#shoutout to the person working the camera too because the close ups where you can see his eyes? homie was practically all pupil | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

shadowworks · 4 years ago

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Look Inside

Pairing: Overhaul X Reader

Warnings: Dubcon-noncon, medical kink, drugged sex, mention of needles, mentions of blood, bondage, fingering, this is dark!

Word Count: 3.8k

A/N: I decided to try some creepy themes and give second person a try. So we’ll see how it goes. This piece is dark so please mind the warnings!

Huge shoutout to @present-mel for making the beautiful banner and reading over my fic you precious gem! Also thank you @thisisthehardestthing and @hisoknen for your feedback it’s so greatly appreciated! 💜

Someone had shut off the lights in the morgue.

You happen to notice this when your eyes toil lazily between security cameras at the right time. You freeze on the spot, and quirk a brow toward the shadow. You expect it’ll brighten any second like it usually does, but after those few seconds tick by without change, a weight of dread sinks in your stomach.

Kai Chisaki put orders in place that if experiments are up and running the basement levels are to remain lit. Chisaki and his men are already down below, and the winding pale halls near the morgue are empty.

You haven’t been called to notify cleaners about another bloody corpse still peeling off the wall, and you can’t find motion on the surveillance camera when you rewind the recordings. It’s in the lower right corner of the camera, and you note the light flicks off without warning. No one enters, no one leaves.

You study the harsh glow of the screen for another moment, still in denial, still waiting for the lights to flicker on, and stand up from the chair in the office. When not a soul appears by the threshold, all you can do is lean forward with your hands pressed on the desk, dropping your head in defeat. “Seriously? Fuck you.”

You don’t know who “you” was exactly, but it felt right to say.

It takes a bit of time after departing the small office, but you find the proper hall in Chisaki’s deeply looping maze...It’s just you don’t want to step out from the elevator. You were ready before, but when the doors split open and the cool air ghosts against your cheeks, you pause. There’s a stillness lingering in the hallway; it’s far too quiet- except for the creaks in the elevator floor from your shifting weight...But, something seems off.

Your steps are tentative when you do slip out, peering down the drab hallway. You clearly see which of the rooms is buried in shadow, and frankly you want to whirl back around before the doors close. But you can’t, well, not yet at least. The tap of your shoes hits off the walls, while you tread along on stiff legs. Eventually you come to a stop having reached the doorway. It’s partly open, a slice of darkness hiding what’s deep inside.

Hold on, this can't be right. The camera— A shudder trails up your spine. It tingles coldly.

You inhale a deep breath. Okay, just do it; just switch the lights back on, it’s fine. It’s fine. Besides, if it were you (which it is) you wouldn’t want to deal with Chisaki’s ill temper over something so minor as a light.

He’s punished his men for incompetence before, and those who didn’t listen have smeared the walls with their blood, drenching vein red across white. Black-looking goops of muscle plopped on the floor...the consequences ranged based on severity of failure or how stressed he is, really. In fact, one man had the skin of his face torn off for talking back—wait, relax. Focus

It won’t happen. Kai Chisaki is somewhere else in the maze. He’s not aware of what happened.

There’s a member with a quirk which lets him melt through walls; the tiny one with a bone white mask. He probably slipped between the rooms and grabbed something then turned the lights off. But that didn’t explain the door...

It doesn’t matter.

You stretch an arm out, gently pushing the door further open, and light spills onto the tile floor.

It’s a cold, vacant room. There’s a pungent scent of bleach still lingering from a cleanup, but it hits your nose almost like it happened recently. You can’t see much nor do you want to. And your hand reaches around the door frame, trailing gentle fingers along the smooth surface for a switch—

Only, there’s nothing on the wall.

“Are you serious? Really?” you huff to yourself, stepping round to search for the light. Sure enough, your fears are realized with one look.

You let out an annoyed groan, and a, ‘stupid switch’ under your breath. Who the hell designs a room and doesn’t put a switch by the door?

Your eyes haven’t adjusted to the dark, so you can’t see the precise details on the walls. So this leaves you no choice but to step further in, allowing the brightness from the hall to guide you along.

It’s a moderate room with a vaulted wall filled with metal drawers, all large enough to fit an icy corpse in ‘til the yakuza dispose of them. Then there’s the silver surgical table in the middle of the room. It's empty, but the thing’s embellished. There’s protruding belts attached, and a tray on wheels is parked on the side. On top of the tray is a clean towel and a neat row of surgical tools lay flat across.

Your brows scrunch together, studying the sharp gleam of knives and the sizes of needles. Why are these out? Kai’s an obsessive clean freak, every little thing needs to be put back and organized. All his masked cronies know this rule, so who the hell did this? That is, unless someone’s using them?

Your back is turned to the glow seeping in from the hall, so you don’t see a gloved hand press on the metal door. There’s a push, and the door slams shut.

You let out a startled yelp, cupping your hands to your mouth. What the hell…! Your heart’s pounding wildly in your chest; for some reason the room feels colder, you feel colder.

“I must say this is disappointing.”

Light floods the room from the panels above, flickering with a buzzing noise before they settle. You take a moment. A deep breath, a slow exhale. When the initial shock stops tingling in your muscles, you slowly drop your palms. The voice is male, his tone’s calm, ominous and it carries like chill over your shoulder. You know this voice; you know you have to turn around. But fuck, you can’t stop trembling. When you do, you see a tall figure looming near the wall, a gloved hand still on the switch.

Kai Chisaki.

“I told Setsuno I needed him in the security room. Do you think it’s hard for him to follow directions?”

You stare at him, anxiously. He isn’t wearing his green coat with the violet plumage trimming on the collar. He’s in his iron pressed, black suit and grey tie; the trademark plague mask covering half his face.

“Setsuno asked me to fill in. He said he wasn’t feeling well...I guess,” you manage to say it as steady as you can.

The lanky blond hadn’t given you a clear reason when he staggered towards you near dawn. But if you’re being honest, you didn’t really care.You barely looked his way at breakfast, choosing to stare into your dark coffee cup than at the katana resting on his shoulder. The sword was still wet with blood, and you knew he’d been out all night. Though right now, you sorta wish you pressed him more for details.

Kai mutters something slightly bitter, words that are muffled against the material of his mask. But you hear him sigh, then his tone turns crisper. “No matter. It’s inconvenient, but I can work around these...changes.”

His arm drops to his side, walking from the wall. And unexpectedly- those peculiar eyes you see leering at his enemies, have now fallen on you.

You seize up in mild panic, the pupils in your eyes shrinking; not knowing what to do. You take a scuffling step or two back on reflex—and knock your hip against the table corner.

Oww—ow, fuck. Hold on, what’s he doing? Why—Your voice bubbles in your throat as you watch him draw near. Though it’s strange, for Kai doesn’t pull at the rim of his latex glove like expected, rather, the Shie Hassaikai boss happens to steer past you instead.

...Huh?

Your neck cranes, loose hair spilling over your shoulder. He stops a couple feet away and tilts his head downward in front of the tray, no longer regarding your presence and focusing on his work.

You stand there awkwardly, just listening to the clinks of metal fitting together in Kai’s grip. You’re not fully understanding though, should you leave? It looks like your job’s finished now that your boss is here. Besides, you’re pretty confident Kai doesn't want you here if he’s occupying the room.

In the long pause between you two, your mind’s made up which prompts you to retreat back and aim towards the door. They’re slow, careful moving steps.

“Well, you seem busy...I should probably hurry back and watch the cameras,'' you say dismissing yourself. You’re partial toward the comfort of the smaller office, and any chance you have of leaving the macabre storage space you will eagerly take it.

You don’t make it to the gleaming doorknob—because Kai’s voice holds you still. It isn’t loud, but it grips the room. “No stay. There’s no need for you to leave so soon.”

A mix of fear and confusion read across your features. Kai has never spent a moment alone with you. In fact, you aren’t actually part of the yakuza. The only reason you’re associated with the fallen crime syndicate, is because the former boss offered you odd jobs as a favor. You needed some work to keep from struggling and he had taken a liking to you, sort of how he did with Kai. But then, the leader collapsed.

Now you aren't sure where you stand. Chisaki is in charge.

“I believe there’s something you can do for me. Will you have a seat on the table?”

You aren’t sure if you heard him right, or fully grasp what he means. He says it so casually- but you know better; it’s a demand. You’re just not sure why.

“I’m fine. Really. I should be going-“

“Are you defying my order?” Again, he says it so nonchalantly. This time Kai turns his head over his shoulder; the look he gives is almost impassive, yet there’s a menacing gleam in the yellow of his eyes.

“What? No, I was…! Right.”

You don’t exactly drag your feet, but you do stand hesitant before the edge of the table where countless bodies have been dissected. So much blood, so many organs harvested on this very table.

“I won’t ask you again.”

You turn around robotically, eyes pointed downward as you hoist your hips onto the metal. The table’s surface is icy, it numbs your fingers the longer you lean on it, which only makes you fold them against your thighs.

“Roll up your sleeve.” Kai says by your right, holding up a purple band. Your gaze flicks up immediately, nervously, a silent plea for mercy. As if somehow your glossy and delicate eyes will make a difference. But it does nothing toward Kai’s stoic stance. He simply waits, and his own steely eyes narrow back.

You drop your head with a wince; just do as he says.

You comply, pushing up your long sleeve. Though you make a point not to help much more than that, leaving your arm limp at your side.

Kai doesn’t seem to notice or care and proceeds to wrap the rubber around your arm. You grimace, unpleased as his fingers skim your arm, and again when he brushes you with a wet cotton swab.

“You need my blood?” You ask evenly.

His eyes don’t leave your skin, “Not necessarily.”

“A lot of effort for, ‘not necessarily.’” You say, not too dryly.

“You’ve seen my work before, you should know by now I take great care in everything I do.”

Kai rotates between you and the now rolled over stand, dismissing your light jab. He sets up the port for blood to flow; all in a well practiced motion. It certainly makes you wonder how many times he’s done this before.

“I’m curious, when was your last doctor's appointment?” He asks suddenly, hands already prepping the next instrument. The other needle probably, but you don’t want to play as his patient. He isn’t your doctor, for fucks sake.

“A while.” You answer.

“A while,” he repeats with a subtle chuckle under his covered breath,“Has anyone told you before you’re a feisty one?”

