mug when she offered it, “that. Yes.” He took a sip, more for distraction than anything else. Cassandra lifted a brow, dark eyes boring into him. “Everything is fine… Your talk certainly helped.”

“Did it, indeed?” She looked at him shrewdly. Cullen would swear that Cassandra was born suspicious. She never took anything anyone said at face value. Perhaps it was a side effect of knowing and living with Varric. Cullen almost felt as though he was on trial. “So, your relationship is still under contract? Of course, you don’t have to pretend here as the pretence was only for the benefit of her family.”

“Well,” Cullen cleared his throat, “there’s a bit more to it, than that.”

Her eyes narrowed, “Oh?”

“It…” he glanced around the farm house style kitchen, looking for another topic of conversation. Anything to get out from under her accusatory gaze. “H-have you redecorated in here?”

“Yes.”

“It looks nice.”

“Thank you. Cullen—”

“And I noticed the hallway seems to have had some work done, too.”

“Cullen—”

“What have you and Varric been up to?”

“You’re avoiding the question.”

“I know I am.” He threw Cassandra a small smile. When her eyes narrowed even further, he scratched the back of his neck. “It’s… complicated.”

“Complicated, how?” she inquired, putting her mug down on the island counter where they were sitting. She drummed her fingers against it, a habit of hers he picked up on when they first met.

“Well—”

“She’s a bright spark, that one.” Varric cut him off, entering the kitchen from another door towards the rear. He went to where the kettle was and poured himself tea as well. He looked from Cullen to Cassandra, clearly noticing the heavy air between them and sat on one of the stools beside Cassandra. “Did I interrupt something?”

“Ye-

“No.” Cullen interjected before Cassandra could answer fully. She gave him a sour look. Cullen knew he was going to get interrogated by her and probably Varric, he just wanted to put it off a little longer. “Where’s Nevena?”

“In the lounge with all the books.” Varric stirred his tea. “I’ve never seen someone’s eyes light up like that at the sight of books! I’m pretty sure she’d be happy if we just left her in there the rest of the day!”

Cullen chuckled, “Good… Thank you for extending the invitation to her, and for being so welcoming. I wouldn’t have felt comfortable leaving her with her family.”

“I didn’t broach the subject with her but now you mention it,” Varric blew over the surface of his mug, sending steam wafting towards Cullen, “What happened?”

Cassandra was scowling a little, clearly annoyed that she could no longer grill Cullen, but her scowl softened with Varric’s question. Cullen had a feeling the two of them had talked about him and Nevena before they arrived possibly planning what to ask and wondering what on earth had transpired in Haven to send them all the way to the Free Marches at such short notice.

“Family skeletons coming out of the closet and being used as weapons,” Cullen answered with a weary shrug. “The oldest sister, Ineria, on Christmas Day decided to drop a bombshell that Nevena –who for three years has believed she was adopted – was actually a half-sister. Their father’s daughter. A daughter he had with the woman who accidently killed his son in a car crash.”

Varric’s eyes widened. He and Cassandra looked at each other, and then back to Cullen. “Well, shit.”

“Yes. Shit.” Cassandra’s skin paled slightly. “That’s quite a bombshell to drop. Was there a reason?”

“Nevena trying to help her niece who is… suffering under Ineria’s controlling heel. Ineria took offense to it. She believed Nevena was trying to turn her children against her, when in fact Nevena’s just been trying to help,” explained Cullen. “Her family are all kinds of messed up. There’s…” he ran his thumb and forefinger across his forehead. “I’m glad to be out of there, to be quite honest. It’s been a… stressful few weeks.”

“I can imagine.” Varric rubbed his chin. “And with the added stress of keeping up appearances for them, you must be worn out.”

Cullen exhaled sharply a short chuff of laughter, “Oh, that part has been the easy bit. Once we got over a few of hurdles it was… easy. Natural.”

“Natural, huh?” Varric’s mouth grew into a large grin. “How natural?”

Looking at him with amusement, Cullen shook his head in silence and rolled his eyes. He took a drink from his mug feeling his stomach knot. “She got me to go back to Kinloch,” he said softly, looking down into his mug. He didn’t need to look at his friends faces to know how shocked their expressions must have been. He could feel it in the air, the surprise and the mental questions they were asking themselves and him.

“Kinloch?” Cassandra repeated, “As in… Kinloch Kinloch?”