You bite your tongue and refuse to meet his side glance. When you don’t reply back, he carries on with a sigh.

“I’ve had quite a long day you see, so I’m afraid I’ve exhausted my tolerance for stubborn little girls.”

Suddenly, his hand is squeezing your shoulder, and all too quickly you find yourself thumping against the cold metal, your horrified eyes staring up at the bright ceiling. The next thing you feel is buckles fastening, pinning you against the table by your waist and elbows.

You're flooded with tingling panic, voice cracking from strain, “Hol—Hold on one second. Please, just one more—”

“—You know they say you should never let the lamb see the knife? Their fear tampers the meat, and ruins the flavor,” Kai gives a sharp tug on the last belt. “But I find yours all the more intoxicating, my dear.”

You stammer, words of protest mingle together as you attempt to be heard, “I don’t understand, why are you…Just stop. You need to let me go!”

Your teeth clench together in a rage that fills your chest. You’re not thinking rationally, your nerves are unhinged. And in your adrenaline high your leg curls up, thrashing a viciously blunt strike toward the point of his beak.

Before it can connect and batter the bridge of his nose and mark his cheekbones, Kai’s arm flexes quickly. Your foot stops mid air as he catches your ankle with constricting force.

“Do I?” He asks with a title of his head, there're subtle creases in the corner of eyes, you can imagine his mouth settles in a cold smile beneath.

In that moment you freeze up. Your lash lines burn, stinging with fresh tears glossing your doe eyes. You don’t breathe, you don’t dare to expand your lungs. Your only thought is begging him not to burst open your calf.

“You shouldn’t be giving commands. You work under me now,” his nails dig in your flesh, and you know those indents will marr your flesh.“Meaning you’ll have to bear with me while I continue.”

Kai doesn’t loosen his hold, briefly watching your pained expression. But he favors dropping his gaze below to study the stretch of your thigh, your exposed and parted groin. It’s then his nimble fingers reach to unclasp the button of your jeans and he gently pulls down the zipper. You cry out, jerking against the belts, but he isn’t fazed.

“One of our new drugs is supposed to relax its victims...recently it’s been ineffective if the heartbeat’s racing too quickly, though we’ve made modifications to counter this. My plan was to stage a fight with Setsuno, until...you graciously took his place.”

Kai lowers your leg, both hands roaming across to the edge of your jeans. He still studies you, and decides to push up your ribbed sweater, letting the cold bite of the morgue chill your hips. His latex fingers trace lightly across your pebbled skin, skimming down the dips to your thighs.

“Yes, this will do just fine. You’re pretty enough,” he muses, softly.

He then tucks his hands into your waistband, yanking them down your legs, before they fall to the floor with a plop. The seamless panties slip off easily, as well. This sends a small prickle through you, and, no, this can’t keep going! The fight in you surges, pushing your knees together to shield your groin. Only Kai doesn’t like that.

There’s something cold and dangerous in his glare, a threat that twists at your stomach. He’s warning you; don’t make this worse for yourself or you’ll make him snap. And you didn’t want that...You watch both his hands clutch your knees, he doesn’t waste time and he yanks your legs apart, taking in your pretty cunt.

Angry tears trickle down your cheeks in response. Your throat burns from holding back a sob, “Chisaki, please. If you would—“

Without a moment of hesitation, Kai knowingly finds where to touch you first. A little too skillfully for a false doctor, the pad of his thumb presses against your soft, sensitive nub, stroking tight circles with focus. Your breath catches, falling heavier while he sinks his pad deeper in the forming slick, building steady pressure.

“Still so stubborn, what good will that bring you?”

A broken moan spills on your shaky breath, all against your better decisions. His other hand settles between your legs, and a finger plunges inside your heat, curling upward and massaging the rougher layer of flesh. A sharp gasp inhales into your lungs. He isn’t stopping, no, Kai’s gloved finger moves with vigor the more your pleasurably laced cries pour out from your lips, how desperate they become.

He pushes in a second finger, and then a third thrusting in, stretching you and soaking your walls with your arousal. This causes you to push your hips further against his latex hand.

“Kai, you fucking bastard!” you sob out, formalities be damned as your back arches. You can feel the building pulses in your cunt tense up, losing yourself to your superior on an icy slab in a fucking morgue.

“You curse my name as though you’re not enjoying this,” Kai mocks.

His fingers pump deeper, tightening your abs and your lips fall open. His matching rhythm on the bundle of nerves surges in a crash, sending a hard orgasm that shivers through your body. For a moment, just a little moment, your cares fade away.

You're left breathing deeply, staring up at the ceiling as your chest rises and falls. The euphoria lasts a moment longer, but only for so long. Reality sets in as you lay there, and much too soon, the warmths gone.

Kai takes advantage of this.

With your chin tipped up toward cabinets lining the ceiling, Kai unfastens his thinner belt. It’s only when you feel him hook under your knees and pull at your thighs that you snap your head up in startlement.

Kai’s venomous eyes stare you down, “I suggest laying back down little girl, we’re not finished yet.”

“Like hell!”

A second flare of rage strickens across your features, a hard glare that doesn’t unyield, especially as he unzips and withdraws himself from formal slacks. You know he’s relishing in your disdain for him, and this makes you thrash on the belts, hoping to force them apart. Of course, Kai did a good job of fastening these fuckers and simply chuckles at your attempt.

“You’re still not understanding the position that you’re in,” He slips a hand in his pocket, and pulls out the wrapping of a condom. Taking his time, tearing it open, rolling the rubber down his thick length with precision.

When Kai’s satisfied, his arms reach for you and grab at your hips, giving them a sharp yank forward. He leans in with a darkly low voice, “You can’t escape me. You’re mine to do with as I please.”

“...You lean any closer and I’ll spit in your face.” There isn’t any bite to it. It’s a calm, empty threat and loses all its appeal as a single tear spills down your cheekbone.

A huffing noise emits from his mask, with his lids narrowing in mild disgust. You catch the words “filthy woman,” rasped low and nasally before he does lean back, wrenching at the skin around your hips.

When he’s all settled Kai lines himself to your heat, in a slow motion he draws himself inside. You almost don't hear it, but from the mask you note a soft hitch in his breath. He gives shallow pushes and pulls on your hips, an experimental dip that splits you in a painful stretch before he pumps fully into you. They’re slow, long strokes, filling you to the brim.

Another strained gasp rips from your wet lips, and your hands impulsively spring out, clenching the black cloth of Kai’s sleeves. His hips snap quicker, and your breath picks up with him. Heart pounding to his thrust; you can feel the beats in your neck.

And all of a sudden you hear the sound of plastic clasping together, the squeeze of an injection clip the shell of your ear. Your eyes snap open in horror. What—?

Kai locks on your facial features, his deep pumps lessen though the slapping of skin doesn’t stop. “You’ve been too tense. Why don’t you relax for awhile?”

When did he..?

He prepped it. The syringe must’ve been tucked away. He did have this all planned. You were just the unlucky one who walked to the table and sealed your fate.

The serum he injected into your bloodstream has fast results it seems. The tension in your muscles slack against his thrusts, allowing him to carry your body closer and take more of his length. You feel the tension in your wide eyes soften, slowly falling half lidded and weak.

“That’s a good girl, you're taking to the drug faster than I thought,” he muses a little breathless. Right after he sets the syringe back down, a gloved hand reaches for the strap fastened around his head and pulls. The mask slips off.

It’s at this point he hikes his knees up onto the table and pounds in deeper, letting your walls suck him in. Your body’s folded, and Kai treats your body in any way he desires.

You manage to pull your head from his sharp eyes, your cheek bouncing slightly against the icy metal to Kai’s rhythm. The drawers for the deceased are taken in.

You stare intently.

“You’re going to kill me, aren’t you?”

“No.” He manages between breathes, his voice is heavy and laced with lusting growls, “This is merely a precaution. In the event...ah, in the event you overdose...well. You’re in the right place.”

Your head lolls back to Kai meeting his delicate face which is now flushed. You realize this is the first time you’ve seen him behind the mask. He’s beautiful. Soft featues that compliment him so well. If only he wasn’t so cruel...

“In fact, hah, if you survive...I think this will be the start of something new in my work.” He manages the last bit with a shaky chuckle.

You see him smirk wickedly, and all you can do is watch, because it doesn’t stop. The only sound in the room is the liquid squish of sex, your mixed heavy breaths. And you hope, god do you hope in your hazy state, feeling a numbness taking hold of your body, that you leave this room alive.

#overhaul x reader #kai chisaki x reader #bnha fanfiction #mha fanfiction #yandere #kai chisaki #tw noncon #tw dubcon #overhaul #bnha #shadow tales

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okskz · 4 years ago

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Chan’s Room. (pt.2)

Mia + Chan

chan invites mia back on his weekly vlives.

here’s for the anon who requested mia on chan’s room! hope you guys enjoy and please feel free to leave some feedback because it is always appreciated!

italics = english

[9th Member of Stray Kids]

“Today we have a special guest with us today. You guys have been mentioning this person for quite awhile now. And well I listened!” Chan chuckled to himself at the last part.

He looked over at Mia, smiling wide as he motioned for her to come over. She jumped into view right behind Chan and yelled out, “surprise!” wrapping her arms around Chan from behind after. “I’m back.” She laughed to herself before taking a seat right next to him.

“Yes, our lovely, Mia is back everyone.” Chan wrapped his arms around Mia’s head, bringing her in close as he began to ruffle her hair too. “Everyone has been wanting you to be in Chan’s room again.”

“How nice.” Mia giggled. “I think the last time I was here was your first year doing this?”

“Oh, so its been quite a while since you’ve been on here.”

“Yeah! Only because you failed to invite me back!” Mia turned to face the camera. “Everyone, Channie doesn’t want me on here.”

Chan let out a laugh. “Hey, untrue!” He smiled. “You just happen to always be busy, or sleeping.”

“I like to sleep.” She nodded.

Mia went closer towards the device to read some of the comments with Chan. It was a mixture of a lot of things, majority were just happy to see Mia back on Chan’s room. “Hi, everyone.” She giggled. “Mia we missed you. Oh! I missed you guys as well. Time to make this Mia’s Room.”

“Definitely not happening.”