“Yeah.”

“The place you swore you’d never go back to?” Varric added.

“Yeah…”

“B-but…” sputtered Cassandra, her voice growing a little irate. “When we tried to just talk to you about that, you… you shut us out, for weeks! Told us never to mention it again! That you wouldn’t go back. You couldn’t.”

“I know I did.” Cullen lifted his eyes and met hers. “I’m sorry about that. It was… wrong of me. Ungrateful. I know you were only trying to help.”

“Forget that!” Varric waved his hand dismissively. “How did she get you to go? What, is her voice magic or something? Make you more suggestable? What? Because if she’s that persuasive, I need her to talk to my publisher!”

Cullen laughed a little, exhaling sharply through his nose and peered down into his mug again. He tightened his hands around it, feeling the heat seep into his skin until it was almost unbearable. How could he explain to them how he felt about Nevena? How could he put into words the way she inspired him and made him want to be better? What would they think? Would they think he was losing his mind? Or that he’d already lost it? When he lifted his head to look at his friends, they were both watching him with expectant expressions. He sighed and drummed his fingers against his mug.

“I don’t know if I can explain it,” he said eventually.

“Try.” Cassandra’s voice was hard, her lips pursed. She could be sceptical, and Cullen didn’t blame her for being wary. She didn’t know Nevena, of course and Cassandra had a protective streak when it came to him.

“She…” He started, then stopped trying to find the right words. Eyes closed, he focused his mind. “There’s something about her that just… fits with me.” He said, opening his eyes and looking across the counter to Cassandra and Varric. “She’s never pushed me, and she doesn’t push me. She didn’t force me to go to Kinloch, I went of my own accord because she… she inspired me to do so.”

Varric and Cassandra exchanged uncertain looks. “Inspired you… how, Curly?” asked Varric.

Cullen pushed his mug to one side and rest his hands on the counter top, gesturing as he spoke. “A few days after she found out the truth of her birth, even though she didn’t owe her family anything, she went back to Haven to speak to her father, to learn about everything. He told her what I assume is the truth, including that her birth mother killed herself…” He pushed a hand through his hair. Part of him worried that Nevena might overhear him divulging such sensitive information. Another, slightly more selfish part didn’t care. It was good to talk to someone else about what happened in Haven.

“After learning that, she could have run away. Gone back to Denerim and tried to forget – no one would have blamed her for doing so. But she didn’t. She couldn’t. She did what I should have done after Kinloch, and decided she wanted to face her demons. She wanted to learn more about her mother. It was one of the deciding factors as to why we came here. She didn’t… wouldn’t let something like this dictate her life, or her actions. She…” he breathed out deeply, brushing his fingers over his chin. “She chose to be brave. Like she’s chosen to be brave her whole life.”

“Brave?” Cassandra took a sip from her tea. Her expression had softened a little through Cullen’s explanation.

“She’s suffered abuse at the hands of her family since she was a child, being blamed for being the replacement for her brother – though it was no fault of hers given she was an infant. She’s suffered indignities and bullying from her sisters, and worse from her psychotic ex-finance. Everything she’s been through, it would make sense for her to be cynical and cold and mean. But she’s not. She’s suffered, and it’s just made her kind, and loving, and good.” Cullen clasped his hands together. “I think that’s brave. I think to face a lifetime of abuse and come out wanting to be kind takes immeasurable courage. More courage than I have, certainly.”

After a few moments pause, Varric cleared his throat and nudged Cassandra. “So, Kinloch?” she prompted. “Her bravery inspired you to go to Kinloch?”

“I decided that if she could face her demons head on, and not cower to them, then why couldn’t I? Why hadn’t I? I had been running from what happened for years. Haunted by the events and the torture I endured. Haunted by the guilt of surviving and blaming myself for it happening. Going back there… it helped lay some ghosts to rest.” Cullen swallowed thickly. “What happened will never go away, I know that. I’ll always have the scars, mental and physical. But going back helped. It felt good to go back. To visit the memorial that was erected and remember the people who perished. To remember them as they were when I knew them. Not who they became as our captivity lengthened…” He sighed, ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck. “I honestly don’t know if any of it makes sense,” he admitted with a wry smile down into his half-empty mug. “I don’t know if I’m fooling myself or… or anything. I just… Nevena makes me want to be… better.”