“Shoutout to Texas, hi, Mia.” The girl gasped when reading the comment. “Texas! I miss Texas, hello to you guys!”

After a couple of more minutes of reading comments and talking to Chan, it was now time to start playing some music. And of course, Chan let Mia choose the first song to play. “You have a song in mind?” He questioned her. Mia quickly nodded her head, typing away on the keyboard to search for the song, picking Telepatía by Kali Uchis to play.

“This song has been one of my top songs I have been playing.” Mia smiled. “It has a good vibe to it. Especially when I’m listening to it while laying in bed.”

“This is a really good song, a recommendation for our Stays.”

Mia nodded her head as she smiled, Chan lowering the volume on the music.

***

“Who has been caring or looking over for you these days?” Chan questioned. They were now in the middle of conversation, taking a small break from the music.

Mia thought for a moment. “Well, all of you guys seem to always look after me in different situations, but Jisungie has been the main one.” She nodded. “Yeah, these days its been Jisung.”

“Every time he wants to go out to like the stores or to go eat, he always asks me first.”

“I’ve noticed that too.” Chan softly chuckled. “You two are always hanging out together.”

“Yes!” Mia smiled. “We always like to be with Flash. And for those who don’t know, Jisung and I have a pet guinea pig named Flash.”

“Such a cute little fella.”

“Very. I can’t believe we’ve had him for so long now. Who knew a little fur ball could bring me such joy.” She grinned.

“What made you get a guinea pig instead of a dog or something?”

Mia shrugged her shoulders. “I thought a dog in the dorms wouldn’t work out maybe, and it would be a huge responsibility. I mean a guinea pig is too but it seems a lot easier. Plus when I saw him I fell in love and needed to take him home with us.”

“He’s so tiny and cute.” Mia giggled.

Chan laughed a little as he stared at the comments. One in particular catching his eye. “Mia share a TMI.” He looked back at her, Mia raising a brow.

“TMI?” She questioned. She began to think of some things she could possibly share about herself.

“Although our Stay knows you, there’s still some things they may not know about you. You’re never one to share anything personal. Even I still learn new things about you.” Chan laughed at himself on the last sentence.

“Well I can share that I have known Minho way before debut.”

Chan snapped his finger. “Oh yeah, I remember you mentioning that. How was that? Where did you guys meet?”

Mia cleared her throat. “Storytime.” She wheezed. “Um, it was back when I had entered World of Dance Korea. Dancing has been something I’ve always been passionate about so when I saw they were wanting new dancers I decided to join. Minho had already been there before me. So I was a newbie basically.”

Chan nodded his head as he listened to Mia’s story. “Did you know the language at the time? Or were you learning Korean?”

“It was between I was learning and knowing? I guess you can say. But anyways, I remember Minho being in dance crew and I was just a soloist dancer so when it came time to perform I did a solo performance. And right when I walked off the stage, Minho approached me first and was like “wow! you really did amazing up there, are you new?””

Mia stopped letting out a small chuckle. “But then he realized I was a foreigner so began stuttering and was like “you” and then pointed at me saying “good.” With a thumbs up.” She laughed. “But he was relieved when I began speaking to him in Korean. So it all worked out in the end.”

“Did you guys see each other again after that?l

“Si, (yes).” Mia nodded. “We ended up going to the same dance studio so we saw each a lot often. He was kinda happy to see me again. And after that we became really good friends and well now we’re here. Crazy to think about really.”

“Yeah, who would of thought you guys would end up in the same group together.”

“Exactly.”

***

“We have a lot of fun stories of our predebut.”

Mia nodded her head at Chan. “Yeah, we did.”

Chan began laughing. “You and Changbin really disliked each other at the time. But not just you two, I feel like almost all of us got into arguments and such.”

Mia laughed hysterically at the thought. “Oh yeah, let me tell you about the time it was me, Changbin, Felix and Jisung.” Mia thought some more. “And Seungmin! We all went to an arcade and there was a laser tag section and the boys thought it was a good idea to put Changbin and I in one team and the rest were in their team.”

“I like where this is going.”

“Long story short I had tripped on something so obviously I fell and Changbin was right behind me-“

“Did he fall on top of you?”

“No. Even worse, Jisung was coming up to me and since I’m on the ground he thought it was a perfect opportunity to shoot at me but, Changbin literally grabbed my leg and dragged me away from Jisung. We were losing so Changbin didn’t want Jisung to get me.”

Chan let out a loud laugh, beginning to laugh hysterically. “Wait, wait. So he literally dragged you on the floor?”

“Yes!” Mia exclaimed, she started laughing when seeing Chan bounce in his seat and clapping. “He literally dragged me across that floor until we were in a hiding spot.”

“Did anyone see you two?”

“Oh my god yes. These group of people saw us and kept laughing.” Mia giggled. “And after, Jisung was telling the others and it was just a whole mess.” She shook her head. “We lost either way.”

Chan began laughing harder than usual at Mia’s predebut story, holding onto his stomach as he did so. “Remember that one time you fell off the bunk bed?”

Mia looked at Chan confused but burst into laughter once she remembered what he was talking about. “Oh yeah!” She exclaimed. “It was in the middle of the night and I had to use the bathroom but I was half asleep. So then I thought I was already at the bottom when in reality I was only halfway there so I jumped off and well... it wasn’t a pretty ending.”

The two began laughing out loud hysterically at the story. There was just too many stories to tell from their predebut. It was definitely all fun for the most part.

***

It was getting towards the end of Chan’s room when Chan was in the middle of playing one more song of Mia’s choice. The girl had chosen LMLY by Jackson Wang. “When I first heard this song, I instantly fell in love. It’s so catchy and good. Jackson really did a great job with it. I always love his music.”

“Very enjoyable to listen to, this song is great.” Chan nodded while lowering the volume on the music. He smiled as he looked at the comments, knowing what they wanted since he was going to end the live soon.

“Have you seen my rooms lately?” He questioned Mia

“Some, I saw last week’s with Jisungie and Changbin.”

“So you know what I do in the end?” He smiled while Mia nodded. “We have to give our Stays a hug.”

Mia began grinning as Chan talked. “Today you guys will be getting a hug not only from me but also from Mia.” He looked back at the girl. “First time hug from Mia!” Chan exclaimed. “You wanna do the honors and hug first?”

“Sure!” Mia stood up quickly going in to give a hug like Chan always does. She began giggling when she sat back down. “That was nice, hope you guys liked my hug.”

“A big hug from Mia and now a big hug from me.” Chan said, going in for a hug as well. He sat back down, “hope you guys enjoyed today’s live and getting to see Mia again, she will be back again, hopefully?”

“You know it!”

The two said their goodbyes before Chan ended the live completely. “Thank you for coming.” He looked back at Mia, seeing she was a bit spaced out. “Mia?”

“I just thought of something.”

“What is it?”

Mia couldn’t help but let out a small snort. “I basically put my whole boobs in front of everyone’s faces with that hug.”

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honey-coloured-passion · 4 years ago

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It’s A Secret (Sapnap x Reader)

first fic first fic!

summary: Dream convinces you and Sap to join a competition where the loser gets exposed, but nothing ever goes as planned when your favorite boy is involved : )

“That’s the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard in my life.” you laughed, rolling your eyes at Sapnap and Dream’s antics. “C’monnn it’ll be so funny the viewers will eat it up!” Dream cooed while you groaned “you say that cuz you always get like more views than Sap and I combined!” To which Dream choked out laughter through his familiar wheeze. “Oh come on, how much money for you to do it?” you heard Sapnap die from laughter over the call at Dream’s bribe before he piped up, “whoever gets exposed you’re buying dinner Dream,” and Dream immediately agreed. “Absolutely worth it, you in y/n?” and you shook your head, “why the hell not I guess.”

You started up your stream, adjusting your headset nervously as you watched chat speed up at the title “Least viewers gets exposed vs Dream and Sap” all confused as to what was going on as their three favorite streamers all went live simultaneously. “Gooooood day chat what’s up!” you grinned, thanking a couple gifters and waiting to see Dream pop up in team speak to give the challenge information. “You guys better stick with me today, I don’t wanna lose the secret challenge,” you laughed, noticing Sap and Dream joined the channel.

“Ready to learn the rules dear viewers?” Dream laughed maniacally. You watched your chat going absolutely crazy.

“Here’s how it works, we are gonna stream for thirty minutes doing everything we can to get the most viewers, then the person with the least at the end has to tell a secret they wrote down on stream, and trust me guys they’re all sooo good.” Dream wheezed while Sapnap chuckled before continuing. “We all told our secrets to George who didn’t want to stream with us cuz he’s lazy but it works cuz now he’s our keeper, so it’ll be fair and George can confirm all the secrets are crazy,” Your chat was losing it’s mind asking you what your secret was.

“So let the view-competition begin” and with that, Dream left the call. “Sap you gonna stay and hang or leave?” you asked, racking your brain to find a way to get hella viewers as soon as possible. “I’ll hang” Sapnap answered to your relief. “Good I can farm your viewers then,” you teased with a giggle. Then your phone started to buzz, and you saw Dream was tweeting out the information and begging for people to come to his stream. “Oh hell no, chat help me out!” you laughed, going to tweet on your own account.

10 minutes in: Dream 68k, You 43k, Sapnap 39k.

“Sapnapppp I’m so excited to learn your deepest darkest secret” you cooed with an evil laugh while Sapnap punched your minecraft character. “Whatever I’ll clutch up, work smarter not harder dear y/n,” you could hear the playful tone in his voice, swallowing the butterflies that kept trying to surface. “How can you work smarter if you barely have a braincell dork!” you teased, beginning to crit out his character when he realized, pearling away with a screech. “You do NOT want to play this game with me I’ll destroy you,” he ate a golden apple then began running towards you axe in hand while you screeched, running away.

15 minutes in: Dream 65k, Sapnap 45k, You 44kk.

“Sapnap how the hell did you convince four different channels to raid you in the past five minutes WHAT” you pouted with a laugh, knowing you could beat him in viewers if you just got one or two more raids. “Mhm a magician never reveals his tricks,” you rolled your eyes though your chat kept spamming “why is y/n blushing so much?” and “SIMPNAP SIMPNAP” because Sapnap was helping you decorate and finish the design of your house. You had to agree with chat, he was adorable, bringing you flowers, collecting the exact type of wood you needed, helping to fill your chests, you were beginning to forget about the competition and just enjoy his presence.