“She’s got you going to places even your friends and family couldn’t get you to visit,” laughed Varric. Cullen lifted his gaze to him. “Sounds like things between the two of you are pretty damn serious.”

The corner of Cullen’s mouth quirked. “I think it is,” he said, his voice soft, thoughtful, and with no hint of amusement. Still, there was a warmth in his chest when he thought of Nevena. A contentment and familiarity that made him want to get up, find her, and take her in his arms. He may have been speaking to Cassandra and Varric, but Cullen realised then he was admitting to himself how deeply his feelings went. How much Nevena had already impacted his life. To his surprise, the acceptance of those feelings was not frightening.

He loved her. Was in love with her, and possibly had been since early into this charade. Only, it wasn’t a charade any more. Somehow his mind and heart had ignored his usually safe and slow approach to romance and courtship. Instead both had fallen incredibly hard and fast for the gentle blonde woman who jumped like an excited greyhound the day they met. And it didn’t bother him. He was happy with this development despite it going against his normal, cautious nature.

“Well,” Cassandra’s voice shook him from his more pleasant thoughts. Her expression was still hard, and he couldn’t read her. He knew she could be a romantic, but the way she looked at him, he wondered what she was thinking. “Be that as it may, while you’re here you don’t have to pretend to be in this relationship anymore.”

“I know—”

“You’ll have the chance to put some distance between yourselves and to think about everything. Rationally.”

Cullen furrowed his brow at that comment not liking the implication behind it, “We have been thinking rationally.”

“I’m sure you have.” Cassandra got to her feet and took her mug to the sink. “But a little time to really consider what you want and how you feel never hurt anyone.” She emptied the remaining contents of her mug down the drain and rinsed it out. As she did, Cullen looked to Varric for clarification receiving a shrug in return. “Shall we go and find our other guest? I feel like we’re being bad hosts.”

Realising her words signalled the end of the conversation, Cullen rose off his stool without another word.

The hours of driving and boat travel caught up to both Cullen and Nevena mere hours after arriving at Varric’s home. They each yawned their way through a hearty dinner, which only served to tire them out more. By nine-thirty, Nevena had fallen asleep three times on the couch and went to bed. Cullen was struggling to keep his eyes open and focus on the conversation between himself and Varric. He made his excuses at ten and made the slow ascension upstairs to his room. On passing Nevena’s room, he paused for a moment and considered knocking but thought better of it when he noticed there was no light spilling under the door and that she was probably asleep. He carried on towards his room, exhaling heavily when he closed the door behind him.

The room itself was comfortable and a good size with a queen-sized bed taking up most of the space. He hadn’t unpacked at all since he and Nevena arrived, and after switching on the light he hauled his case onto a dresser to find some comfortable sweatpants to wear to bed. Even though the room was welcoming and homey, it felt a little cold and empty now. Having been practically living with Nevena for several weeks and sharing a bed with her the last few days, he wasn’t looking forward to the prospect of sleeping alone. He’d grown rather accustomed to the weight of her on the mattress beside him, and the sound of her breathing in the darkness.

He noticed his phone vibrating in his back pocket while he removed articles of clothing from his suitcase. When the screen lit up, he saw Nevena’s face beside the notification of a text message.

[Nevena] Are you still awake?

Cullen quickly typed a reply and sat down on the edge of the bed.

[Cullen] Yes. I thought you were asleep? Everything alright?

He waited a moment, putting his phone on his bed and continued his search for something comfortable to wear to bed. He found a pair of grey sweats and started to change when another message arrived.

[Nevena] I was tired, but now I’m in bed I’m wide awake. Go figure! Do you have a minute to talk about something?

Cullen pulled on his sweats, tossed his jeans onto the bed, and removed his jumper before replying. He, also, now felt as though he was getting a second wind. The prospect of a few minutes alone with her, the opportunity to kiss her – which he hadn’t had all day – exciting him a little.

[Cullen] Sure. Be right there.

Now changed, Cullen quickly pulled on a hoodie over his head and raked his fingers back through his hair in an attempt to neaten it. He checked the hallway before leaving his room entirely, not wanting to run into Cassandra who seemed more reluctant to accept Cullen’s feelings towards Nevena, which surprised him. He had expected her to be supportive and positive, but he also knew that Cassandra was protective and often took time to warm up to people. If her attitude did not change, then he would ask her about it, but he had no doubt that Cassandra’s iciness would thaw once she got to know Nevena a little more.