20 minutes in: Dream 68k, Sapnap 46k, You 45k.

“Oh my god it’s so close between you guys” Dream wheezed as he joined your voice channel. “Hey Dreammm wanna send me some stray viewers?” you giggled while Dream denied you. “Mhm no but maybe you can ask Mr. Simpnap to send you some of his? Heard it’s not the only thing he’s been giving you and I figured I’d crash the date.” Dream teased, his tone dangerous while Sapnap exclaimed, “hell no I’m not losing this competition and I am not a simp, especially not for y/n” Sapnap drew out your name, you could hear the smile you adored dancing on his lips. Chat was going crazy, though it was pretty well known how close you and Sapnap were due to the two of you always being on call together and just being found on the SMP hanging out, it was rare the two of you gave the fans this much flirting in one stream. Not that there weren’t hundreds of Y/N x Sapnap compilations on youtube of people pointing out how you and Sap had been in a TeamSpeak room together alone for five hours straight, or him getting defensive of you on the SMP, or him constantly complimenting your skill during MCC’s. Not to mention you always asking where Sapnap was, or someone else asking and you answering quickly, showing how frequently the two of you talked. Needless to say, he was one of your best friends, but that wasn’t gonna stop you from destroying him in this competition.

25 minutes in: Dream 78k, Sapnap 54k, You 51k.

“Hello to my new viewers! Glad you came back to support! Huge shoutout to Niki for the raid and all the raiders who stayed I love y’all!” Your palms were getting sweaty, you needed to get 3k viewers in five minutes or George was gonna drop one of your most embarrassing secrets to the world. “How are you feeling Miss Y/n?” Dream teased, he knew he was safe. “Shut up Dream if I lose I’m ordering some expensive ass food for you to pay for,” you shot back, making him die of laughter. “At least I’m not the one who’s gonna get exposed in front of like 180 thousand views,” you flipped off the camera with a grin, hoping he was looking at your stream.

28 Minutes in: Dream 78k Sapnap 55k, You 51k.

“Man I think it’s over what do you think Sap?” Dream teased while you laughed, still hopeful that something could happen in two minutes. “Eh I say give it another minute then we call it. You never know” Sap replied cooly. “Shut up you’re like 4 thousand people ahead it’s over for me” you pretended to cry, making Sapnap and Dream break into laughter. “You really don’t wanna lose huh.” Sapnap said, “um duh, this sucks,” you answered, quickly refreshing your view count.

Then something crazy happened.

~Sapnap is raiding with a party of 55k~

30 minutes, time up: You 110k, Dream 78k, Sapnap 0.

“WHAT” Dream was the first to scream. You did a triple take before screeching into the mic “SAPNAP WHAT ARE YOU DOING” to which he quietly replied, “I didn’t want you to be sad.” making your cheeks flush to an ungodly warmth. “Oh- uh does this still count? What’s happening?” you reached for your water bottle when George joined the call.

“Interesting ending, but I know the secret so I guess I’d say it makes sense” You froze. “What the hell does that mean?” You said, noticing Sapnap had turned on his camera function in the call. “O-ok, George you gonna announce his secret?” Dream tried to take control, noticing his chat was spinning out of control. George piped up, "I think it’s better Sapnap says it. I’m just here to make sure he doesn’t chicken out,” Then Sapnap cleared his throat. “Well so uh, I guess my secret is...” You saw him look straight into the camera, his eyes felt like they were meeting yours.

“I like you y/n. Like a lot.”

Your jaw fell open, George and Dream began screaming and whooping, and your chat absolutely lost it’s mind, going so fast your chat function crashed. Your immediate reaction was to mute yourself on stream. “I’m muted now- Sap- Nick, are you serious?” you gulped, staring at Sapnap’s video while he couldn’t stop grinning. “You really think I’d do all this just to lie? No chance in hell. We can talk about it after stream but I thought it’d be fun to do it live. I can help you end stream if you want?” Your brain was flying high, your heart beating out of your chest, and your mods were begging for help.

“O-okay. Uh hey chat! Nice stream today, record high viewer ship thanks to uh- Nick- Sapnap, thanks to Sapnap um, I’m gonna get off now,” You took a few deep breaths, gaining your traction before continuing. You hovered your mouse over the end stream button but decided you had one more thing to say. Leaning close into the mic with a smile you whispered,

“Oh and Sapnap, I like you too”

~live ended~

checkout my other sapnap fic!

#sapnap #sapnap x reader #dteam #dream team x reader #dream #georgenotfound #dream team fanfic #dteam fanfic #mcyter #mcyters #mcyter fanfic #dream x reader #dreamwastaken

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shhhlikeme · 4 years ago

Text

THE SEXY

HALL🎃WEEN COSTUME 🎃👻💀🍬 YOU WEAR THAT MAKES YOUR VOLLEYBALL PLAYER GO: 🥵🥺 part 2

Haikyuu!!

Ft. Tendou, Kenma, Daishou, & Aran

Part 1 | Part 2 🩸 Part 3 🩸 Part 4 🩸 Part 5 🩸

Ojiro Aran -

A Pretty AF Princess👑👸

this hubby-material, absolutely perfect creation of a man has a royal kink. It’s not up for debate!

argue with your mother if you disagree

Not in some crazy cocky sense where he thinks he’s royalty or something...

It’s moreso that he literally sees you as his princess already..... and treats you like it—even though you two have only been on a handful of dates!!!

Where you wore cute and casual outfits only.

Sooooo when you’re dressed as how this boy actually sees you....mannnnnnnnn

Aran Ojiro is all: 😦😦‘s and 🥺🥺🥺🥺’s

and a whole lotta 🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩🤩’s

Be prepared for him to shower you with compliments and attention, god damn

At the Olympic Team’s sober bar hop yall go to, Aran’s telling you how beautiful you look and how much a crown on your head suits you every half an hour

It puts butterflies in your stomach every time.

He’s dressed as a Prince to match you (which you had to beg him to wear because he doesn’t like the attention) and the entire night your new boo thing was treating you so sweetly

Kissing your hand, holding you bridal style through door frames, bowing to you 🥺🥺🥺🥺 the whole nine yards

The twins, Bokuto, and even Sakusa kept making fun of him for being so simpy

But the man didn’t care lmao! he kept speaking over the boys when they chirped him, yelling at them that they are FORBIDDEN TO SPEAK TO YOUR MAJESTY WITHOUT ROYAL PERMISSION 💀

You couldn’t stop blushing, even though you were shy... you secretly felt like you were on cloud nine by the way he was being with you, honestly

You thought the dates couldn’t get better but here we are.

“Ojiro..........” You blushed as you watch the guy you’re seeing and falling in love with Oop— press his plump and soft lips to you hand again.

“Hm?” He asks, opening them and looking up at you through his long lashes. He never removed your hand from his lips. You swooned even harder as your heart pounded, looking away. You tried again.

“Umm.... you’re just being so kind treating me like this all night even though your friends are making fun of you, and you say it’s because I am your Princess but.... you do know that YOU’RE the one that gives off a Royal vibes, right?! Your entire aura and the way you carry yourself—even when I first met you—screams King. Plus everyone says it. That’s why people keep saying how much your costume fits you. You’re Like........” You gave yourself a beat to think. “—-you’re like the kind and gentle Prince who takes over his father’s throne and changes all the mean laws that were there.... then takes the peasant girl for his wife because he only cares about true love. That would totally be you. You’re like, amazing, Ojiro.”

You were still looking away from your crush when you finished, immediately wanting to sink in a hole caused by utter embarrassment.

What am I, a damn Disney narrator?🙄, you thought pathetically.

Aran studied your features when you said all of this, his eyes softening. As soon as you were done speaking, he romantically pressed his lips against your hand again and then brought your hand down between you two, holding it.

Next, he gently turned your chin with his free hand so that you were facing him, and so that you could see the sincerity in his eyes.

You whimpered from the intensity you saw there.

“Y/N,” Ojiro began in his gentle-king voice.

“I could really go on with a monologue right now about how you carry yourself the same way you just described for me—like a Princess who overtakes her father’s throne and denounces any preexisting closed minded laws, then decides to give the humble baker—that’s me, a shot at a life of euphoria with you...... but I’ll save that for another time....” he paused, and you swore that you would never forgive yourself if the tears you were feeling decided to fall and ruin this moment.

“No! It’s you, Ojiro. I’m not even close. You’re so perfect and—“ A handsome smirk graced Aran’s handsome face, making your butterflies explode. Somehow looking at that smirk you just knew that he could tell you were holding back tears with everything in you, so, being the modern Prince he is, Aran came to your tear-saving rescue. He lightened the voice, effectively lightening the mood; but his eyes remained just as intense. He chuckled cutely before explaining the reason behind the intensity.

“Okay well uhh, hey, if you insist on calling me a Prince.... Then... as my first order of duty 👑, I’d like to ask you, my fair maiden, if would consider being so kind as to call this Prince: your new boyfriend? I mean—damn—sorry, did they even use that term back then?!”

Your heart bursted, practically springing out of your chest:

Not Prince Eric, not Prince Charming and not even Flynn fucking Rider had anything on how amazing this Prince was!

Your emotions bubbled over, letting out giggles that sounded just like a real Disney Princess’.

“Yes, Aran!” You exclaimed, lunging forward to hug him. Aran laughed brilliantly, thanking you.

You just basked yourself in this ending: Not knowing that your “yes” was the beginning..... of your fairytale.

A/N: shoutout to my upcoming King Aran AU omg I am smitten 🥺🥺🥺

———————————

Kenma Kozume -

Gamer Girl 🕹🔌

When it comes to Halloween costumes.......

You and your boyfriend Kenma are both lazy.

So when Kuroo called and screamed at both of you because you promised to go to his work’s party tonight, (especially Kenma who would look really good to his superiors) you both reluctantly agreed .... again😑😑😑

While Kenma simply showered, dried his hair and put on your cat ear head band and called it a day,

You realized that you had to scramble for a presentable costume. Shit.

You scoured Kenma’s condo since you have been staying here and won’t have time to go home.

Freaking out because you found shit all, your bf told you that you really don’t have to wear a stupid costume because this party is stupid and Kuroo himself is stupid.

Speaking of the devil: kenmas phone starting ringing with the Kuroo ringtone, meaning he was calling.

Kenma tried to ignore it, so you went into his game room to retrieve his phone for him.

While you looked for his phone near his gaming set up, your eyes fell on your boyfriend’s Professional Gamer headphones.

You placed his headphones on, fixed your glasses and decided you’d go as a cute gamer girl!

Kozume followed you in after a while when he didn’t hear you on the phone, stopping dead in his tracks when he saw you.

“Th-those are my headphones.” Your youtuber says flatly, trying not think about how mind blowingly attractive you look with them on. ��🤯🤯

You just pointed at his costume.

“And that’s my kitty headband. What’s your point?” You retorted, winking at him behind your glasses. “I have a costume now: I’m a gamer girl. Do you like it?”

Cat boy could only nod, his eyes growing dark. He pictured you gaming and it made him suuuuuper turned on.

You noticed and like the little shit you are, you closed the distance between the two of you and wrapped your arms around his neck. You puckered your lips asking for a kiss.

Kenma’s cheeks flared up, unable to stop himself from looking down your tight black & white tank top at your boobs.

In true Kenma style, he ignored your ask for a kiss.

“Kuroo is probably ou-out-outside, Y-Y/N. We should go.” Obviously flustered, your boyfriend quickly collected his phone from his desk and made a beeline out of his game room.

You laughed, calling out to him from your place in the room. “I saw your boner, Kenma!”

“Shut up.” You heard your monotone boyfriend call back. You could picture his blush.

You smiled.

———————————

Daishō Suguru -

Poison Ivy 🧑‍🦰🌿🥀

Your boyfriend is a self proclaimed snake . 🐍 he even recently got one tatted on one side of his chest and it looks AH-MA-ZING

But anyways... like I said:

Your boyfriend is a self proclaimed snake .

.....And Snakes like leaves 🍃

Therefore, you dressed as a leaf.

LMAOOOOOOOOOO

After you got all ready,

You Facetime’d him because he was away at a tournament and you wanted to show him your costume

When Daishō answered while grocery shopping, he was not prepared. He dropped his phone, picked it up, stared at you in awe, then he quickly hung up on you.

He didn’t want to sport a boner in the fucking meat aisle so he practically raced to the cash and called you back when he got in his car. Lol

no but fr Daishou went gaga when he saw you dressed as the sexy Poison Ivy

Not only is he a DC > Marvel Enthusiast, but Daishō loooved Poison Ivy because he and the super hero/villain had similar personalities

Poison Ivy approached DC Universe situations the same way Daishō approached rival volleyball games: with a manipulative sense, a temptress grin, and ultimately being someone no one you can tell whether they are a hero or a villain.

With all of that to consider, your man wasn’t even thinking about that because he was too busy thinking you look like sex-on-legs

He stared at your body madddd hard

“Fuck me. I wish I was Clark Kent right now so I had x-ray vision.” He groaned as he covered his free hand over his face, opening his fingers to peek at you. “What are you wearing under those leaves? Anything?!” Your snake-like boyfriend tried to sound stern, but you knew better.

“Nothing.”

Licking your red lips, you lean toward your laptop so that your boyfriend could see a close up of those red lips.

You saw him instinctively lean closer to the camera and take a deep breath.

“Your Best Friends/Name isn’t picking me up for another hour, Dai. But you and I both know that really means two hours. Anyway, I’ll slip on underwear when she gets here but I was....... sort of hoping you could show Poison Ivy that snake of yours......before then. She hasn’t met him yet🥺.”

In his rush to get back to his hotel for some hot ass web cam sex, Sugaru forgot the groceries in the car. Oh well ;)

the extra grocery trip he’d have to take later that night was well worth it.

———————————

Tendō Satori -

Skeleton Chick w Dope Clown Makeup

“Y/N CHAAAAAAAANNNNN!”

you cringed and put your hands out in front of you to protect yourself, just in time before your boyfriend Tendou tackled you on the bed you two share

You expected this, and that’s why you had strategically placed yourself in front of the bed when you finally told your boyfriend you were done your makeup

3 hours ago, you had a long talk with your red head as he sat down with his legs folded like a kindergarten student:

“Ten. I love you, but you are NOT ALLOWED back in the room until I’m done my makeup. You’re too loud, and you’re making me shake. I need precision. I promise I’ll call you in when I’m done and have my costume on.”

Just like a kindergartener student, your boyfriend gave you puppy dog eyes.

“BUT—“

“Ztttt! No buts!” You shut your eyes so that you weren’t looking at his puppy dog eyes that get you every time. “Ten, you can come in as soon as it’s done.”

You heard him sigh, so you sealed the deal.

“Don’t forget that You’ll be the first to see it, my special boy.”

“Alright!!!!” Tendou jumped up.

“Please, bring me to the room and shut the door behind you.” Since your eyes were still closed, your boyfriend hummed and linked his arm through yours, doing exactly as you asked. He lead you to your vanity and helped you sit down.

“I’ll be waiting! Cant wait to see it! I’m going to bake a Halloween cake to waste time!”

You felt a familiar kiss to the top of your head, then you heard your bedroom door shut.

God you loved that Chocolatier.

***

3 hours later, you were questioning why you loved that Chocolatier🙄, because he was crushing you under his weight after tackling you

Your boyfriend quickly rolled off of you and began his chatter.

This was both of your favourite holidays so Satori has been gushing the entire week

“OHO, you look awesome, Y/N-chan! When I was young, no one would take Halloween as seriously as I did so they’d say hurtful things behind my back and it made me very sad.....!!! Last year Ushi actually dressed up as the peanut butter to my jelly which was cool, but he didn’t know the words to the song for Karaoke......” His eyes lit up. “But now I have YOU! Someone who loves October 31st as much if not more than me! Oh, and you look beautiful AND scary! How did you do that??? Can you do my makeup like that, my love?! I want to match you! I also want to make love to you..... and—“

You reached over and covered Tendou’s mouth with your index finger.

This cutie shushed himself, making himself cross eyed because he was now looking down at your finger on his own lips

You laughed. There is so much you could respond to, but thinking about a baby Ten being all excited for Halloween and his stupid bullies making him feel like shit for it tug at your heart strings, disallowing you to say anything else to your brilliant Chocolatier:

“Ten...........I love you. Happy Halloween.” 😌

This time, you hadn’t had enough time to put your arms out before you were tackled by an enamoured Tendou Satori again.

Who do you want to see react to your Sexy Hall🎃ween Costume next?

Part 3: 4/4 requested - closed 🚫

Part 4: 4/4 requested - closed 🚫

Part 5: (final part): 4/4 - closed 🚫

first come first serve - send me an ask!

Characters that are currently in queue: Iwa, Ukai, Daichi, Oikawa, Mattsun, Kuroo, Kyoutani, Akaashi, Tsukki & Noya.

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junhaoshua · 4 years ago

Text

HOME;RUN - an analysis

So our boys SLAYED in this comeback and I am in love with the concept so much!! Seventeen in suits gets my heart fluttering ~

After watching the MV a couple of times (and being in awe of how good it is), this theory occurred to me:

The diamond represents stardom and CARATS; the MV is all about SEVENTEEN’s journey as idols and their relationship with CARATS.

A scene-by-scene analysis of the MV under the cut!

(and the awesome header above is by @soonhoonsol who is incredibly talented and came up with this masterpiece in less than an hour!)

I’m going to put this disclaimer up front: these are just my theories and other interpretations are totally valid. I love all thirteen boys, and I think they have really good relationships with each other! So if I bring up past incidents or controversies, it’s from a place of love. I’m not trying to stir drama or criticize them. This essay is a love letter to them because I personally find the MV so meaningful. Also, I’ve been a Carat less than a year (this is my second comeback, fourth comeback if you count Japan releases) so please tell me if I’ve made mistakes ~

S.Coups and the baseball

When the MV starts, Seungcheol’s hit a wall, literally. (Additional symbolism regarding the wall to come later.)

Why? If you think back to the start of Coups’ career, he was training with NU’EST but he didn’t get to debut with them; he hit a wall at the start when it came to debut. Then, the diamond hits him: Seventeen comes along (and with that, Carats) and it changes his life, launching him to the public eye and stardom.

But at the same time, the diamond hits him on the head and knocks him out for a while, and this is kinda symbolic of his hiatus last year. He took a break because of his anxiety; anxiety caused by knowing how much the fans love him, and not wanting to let them down. The impact of idol life made him feel so pressured that he needed to take a step back.

But! At the end, Coups picks up the diamond again; he’s ready to resume his journey, and perform for Carats!!

Mingyu, Wonwoo, and Seokmin at the bar

The scene cuts from Coups to the boys at the bar, and I can think of a few reasons for the choices!

Firstly, Mingyu. Gyu’s the one who gave the shoutout to Coups during their daesang acceptance speech while he was on his hiatus. That was a huge moment in their careers - recognition not just from their diamond fans, but also from the general public.

Secondly, Wonwoo. He’s had his own struggles with anxiety and not feeling good enough too, and he’s shared before that he wonders what he has to make fans love him. (Also, I love the Wonwoo-Coups gamer-bro bond ~)

Then we have DK, and I feel like the choice of DK here is because he’s a leader too, even if we forget that often. Back when it was announced DK would be leading BSS, he cited Coups as his inspiration for being a good leader; he’s watching Coups’ example.

(I’m not totally certain about the symbolism here though, so feel free to chime in!)

Hoshi, Jun, and Dino’s dance

Our performance unit leader’s the one who first appears and starts dancing; he’s the choreographer, and the one that the members look to when performing!

(Other than that, I don’t think there’s a lot of deep symbolism; it’s just a fun dance break lol. The dance breaks are all just cool choreo moments ~)

Vernon and the gambling den

This scene basically focuses on Hansol, who’s just chilling and vibing while everyone else is fighting.

The background of this set is some sort of gambling den, and we see chips and cards flying around. What do people associate with gambling? Money. Think back to the early days of Vernon’s career; he was involved in Show Me The Money, and it caused a ton of controversy and undeserved hate.