Once outside of Nevena’s room he took a breath to settle the flurry of nervous energy now twisting his stomach into knots and knocked to announce himself.

“It’s open.”

Cullen entered, closing the door firmly behind him. He saw Nevena sitting at the end of her bed, legs outstretched her hands tucked under her thighs. Her room was much like his, homey and comfortable with a dresser, queen sized bed and a few other simple bits of furniture. He could tell from how messy the covers were she had tried to sleep. The smile on her lips reached her eyes, and the wild butterflies in Cullen’s stomach grew a bit more frantic. He cleared his throat softly but remained where he was.

“Hi…” he mumbled.

“Hi,” Nevena smiled up at him.

“You alright? What’s on your mind?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck a moment later. Getting right down to business was how he dealt with feeling uncomfortable. He had no reason to feel uncomfortable in front of her, but for some reason he felt as though he was breaking some rule set down by Cassandra and Varric. He put it down to the fact they were in separate rooms now. It was like he was sneaking around…

Which he was. Technically.

“I was thinking about what we were going to do while we’re here. After the party tomorrow, I mean.” Nevena explained, pulling her hands out from beneath her thighs and clasping them in her lap. “I guess, now we’re here I’m… a little lost.”

Cullen chuckled to himself and relaxed. “Well… You grew up in Ostwick, so I imagine looking for information there would be a good start.”

“Probably. I’ve done a few searches for Miranda’s name online, nothing really comes up. No news reports or articles about the accident or about her suicide.”

“I think old newspapers are sometimes stored in libraries,” said Cullen. “That might be a good place to start. I imagine Varric knows at least one person who would know, or who would have a connection to a library. Given his vast social circle.”

“Mhm…” Nevena nibbled her bottom lip and Cullen noticed she was clenching her hands together, nervously.

He moved towards her, “Nev…” He took her hands and dropped to his knees in front of her, lifting her hands to his mouth he kissed her knuckles. “You can walk away from this. You don’t have to find out information about your mother. You don’t need to deal with it while it’s still raw.”

“But we came all the way here,” Nevena mumbled, staring down at their hands. “It would feel like I’d wasted time, to come here and not do what I came here to do.”

“I hope you don’t feel like you wasted all of your time,” he was teasing, but he saw the realisation and then shock register in Nevena’s expression. She gasped almost comically, slipping her hands from his and holding him around the face.

“No! No- I—I didn’t… I didn’t mean—Sorry, that was—”

“It’s alright, sweetheart, it’s alright.” Cullen stroked her arms, trying to calm her. “I was only teasing. I’m sorry.” Nevena’s cheeks grew pink, eyes flicking back and forth between his. She did not release him, and the proximity made Cullen’s stomach twist pleasurably.

“I kind of like when you call me sweetheart…” Nevena lowered her eyes, bashful and coy. A complete transformation to the woman who the night before had willingly taken him in her mouth and brought him to a dizzying climax. She really was an enigma to him.

“I kind of like saying it,” he replied, feeling the dopey smile on his face. Stupid, lovesick fool that he was. “You can decide what we do in your own time. We have a few days, and it’s unlikely some places will be open until at least the second. In the meantime, we can do other things in Kirkwall.”

“Can you show me your old stomping ground?”

“My old stomping ground?” he repeated, laughing. “If the Hanged Man is still there I’m sure I could muster a visit. It was quite horrendous back when I was stationed here.”

“I’d like to see Kirkwall from your perspective.”

“Then I’ll show you around Kirkwall on a day where we have nothing planned. I’m sure Varric and Cassandra would be happy to join us.”

“Ah,” Nevena grimaced a little. “I don’t think Cassandra likes me much. Every time I look at her I get the feeling she’s judging me… or trying to see if she can set fire to me.”

Grinning, Cullen shook his head, leaned forward and kissed her forehead, “Cassandra is like that with everyone at first. She takes a bit of time to warm up to people. She’ll get there with you, I promise.” Nevena smiled weakly. “It seems like you and Varric hit it off though?”

“Yes!” Her eyes lit up. “He’s so down-to-earth! Not at all like I expected… Shorter in person, too. I love how completely blunt he is about things. He’s even said I can give the first draft of his new manuscript a read while we’re here. He wants to hear my thoughts on it!”

“I knew he’d adore you.” Cullen said, enraptured by Nevena’s enthusiasm. Just like I do.

She chuckled, “I wouldn’t go quite that far.” Nevena gently pushed her fingers through Cullen’s hair. “Thank you, Cullen.” She linked her fingers behind his neck.

Cullen quirked a brow, “For?”

She chewed her bottom lip. “For convincing me to come here. For giving me a once in a lifetime opportunity to not just meet Varric Tethras but stay in his home. For… for…” She tutted and shook her head.

“For…?” Cullen prompted, gently butting his nose against her temple.

“For… just for coming into my life, I guess?” Her expression grew into a small wince, and she shrugged her shoulders, averting her gaze to the floor. “I just mean… I don’t think I could have got through everything that’s happened in the past few weeks without you. You keep saying that I’m remarkable, but I don’t think you realise quite how wonderful you are.”

“Well,” Cullen chuffed, his cheeks burning. “I don’t know about that.”

“I’m serious,” Nevena spoke more firmly, eyes on his. The bashfulness and coyness now replaced by quiet determination. “You could have turned around at any time and walked away. Said you were out, that the disaster that is my family was more than you signed up for. I wouldn’t have blamed you in the least. But you didn’t. You stuck around. Stuck by me… You’ve demonstrated more loyalty to me in the short time we’ve known each other, than my family have my whole life, and I am so grateful to you for that. It means…” she shook her head and tutted to herself. “I don’t think I can fully express what it means to me.”

“You’re welcome,” Cullen replied, teasing a lock of her hair back behind her ear.

The room fell to silence as the two of them simply gazed at one another. Nevena curled and twisted tendrils of Cullen’s hair around her fingers, occasionally brushing the skin at the nape of his neck. He relaxed into the touch, unsure what to say or do. Not knowing if there was anything he should or could say. He simply wanted to enjoy these moments with her. Moments where there was no stress and no anxiety in either of them. Moments where they were both content in one another’s company.

Suddenly, Nevena giggled, shaking her head at her own private joke. Cullen pinched the sides of her waist, making her jerk and yelp a little. “What’s so funny?” he asked, smiling at her amusement.

“Have I kissed you today?” Nevena asked him, a teasing smile lifting the corners of her mouth.

Cullen chuckled and shook his head. “No, I don’t think you have.”

“Ah,” she nodded a few times. “Would you like me to rectify that?”

He closed the space between them, whispering, “Please.” A moment later his lips met hers, and he felt the warmth of her kiss and her presence begin to flow through him.

In moments, the soft kiss grew more heated. It grew into a kiss that was more teeth and tongues, than lips. Cullen curled his fingers into the slouched top Nevena wore, rising off his knees. Nevena’s gentle hands around the back of his neck grew firmer, grabbing onto the material of his hooded shirt and pulling at it. Pulling him. Drawing him closer as she shuffled up the bed. She led him. Cullen pressed his weight into one hand on the covers and crawled up after her, the kiss breaking for brief moments when the mattress shifted under their combined weight. These moments of boldness were intoxicating to him and Cullen’s blood flowed so quickly to his cock it left him feeling a little light-headed. Even before he was sprawled over her, one knee positioned between hers, and a hand spread over the top of Nevena’s back, he could feel himself harden – the prospect of another intimate encounter chasing away any thought of sleep.

He still owed her for the previous night, after all.

Parting, he helped her yank his top off over his head and arms. Nevena tossed it blindly to one side before claiming his mouth again. Her tongue pushed beyond his lips, fingers tightening and gripping his hair. Cullen scratched his fingernails over the top of her back and she arched up into him, a soft, strangled sound leaving her throat.

“Shh…” Cullen laughed, leaving her lips to tend to her neck. Nevena tilted her head back, already writhing beneath him, her hips grinding upwards, seeking friction and heat.

“I feel like a disobedient teenager,” giggled Nevena, soft hands and tapering fingers trailing delicate patterns up over the muscles of his back. Cullen found himself astounded by her, not for the first time, how easily she could switch between gentle and demanding. Her affectionate touches a stark contrast to her heated kisses moments earlier.

Peering down at her, he pushed her hair back away from her forehead. “I suppose it does feel like we’re doing something we shouldn’t be.” His lips quirked into a half-smile. “Although we’re not really doing anything.”