Yet, in the midst of all this chaos, Hansol’s just rapping and vibing, because our boy rose above all the hate that was directed at him to become an amazing rapper!! Also he’s just so chill all the time and we love him for it ~ that’s how he gets hold of the diamond in the midst of this chaos!!!

(also, he passes it to Minghao. Why does he pass it to Hao? idk can’t really explain. Any ideas?)

The8 and Joshua in the car

For this scene, we switch to black and white, which kinda shows that there’s a certain nostalgia here.

Minghao’s holding the diamond and looking at it carefully, with a certain distance. As we all know, Hao’s someone who’s very realistic; he reminds us of the distance between idols and fans, and doesn’t do any of the flirty playing around. But it doesn’t mean that he loves and treasures us less! It’s because he cares about Carats that he wants us to remember to lead our own lives and focus on ourselves too ~

Meanwhile, Shua’s driving the car. Why the deliberate choice of Hao and Shua? They’re the ones who had to travel to get that diamond; they left their homes to come to Korea to become stars and in doing so, earn the fans’ love. It’s been a long, hard road, and I respect them so much for taking it.

(What about Jun and Hansol? I’m sure some of you will ask. Hansol isn’t really foreign line; he was born and raised in Korea, there wasn’t any travelling. As for Jun, he was a highly-acclaimed child star with his own fans and career before he travelled to Korea to become a part of Seventeen, so he wasn't really chasing stardom.)

Dino and Wonwoo on the train

After the theatre dance break, our maknae gets on that train and promptly starts searching everywhere for the diamond.

Why? In my opinion, Chan’s criminally underappreciated in the fandom; he’s so so incredible (just look at his rap + visuals here!), but he just doesn’t get enough love from the fans; that’s why he’s trying so hard to get that diamond! (also, give Dino more respect yall, he deserves it)

Wonwoo’s also searching for the diamond. Remember the analysis earlier: he doesn’t think that he has much presence or charisma to attract fans. He’s looking for the love and fans too.

Mingyu and Jeonghan on the train

Two things to note before we break down the scene: they’re probably the ones with the diamond at the start of this scene (since they’re the thieves in the newspaper), but by the next scene, they’ve somehow lost the diamond to Wonwoo.

Firstly, we see that Gyu and Hannie both cover their faces. They’re largely considered to be two of the best visuals in the group. I believe this represents a fear of theirs; that without their looks, they’ll lose the fans’ love.

Secondly, they run away from the train (likely leaving the diamond behind). Both Jeonghan and Mingyu have taken time away from the public eye lately. Hannie suffered from dizziness because he pushed himself so hard to perform for us, not wanting to disappoint Carats, until his body forced him to take a break. Gyu basically disappeared from view during the Itaewon controversy and all the hate he was getting. Thus, them running away from the train symbolises them taking a break from the idol life.

Wonwoo and Minghao examining the diamond

Wonwoo has the diamond now, and he’s got it under a magnifying glass and he’s examining it closely.

The magnifying glass gives you the chance to see something’s flaws. With the recent Curry incident, Wonwoo’s seen the ugly side of stardom (personal take: yes he messed up, but I do think it was an honest mistake, please no discourse in the comments). He looks at it, he sees the flaws, and he puts it down; he’s examined it for flaws and he needs to take some time away from being an idol (see: him basically going off the radar for a while there).

Why does Minghao grab the diamond and run off with it? A ton of things happened to SVT in recent months, which are largely referenced in chronological order: Coups’ hiatus > Jeonghan’s hiatus > Itaewon incident > Curry incident > The Tag and Minghao getting a ton of attention.

Hao really shone so much in The Tag for his cool attitude; he got talked about everywhere, GoSe views shot up, and new Carats were converted! (The attention on Hao also helped the controversies to start dying down, because the news had something new and interesting to talk about.) Beyond GoSe, Hao's just been getting a ton of attention lately - Falling Down, more screen time, and more lines! (I've been so bias wrecked by him it's not even funny.) He really be running off with the diamond and all the love from the fandom that he deserves ~

(personally, I really hope that The Tag will be the start of a nice, peaceful period, with lots of love and no incidents for our diamond boys ~)

Seungkwan and the pool table

After a fun bowling alley dance break, the diamond lands on the pool table and people start fighting over it before Seungkwan gets fed up and throws the diamond at the camera.

The moment I saw this scene, I was reminded of the fight in OFD (aka probably the only time SVT has really, actually fought onscreen). The thing about shows is that so much is done for “entertainment”. In the media industry, there’s a need to create drama to keep viewers watching and people interested. It’s an ugly, toxic part of stardom. I really, really hated that part of OFD; how hard the PDs pushed the boys to keep things entertaining, causing the hyper-competitive spirit and all the drama, was just too much for me.

But in OFD, Seungkwan worked really hard to reconcile the two teams, and to me that’s Seungkwan. He’s the one who’s good at variety and a drama queen, but he cares about the others so much. He’s not going to let stardom and the need to be entertaining actually, really affect their relationships. If the need to put on a show for the camera is creating conflict? Break the camera.

(also, pay attention to the newspaper at the end of this segment: the diamond is literally named the Carat Star - doesn’t it make sense that it symbolises CARATs and stardom?)

Jun, Woozi, and the brick wall

We’re back where the MV started at the brick wall, which I believe to be the brick wall from the L&R MV.

Jun just sees the diamond and… stops and blinks. Honestly the expression on his face is peak comedy right there and I feel like that’s so Jun. Thoughtful, quiet (at least on camera), observant, and just… intensely and effortlessly funny?! I’ve always felt that he’s someone who’s so incredibly gifted - visuals, vocals, dance - and he needs more love ~ (oops my ult bias is showing)

On the other hand, Woozi goes up there, grabs his bat, and breaks the glass to get the diamond. This has a couple of interpretations for me. As Seventeen’s producer, Woozi’s the one taking charge of their music; so much of their success from the start is because of his production (not forgetting Hoshi’s choreo, Vernon’s writing, Coups’ leadership, and the overall OT13!) He really takes charge of their musical sound, which has been so important in their rise to stardom and getting CARATs to slip into the diamond life.

Also, remember how I said we’re at the L&R wall? Heng:garae was Seventeen’s most successful comeback to date, and they shattered a ton of their previous records, just like Jihoon’s out here breaking the glass!

OT13 and Forever Diamond

In the last scene, we get a huge OT13 dance with fireworks and the words “Forever Diamond” in the background.

This scene actually made me cry the first time I saw it. The words made me think of that Weverse post that got Hoshi crying: even if one day Seventeen isn’t performing any more, they’ll still have been a part of our lives, and we’ll hear their names and remember that they were a part of our lives that brought us joy. The members have often talked about how much they all mean to each other, and how they hope that their relationship can last forever (see: HTR and also the Going 70 segment of Caratland). They’ve also expressed their hope that we’ll continue to love them for a long time. (dang why the heck am I crying while typing this)

“Forever Diamond” encapsulates the relationship that SEVENTEEN and CARATs have so well: they’re our diamond boys, and we’ve slipped into the diamond life. We’re both each other’s forever diamonds.

To the last say the name, and beyond!

Tagging: @hyeri-yah and @leannehuang bc the two of you liked hearing the initial draft of this long theory ~

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jaethaone · 5 years ago

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In Love With Another Man : A Klaus Mikaelson Imagine

Word Count: 2,588 (Whew, Did Not Expect To Write That Much)

Warnings: Slight Smut .. If You Can Call It That, Thats About It I Believe

Hey Guys . I’m Back With Another Imagine . I Honestly Came Up With The Idea For This In Like 2.5 Seconds While Listening To Jasmine Sullivan’s “In Love With Another Man” . (Lyrics Are Italicized) But Before I Get Into It I Just Want To Take The Chance To Shoutout And Thank @xxwritemeastoryxx And @nmikaelsonimagines .. These Two Are Really An Inspiration For Me And Has Really Encouraged My Writing And I Hope To One Day Be As Good As You All Are . x Sorry For Any Mistakes x .

Don’t Underestimate The Allure Of Darkness. Even The Purest Of Hearts Are Drawn To It.

———————————————————————

And I Know That I Should Throw The Towel In, But Baby It’s Not, Not That Easy.

You Had A Wonderful Life, Perfect Even. At Least You’d Like To Think So. You Were 23 Years Old Living In New Orleans. Had A Nice Job, Working Part Time At This Boutique In The French Quarter And You Had This Amazing Boyfriend Whom You’d Been With For About 5 Years Now. When You Weren’t Working At The Boutique You Were Out Taking Pictures. Because Working At The Boutique Wasn’t Something You Planned On Doing The Rest Of Your Life, You Wanted To Be A Photographer , You Wanted Your Pictures To Be In Everyone’s Homes And You Wanted To Be The One Everyone Came To When They Needed Photo Shoots Done. And Until Then Working A Part Time Job On The Side Was Okay Until You Got To Where You Needed To Be. So Maybe You’re Life Wasn’t Perfect.. But It Was Perfect Enough For You. You Were Content

Until You Saw Him

You Had Been In Town On One Of Your Days Off Taking In The Sun, And Everything Around. You Had Your Camera With You Taking Pictures Of Some Of Everything. You Found The Beauty That Was The French Quarter Captivating And Once You Started Snapping There Was No Stopping. You Were In The Zone . You Got Pictures Of Tourist Laughing About, Flowers , Buildings, Animals.. And Him . It Wasn’t On Purpose . You Were Trying To Get This Photo Of The Most Alluring Butterfly That Landed On This Flower Outside Of This Bar. You Were Across The Street When It Flew By You And You Knew That By The Time You Got Over There To Get An Up Close It Would Be To Late So You Stayed In Your Spot Trying To Get A Good Shot . You’d Managed To Snap A Couple Of Photos Before Your View Was Blocked By City Goers.

Looking Back At The Photos Hoping To Have Gotten At Least One Good Photo Of The Butterfly, That’s When You Noticed Him. It Wasn’t Much, But It Was Enough To Draw Your Attention. Sitting In The Window Of The Bar Was A Man . The Sun Hitting His Face At Just The Right Angle. Illuminating His Golden Curls Making Him Look Like Something Out Of A Story Book .. Angelic .. Like A God .