“Yet.” Nevena’s mouth broke into a cheeky grin.

Cullen chuckled, a short breath of air through his nose. “Yet…” he repeated, lightly pressing his lips to hers and following that with more feather-soft kisses over her cheek to her ear. Nevena shivered beneath him, her chest expanding on a deep, contented sigh. “I do still need to repay you for what you did on the ship,” he whispered to her, before gently biting down on the shell of her ear.

The change in her was immediate and obvious. Her body stiffened beneath him, and he heard her suck in a quick breath. Cullen pulled back, watching her curiously and ensuring her put some space between them so she could move if she wanted. “Nev?” Tentatively, he touched her cheek, softly brushing his thumb along the swell of her lower lip. The teasing grin was gone, and though she smiled it was quick and seemed hesitant. Cullen quirked a brow in a silent question. Nevena lowered her gaze. When she began to move to sit up, Cullen rolled off her and followed, sitting beside her quietly.

“About… that.” Nevena swallowed thickly and tucked her hair behind her ears. Cullen’s heart rate increased, and he could feel it thudding at the back of his throat. He was suddenly conjuring all the things she could say, and none of them were positive. Perhaps she regretted it, or perhaps she didn’t want to do that for him again. Perhaps she had only been joking about wanting to go down on him, and he had not taken some hint… Some extremely subtle hint. He tried to keep his face impassive, but curious and hoped the sound of his blood pounding was only audible to him. “Uhm… I... have never… uhm…” she lifted a hand and gingerly scratched the back of her neck. Her eyes darted to him, then away at lightning speed, focusing on her feet on the carpeted floor. Cullen noticed then that her cheeks were flushed a deep red, the colour spilling down her neck and beneath her shirt.

He realised, with dawning relief and concern, that she was embarrassed.

“You’ve never…?” he prompted gently, taking her hand from behind her neck and softly nudging the side of her temple with his nose. He kissed her knuckles, tracing the veins and bones of her hands with his fingertips.

Nevena watched him in slowly building silence. A silence Cullen did not disturb. She was gathering up the courage to say something, and he would not interrupt that. She would speak when she was comfortable, and he would listen. It was how their relationship would work. The both of them not just listening but hearing what the other was saying.

“It’s kind of humiliating,” she said, expelling a shaky breath. “Maybe it’s weird, I don’t know… But I guess… I’m… not such a big fan of… that.” Cullen lifted his eyes to look at her, and if possible, she was redder than before. “It probably makes me a freak.”

“No,” Cullen shook his head as he lifted it. “I don’t think you’re a freak. We all have our likes and dislikes.”

“Hm.” Nevena smiled awkwardly.

“Can I ask why? You started by saying ‘I never’… Have you never enjoyed someone going down on you?”

A small, strangled noise escaped her, and Nevena slapped her free hand over her mouth. She squeezed her eyes closed, visibly grimacing despite half her face being covered. “Sorry—” she said, voice muffled by her hand. She removed it, scratching her cheek a few times as if trying to make her gesture more casual. “I didn’t expect you to… To say it so bluntly.” She groaned, rubbing her hand over her eyes. “Sheltered upbringing.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Cullen said, trying to lighten the atmosphere with a more relaxed tone to his voice. After all, this wasn’t a horrendous conversation to have. Even if Nevena was embarrassed, if they talked about things now, it would make things less awkward and better overall, later. “So, do you not enjoy it or…?”

“Maybe it’s more my experiences haven’t been positive with it?”

“Does it have something to do with Rick?” asked Cullen. The way Nevena’s shoulders curled and her eyes lowered answered for him. He shifted closer, pulling her into his chest and wrapping both arms around her. “If that’s the case, and you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. When you’re comfortable, okay?”

“You have the patience of a saint,” Nevena mumbled into his chest. Her arms snaked around his waist, hands clasping behind him. She buried herself into him as close as possible and Cullen’s hold around her tightened protectively. After about thirty seconds of silence, Cullen was surprised to hear her speak again. “He was rough, the way he was with everything.”

“Nev…”

“It hurt. He would bite. And…” Slowly, she shook her head. “It was just rough, and painful. I guess it put me off.”

“Okay.” Cullen kissed the top of her head before nestling his cheek against her hair. He felt almost guilty for being excited at the prospect of more physical and erotic touching. Felt guilty for imagining the sounds she might make with his mouth on her, and his head between her legs, rather than his fingers. He would need to take everything slow, with her. Work up to things, check what she was comfortable with and what she was not. This was new ground for him… For them both. It would take time. Nevena was worth it.

Nevena was growing accustomed to waking up to the cocoon of warmth that was Cullen’s body, wrapped around her. She felt him moving behind her, shifting his weight sluggishly and breathing in the first deep breath of the morning. When she leaned up on an elbow and peered over her shoulder, she was surprised to see him looking reasonably awake and tapping the screen of his phone. She flopped down to face him.

“G’morning.”

“Hey,” Cullen stretched out an arm to cradle her shoulders and pulled her close to his side, quickly tilting his head to kiss the top of her head. Not for the first time she found herself pleasantly surprised by how easy it was for the two of them. How casually they fell into relaxed and familiar gestures of open affection. She treasured each and every one, wanting to memorize them and replay them. “I should get back to my room.”

“Why?” Nevena glanced up at the screen of Cullen’s phone. It was just gone six in the morning, and it was still dark outside.

“In case Cassandra or Varric knock on the door. It’ll be a little tell-tale if I’m not there to answer.”

“We’re adults… We’re not doing anything wrong,” said Nevena. “We didn’t even do anything last night so…”

“I know.” Cullen placed his phone on a bedside table, rolled over to face her and kissed her forehead. “I know we didn’t.” His fingers brushed her cheek as he moved her hair back and tucked it behind her ear. “But, we’re guests in their house, and they have their own rules. Varric probably wouldn’t care, but Cassandra…”

“Mhm…” Nevena quirked to mouth to one side. “Yeah. Considering I don’t think she likes me much already, probably best to not kick the beehive.”

Cullen chuckled, “I told you, Cassandra is just protective. She’ll warm up to you.” Another kiss to her forehead. “Give her some time.”

Nevena grumbled into her pillow, earning an amused smile in return. After a brief exchange of words, goodbyes, and kisses, Cullen tiptoed out of Nevena’s room, easing the door closed with a soft click. She settled into the duvet and the warmth his body left, spreading out a little for comfort and closing her eyes to welcome a few more hours sleep.

A short knock at the door disturbed her and she cracked an eye open. After a few seconds, there was another brisk knock. Nevena kicked the covers away, climbed out of bed and crossed to the door, pulling it open with a flourish. “Did you forget someth—” her words caught in her throat at the image of Cassandra, not Cullen standing before her. Cassandra, flushed with a sheen of sweat across her face, dressed in hi-visibility running gear that hurt Nevena’s eyes to look at. “Hi,” Nevena squeaked.

“Expecting someone else?” Cassandra’s tone was accusatory enough, but she narrowed her dark eyes a little for good measure. Nevena was already short, Cassandra made her feel tiny under her cool gaze. “Forgive me for coming to speak to you so early, but I had trouble sleeping.”

“…Okay.” Nevena nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other while gripping the door.

“I went to return something to Cullen’s room last night, and when I saw he wasn’t there, your room was the obvious answer to his whereabouts,” Cassandra explained. Though her eyes were sharp and remained focused on Nevena’s face, there was a slight lift in her voice which made Nevena think she wanted to be having this conversation as much as she did. “You are both adults, what you choose to do is up to you--”

“Well, thank you for that.”

“--what I will say may cause offence but, that is not my intent. I only wish to gauge...” Cassandra tutted. “Please, understand that Cullen is important to me, and to Varric. He was a broken man after Kirkwall, and after his ex-girlfriend left him. He suffered. It took a long time for him to recover, and it is clear as day that he cares about you. A great deal. I only ask… that if you do not feel the same that you do not let him believe that you do. That you do not string him along or play with his emotions. Please don’t hurt him. Don’t lie to him... It…” she sighed deeply. “I would worry about what it would do to him. To have his emotions toyed with.”

Nevena stared at her for several seconds that grew longer and longer as time passed. She wasn’t sure she was hearing things correctly. Cassandra was asking her not to toy with Cullen’s feelings. Not to hurt him. She wondered just what he had said to Cassandra while Varric was showing her his collection of books. It worried her, creating an uncomfortable gnawing sensation in her stomach. Why would Cassandra think she was going to hurt him? Or that Cullen was at any risk of being toyed with? Did Cullen say he thought she was stringing him along?