You Couldn’t Stop Your Feet From Moving, Its Like They Had A Mind of Their Own. Before You Knew It You Were Across The Street Standing In Front Of The Bar.. Rousseau's. You Wondered Why You Haven’t Stumbled Upon This Place Before But Then Again You Weren’t Much Of A Drinker To Begin With. Things Seemed To Move In Slow Motion In The Midst Of The Fastness Of The Quarter As You Walked Through The Door And Walking Up To The Bar, But Not Before Making Eye Contact With Your Mystery Man For A Quick Second. He Already Had You Drawn In With Just A Side Glace OF His Face From The Picture, But Once You Seen His Eyes.. His Eyes Were Something Else. Blue But With A Hint A Darkness In Them, Making The Mystery That Was This Man All The More Interesting.

You Now Found Yourself Sitting At The Bar Drink In Hand, While Looking Through Your Camera Roll All While Hoping That The Small Eye Contact You Made With The Man Was Enough For Him To Notice You And Come Over. You Weren’t Desperate Or Anything, You Just Wanted To Know More About Him For Some Reason, And After All You Had A Boyfriend That You Loved.. You Didn’t Need Anything More. Little Did You Know He Noticed You.. Just Not At The Same Time You Noticed Him.

Klaus Had Been Walking The Streets Of The Quarter One Afternoon.. No Doubt Coming From Rousseau’s When He Noticed You. Taking Pictures Of Everything Around You Smiling As You Did It. That Smile Of Yours Would Be Etched Into His Mind Over The Next Couple Of Weeks, And Before He Knew It You Were The New Subject Of His Paintings. He Would Find Himself Casually Walking The Streets Almost Everyday Hoping To Run Into You Because It Was Something About You That Pulled Him In.. He Wanted To Know More, He Wanted.. You

You Were At The Bar For A Minute, You Actually Became Acquainted With The Bar Tinder. Her Name Was Camille But She Preferred Cami. You Both Sparked Up A Conversation When She Noticed The Camera In Your Hand. You Ended Up Talking About How You Were Aspiring To Become A Photographer, And She A Psychologist, When She Offered That You Could Take Some Pictures Of The Place If You Wanted And You Happily Obliged. Cami Walked To The Other End Of The Bar To Take Care Of Some People So You Were Left By Yourself Again.. Until Your Mystery Man Came And Took The Seat Next To You.. But You Were So Into The Photos You Were Taking That You Hadn’t Really Noticed, Until He Spoke With That Thick Accent Of His.

“Hello Love”

And From That Moment He Had You, And He Knew It Too. For A Second You Forgot Why You Were In The Bar In The First Place Until You Turned To The Voice That Had Spoken, And Needless To Say You Were Breathless, Which Was A First For You Because You Could Talk Someones Head Off If You Wanted. You Hadn’t Really Noticed You Zoned Out While Looking At Him Until You Noticed His Lips Moving But You Weren’t Hearing Anything.

“I’m So Sorry, Were You Saying Something” You Questioned Turning In Your Seat Towards Him

The Famous Smirk You Would Soon Get Familiar With, The One That Would Cause Your Heart To Skip A Few Beats Appeared On His Face, As If He Knew The Effect He Had On You Already

“I Said Of All The Times I’ve Been In This Bar, I’ve Never Seen Your Pretty Face Here.. And Trust Me Sweetheart, I Couldn’t Forget A Face Like Yours” He Said Eyes Peering Into Your Soul It Felt Like.. Smirk Still In His Face “I’m Klaus”

“Yn”

Was All You Could Say. You Were Already Drawn To Him From The Glimpse Of Him In The Picture You Had Taken, But Being Face To Face With Him, And Hearing His Accent Was A Whole Other Ball Game And You Were Starting To Regret Coming In Here But By Then It Was Already Too Late. Whether Or Not You Knew It, You Were Pulled In And There Was No Escaping. You Never Really Noticed When People Started Leaving, Or When The Sun Went Down For That Matter. It Wasn’t Until Chairs Started Going Up That You Realized That You Had Been At That Bar For No More That 5 Hours Sitting And Talking About Any And Everything With Klaus. It Was As If You Knew Him Personally And He You. You Honestly Didn’t Want To Leave But You Knew You had Too, Your Boyfriend Would Be Back In Town Tomorrow And You Still Needed To Get Some Stuff Around The House Down, And It Was Pretty Late So You Bid Your Drinking Partner For The Time Being A Goodnight And Started To Leave But Being The Gentlemen That Klaus Mikaelson Is, He Offered To Walk You To Your Place Claiming That It Wasn’t Safe For A Young Lady As Yourself To Be Walking Alone. It Didn’t Seem Like You Had An Option Because If You Were Being Honest You Might Have Had Just A Little Too Much To Drink So You Accepted His Offer.

Walking Under The Moonlit Sky On A Warm Summer Night Carrying On The Conversation You Too Were Having In The Bar Didn’t Help The Growing Attraction You Had For Him, But Of Course You Didn’t Know It Yet. It Wouldn’t Be Until A Few Run-Ins Later, Some Long Conversations At Rousseau's, And An Invitation To An “Annual Mikaelson Ball” Accompanied By This Gorgeous Dress That Was Way More Than What You Could Afford Right Now That You Would Soon Realize You Were Falling For Niklaus Mikaelson. Because After That First Night He Walked You Home, You Couldn’t Get Him Out Of Your Head, No Matter How Hard You Tried.

If I Could, Could Forget Him

I Would, Please Believe Me

Over The Months You Found Yourself Thinking About Him More. Klaus Gave You A Sense Of Adventure You Didn’t Know You Wanted Until You Met Him. He Bought You Gifts Even Though You Didn’t Ask For Them, But He Would Always Reply With “A Queen Should Always Be Showered With The Finest Gifts” And You Would Always Assure Him That You Were No Queen, And It Was Getting Harder To Explain Where The Gifts Were Coming From When Your Boyfriend Would See You Wearing This Fancy Necklace, Or The Most Recent Gift, A Brand New Camera.

And I Know That I Should Throw The Towel In

But, Baby, Its Not, Not That Easy

You Knew What You Was Doing Was Wrong, Even Through You And Klaus Never Displayed Any Type Of Affection Towards Each Other Physically.. Emotionally You Knew There Was Something There. You Had To Cut What Ever This Was Off Before Someone Got Hurt, But It Was Easier Said Than Done, And After The Way That Night Ended Between The Two Of You When You Tried To Walk Away, It Was Very Much Too Late, You Were In Too Deep.

“Hello Love” He Acknowledged When You Walked Into His Study Not Noticing The Look On Your Face

“We Have To End.. Whatever It Is Were Doing, I Told You When We First Met That I Had A Boyfriend, And I Should’ve Never Entertained Any Of This:

“Did You Walk Here By Yourself Love, I Told You Its Too Dangerous For You To Be By Yourself When Its Getting Dark” Klaus Said Totally Ignoring What You Said”

“D- Did You Hear What I Said Nik .. This” You Said Gesturing Between The Two Of You “Has To Stop.. I Had A Life Before I Met You.. A Wonderful Like That I Was Perfectly Fine With”

If I Was Sane There’d Be No Competition

But, I’m In Love With Someone Else

“I Heard What You Said Love. But You And I Both Know That’s Not True” He Said Looking At You Giving That Same Smirk.. The One That Somehow Makes You Melt Every Time, The One That Made Your Heart Beat A Thousand Beats Per Minute And He Knew It

“But It Is.. So, I’ll See You Nik” You Started To Turn Away And Walk Out But When Before You Could Comprehend It, He Was In Front Of You

When You First Started Hanging Out Klaus Wanted To Keep You Out Of The Supernatural World, But That Failed Difficult When You Were Caught In The Crossfire Of Two Vampires When Walking Home One Day, And You Wanted Answers And That Night He Told You Everything. You Were Fascinated To Say The Least, Always Trying To Get A Picture Of Klaus In His Hybrid State, Saying It Would Be One Of The Best Shots You Would Have Ever Taken But He Never Let You

“See Love, You And I Both Know That’s Not Possible” Klaus Said As His Hands Caressed Your Arms Until He Placed Them On Your Waist, Pulling You To Him. His Touch Lit A Fire In You, One You Didn’t Know You Had And You Were Aroused To Say The Least. You Couldn’t Even Get Your Words Out Properly And You Hated The Effect He Had On Your Body

“W-Why Do You T-Think That” You Said Looking Anywhere But His Eyes

“Because Love” He Said Gripping Your Chin Forcing You To Look Up At Him “If You Didn’t Want This, If You Truly Wanted This To End, You Would Have Called.. It Wasn’t Something That Needed To Be Said In Person” He Said Starring Down At You, Like He Was Slowly Undressing You With His Body “I Give You Something That You Didn’t Know You Needed, And You Cant Stand It.

“And What Is That” You Said Eyes Falling To His Lips. You Cursed Your Body For Betraying You The Way It Was. Truth Is He Was Right You Didn’t Want This To End You Didn’t Want To Stop Hanging Around The Original Hybrid But You Felt Horrible, Telling Yourself That You Indeed Loved Your Boyfriend Of 5 Years, But Your Heart Telling You Something Different Whenever You Were Around Nik.

“Adventure ..”

Its Quite Ironic How You Came To The Compound To Let Nik Know That You Were Done With This Little Situation You Were In With Him, Only To End Up In a Complete Different Situation.. But You Couldn’t Argue That The Situation You Were In Now Was Better. Before You Knew It You Were In Nik’s Bed Wrapped Up In His Sheets. Bodies Tangled Together As His Lips Kissed Every Inch Of Your Body, Missing Not One Crevice, Crack, Or Birthmark, Marking You As His.

His Hands Roamed Your Body Appreciatively As You Moaned Out His Name Not Really Caring If Any Of His Siblings Were Home Now. The Pleasure Was Slowly Building Up As Your Two Bodies Moved In Sync, Panting Heavily, Skin Glistening Due From The Sweat You Two Were Creating, And The Moans And Grunts From You Two Getting Louder And Louder By The Minute.