She banished the thought from her mind quickly. That was not the issue right now. Right now, she needed all her attention on the woman on the other side of the threshold. The woman watching her uncomfortably, unsure if she should go now she had said her piece, or if she should wait for a response.

“I don’t intend to hurt him,” Nevena said, summoning her voice from somewhere and surprised by how firm it was. “I know how badly he was hurt when Solona left. He told me. He told me about Kirkwall, about Kinloch, about the lyrium. I know it all. I am not going to hurt him, or mess around with his feelings or lead him on. I wouldn’t— I couldn’t do that to him. I care about him. He cares about me, and I care about him. So much. I would…” Nevena shook her head and brushed her fingers back through her hair. “I understand your protectiveness towards him. After everything he’s been though, if I was in your shoes I would feel exactly the same towards some strange woman he brought to meet you… But, I promise, you have no reason to worry about me. Or how I will treat him. I—” she caught herself and swallowed her words like a heavy stone sinking into a deep pond. Cassandra’s expression remained passive. Cassandra would be a good poker player, given how well she controlled her expression. “I like him. Very much. And while I am a little terrified and overwhelmed by how I feel about him… and while I might feel like I am not good enough, I intend to stay with him… as long as he wants me.”

The words were raw and honest, creating a strange sensation of pain in Nevena’s chest. Warm, intense pain that slowly began to spread throughout her limbs down to her extremities. It was as though her heart was expanding. As if the protective cage she had put around it since Rick had finally cracked and was broken. Nevena clenched her hand on the door to keep upright.

“Good,” Cassandra breathed out, her stance relaxed, and she appeared visibly relieved to hear Nevena’s reply. Her demeanour changed in an instant, no longer intimidating or intense. She grew softer, her face lighter with a smile. “I meant no offense. To hear you say that you care about him… It makes me very happy to hear.”

Nevena smiled a little but remained silent.

Reaching towards her, Cassandra gently squeezed her right shoulder. “If you doubt Cullen in anyway, I can assure you that he would not have brought you here, to meet us if he did not care for you quite deeply. His affection towards you is as sincere as yours seems to be toward him, and for that I am both relieved and grateful. I care about him, you see. He is as close to me as a brother.”

“I understand,” Nevena smiled again, itching to crawl back into bed and organize the conversation of the last two or three minutes. “It’s good that he has people who care about him. Who are watching out for him. He’s lucky.”

Cassandra looked her up and down. “Yes… I think he is.” With small, enigmatic smile, Cassandra bid Nevena good morning and that she should return to bed. Nevena closed the door, exhaled a long breath that did the job of releasing all the tension she was holding in her body.

As she climbed into bed and lay on her back, Nevena stared at the ceiling. She knew sleep wouldn’t come now. She stared at the light fixture, listening to the birds outside the window beginning to awaken and noticing the small shafts of light piercing through the curtains over the foot of the bed. Her mind raced. She had almost said she loved him aloud. Almost. It was an idea she had considered. A thought she had only flirted with on the ship. Catching herself as she almost spoke it… suddenly everything became a lot more real.

Chapter link to AO3

Look at these kids! Having healthy conversations about sex and what they like/dislike and also coming to slow realisations about how they feel about each other... While the other person remains blissfully oblivious. XD

I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm a quiet shipper of Tethraghast, but if its not your thing I totally understand. I just think its a nice ship and admittedly, I wasn't a big fan at first, but it's grown on me over time. This chapter was fun to write, I'll be honest. I hope you all approve of my Varric and Cassandra. As always, I try to keep them as close to their canon counterparts as I possibly can, but I have to take a liberty here or there with them. I've always seen Cullen and Cassandra's relationship as very almost familial. Like she looks out for him like an older sister would, and he feels comfortable with her. Even if he tries to skirt around things at times.

What about you guys? What did you think of the chapter? Did you enjoy it? Do you think Cullen should have pressed for more information about Nevena's aversion to certain intimate acts? Do you think Cassandra was right to go to Nevena and ask about her intentions with Cullen? What did you make of Nevena's answer? And what did you make of Cullen's explanation about how he feels about her? And how he admires her?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments/reblogs/tags or by dropping me a message.   Thank you, as always, for the continued support and love. You guys are the best readers I could ever, ever hope for and your support means the world to me. <3 I hope you enjoyed, see you in the next chapter!