By The Time You Two Were Anywhere Near Done, The Sun Was Coming Up, And With The Previous Events You Knew Your Legs Were Out For The Count. You Lay Wrapped Up In His Arms Head On His Chest Listening To His Undead Heart Beat While He Was Asleep Thinking About What Just Happened. Thinking About These Last Couple Of Months. You Knew It Was Going To Be A Hard Conversation To Have With Your Boyfriend. But You Knew It Needed To Be Done . Because You Weren’t Sure When It Happened, Maybe It Was The First Time You Had A Conversation With Him, Or That One Time At The Ball His Family Threw When You Were Dancing To This Slow Song And It Felt As If You Were The Only Two In The Room. Or Maybe It Was When He Saved You That Day And Told You All About His World, The Way His Voice Was Laced With Concern, Asking Were You Okay The Rest Of The Night Even When You Assured Him You Were Fine.

He Ain’t Always Right, But He’s Just Right For Me

I’m In Love With Another Man

And I’m So Sorry, Hey

But I Love Someone Else

What Ever Moment It Was Between You And Niklaus Mikaelson Ranging From The Moment You Laid Eyes On Him Up Until Now, You Were Most Certain You Were In Love With This Man.

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Okay So I’m Not Really Sure How I Did On This One, I Liked It And Hopefully You All Like It Also, If You Could I Would Love Feedback On My Writing So I Could Know What I Need To Work On. I’m Going To Try Uploading More Frequently Since I Graduated Beauty School So I’m At Home All Day, But Once Again I Hope You Enjoyed This As Much As I Liked Writing It. Until Next Time .

#klaus x reader #klaus imagine #klaus mikaelson #imagines #the originals #vampire diaries

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thesteadydietofeverything · 5 years ago

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Top 10 Games of 2019

This was an extremely good year for games. I don’t know if I played as many that will stick with me as I did last year, but the ones on the bottom half of this list in particular constitute some of my favorite games of the decade, and probably all-time. If I’ve got a gaming-related resolution for next year, it’s to put my playtime into supporting even smaller indie devs. My absolute favorite experiences in games this year came from seemingly out of nowhere games from teams I’ve previously never heard of before. That said, there are some big games coming up in spring I doubt I’ll be able to keep myself away from. Some quick notes/shoutouts before I get started:

-The game I put maybe the most time into this year was Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. I finally made the plunge into neverending FF MMO content, and I’m as happy as I am overwhelmed. This was a big year for the game, between the release of the Shadowbringers expansion and the Nier: Automata raid, and it very well may have made it onto my list if I had managed to actually get to any of it. At the time of this writing, though, I’ve only just finished 2015’s Heavensward, so I’ve got...a long way to go.

-One quick shoutout to the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy that came out on Switch this year, a remaster of some DS classics I never played. An absolutely delightful visual novel series that I fell in love with throughout this year.

-I originally included a couple games currently in early access that I’ve enjoyed immensely. I removed them not because of arbitrary rules about what technically “came out” this year, but just to make room for some other games I liked, out of the assumption that I’ll still love these games in their 1.0 formats when they’re released next year to include them on my 2020 list. So shoutout to Hades, probably the best rogue-like/lite/whatever I’ve ever played, and Spin Rhythm XD, which reignited my love for rhythm games.

-Disco Elysium isn’t on this list, because I’ve played about an hour of it and haven’t yet been hooked by it. But I’ve heard enough about it to be convinced that it is 1000% a game for me and something I need to get to immediately. They shouted out Marx and Engels at the Game Awards! They look so cool! I want to be their friend! And hopefully, a few weeks from now, I’ll desperately want to redact this list to squeeze this game somewhere in here.

Alright, he’s the actual list:

10. Amid Evil

The 90’s FPS renaissance continues! As opposed to last year’s Dusk, a game I adored, this one takes its cues less from Quake and more from Heretic/Hexen, placing a greater emphasis on melee combat and magic-fuelled projectiles than more traditional weapons. Also, rather than that game’s intentionally ugly aesthetic, this one opts for graphics that at times feel lush, detailed, and pretty, while still probably mostly fitting the description of lo-fi. In fact, they just added RTX to the game, something I’m extremely curious to check out. This game continued to fuel my excitement about the possibilities of embracing out-of-style gameplay mechanics to discover new and fresh possibilities from a genre I’ve never been able to stop yearning for more of.

9. Ape Out

If this were a “coolest games” list, Ape Out would win it, easily. It’s a simple game whose mechanics don’t particularly evolve throughout the course of its handful of hours, but it leaves a hell of an impression with its minimalist cut-out graphics, stylish title cards, and percussive soundtrack. Smashing guards into each other and walls and causing them to shoot each other in a mad-dash for the exit is a fun as hell take on Hotline Miami-esque top down hyper violence, even if it’s a thin enough concept that it starts to feel a bit old before the end of the game.

8. Fire Emblem: Three Houses

I had a lot of problems with this game, probably most stemming from just how damn long it is - I still haven’t finished my first, and likely only, playthrough. This length seems to have motivated the developers to make battles more simple and easy, and to be fair, I would get frustrated if I were getting stuck on individual battles if I couldn’t stop thinking about how much longer I have to go, but as it is, I’ve just found them to be mostly boring. This is particularly problematic for a game that seems to require you to play through it at least...three times to really get the full picture? I couldn’t help but admire everything this game got right, though, and that mostly comes down to building a massive cast of extremely well realized and likable characters whose complex relationships with each other and with the structures they pledge loyalty to fuels harrowing drama once the plot really sets into motion. There’s a reason no other game inspired such a deluge of memes and fan fiction and art into my Twitter feed this year. It’s an impressive feat to convince every player they’ve unquestionably picked the right house and defend their problem children till the bitter end. After the success of this game, I’d love to see what this team can do next with a narrower focus and a bigger budget.

7. Resident Evil 2

It’s been a long time since I played the original Resident Evil 2, but I still consider it to be one of my favorite games of all time. I was highly skeptical of this remake at first, holding my stubborn ground that changing the fixed camera to a RE4-style behind the back perspective would turn this game more into an action game and less of a survival horror game where feeling a lack of control is part of the experience. I was pleasantly surprised to find how much they were able to modernize this game while maintaining its original feel and atmosphere. The fumbly, drifting aim-down sights effectively sell the feeling of being a rookie scared out of your wits. Being chased by Mr. X is wildly anxiety-inducing. But even more surprisingly, perhaps the greatest upgrade this game received was its map, which does you the generous service of actually marking down automatically where puzzles and items are, which rooms you’ve yet to enter, which ones you’ve searched entirely, and which ones still have more to discover. Arguably, this disrupts the feeling of being lost in a labyrinthine space that the original inspired, but in practice, it’s a remarkably satisfying and addicting video game system to engage with.

6. Judgment

No big surprise here - Ryu ga Gotoku put out another Yakuza-style game set in Kamurocho, and once again, it’s sitting somewhere on my top 10. This time, they finally put Kazuma Kiryu’s story to bed and focused on a new protagonist, down on his luck lawyer-turned-detective Takayuki Yagami. The new direction doesn’t always pay off - the added mechanics of following and chasing suspects gets a bit tedious. The game makes up for it, though, by absolutely nailing a fun, engrossing J-Drama of a plot entirely divorced from the Yakuza lore. The narrative takes several head-spinning turns through its several dozen hours, and they all feel earned, with a fresh sense of focus. The side stories in this one do even more to make you feel connected to the community of Kamurocho by befriending people from across the neighborhood. I’d love to see this team take even bigger swings in the future - and from what I’ve seen from Yakuza 7, that seems exactly like what they’re doing - but even if this game shares maybe a bit too much DNA with its predecessors, it’s hard to complain when the writing and acting are this enjoyable.

5. Control

Control feels like the kind of game that almost never gets made anymore. It’s a AAA game that isn’t connected to any larger franchises and doesn’t demand your attention for longer than a dozen hours. It doesn’t shoehorn needless RPG or MMO mechanics into its third-person action game formula to hold your attention. It introduces a wildly clever idea, tells a concise story with it, and then its over. And there’s something so refreshing about all of that. The setting of The Oldest House has a lot to do with it. I think it stands toe-to-toe with Rapture or Black Mesa as an instantly iconic game world. Its aesthetic blend of paranormal horror and banal government bureaucracy gripped my inner X-Files fan instantly, and kept him satisfied not only with its central characters and mystery but with a generous bounty of redacted documents full of worldbuilding both spine-tingling and hilarious. More will undoubtedly come from this game, in the form of DLC and possibly even more, with the way it ties itself into other Remedy universes, and as much as I expect I will love it, the refreshing experience this base game offered me likely can’t be beat.

4. Anodyne 2

I awaited Sean Han Tani and Marina Kittaka’s new game more anxiously than almost any game that came out this year, despite never having played the first one, exclusively on my love for last year’s singular All Our Asias and the promise that this game would greatly expand on that one’s Saturn/PS1-esque early 3D graphics and personal, heartfelt storytelling. Not only was I not disappointed, I was regularly pleasantly surprised by the depth of narrative and themes the game navigates. This game takes the ‘legendary hero’ tropes of a Zelda game and flips them to tell a story about the importance of community and taking care of loved ones over duty to governments or organizations. The dungeons that similarly reflect a Link to the Past-era Zelda game reduce the maps to bite-sized, funny, clever designs that ask you to internalize unique mechanics that result in affecting conclusions. Plus, it’s gorgeously idiosyncratic in its blend of 3D and 2D environments and its pretty but off-kilter score. It’s hard to believe something this full and well realized came from two people.

3. Eliza

Eliza is a work of dystopian fiction so closely resembling the state of the world in 2019 it’s hard to even want to call it sci-fi. As a proxy for the Eliza app, you speak the words of an AI therapist that offers meager, generic suggestions as a catch-all for desperate people facing any number of the nightmares of our time. The first session you get is a man reckoning with the state the world is in - we’ve only got a few more years left to save ourselves from impending climate crisis, destructive development is rendering cities unlivable for anyone but the super-rich, and the people who hold all the power are just making it all worse. The only thing you offer to him is to use a meditation app and take some medication. It doesn’t take long for you to realize that this whole structure is much less about helping struggling people and more about mining personal data.

There’s much more to this story than the grim state of mental health under late capitalism, though. It’s revealed that Evelyn, the character you play as, has a much closer history with Eliza than initially evident. Throughout the game, she’ll reacquaint herself with old coworkers, including her two former bosses who have recently split and run different companies over their differing frightening visions for the future. The game offers a biting critique of the kind of tech company optimism that brings rich, eccentric men to believe they can solve the world’s problems within the hyper-capitalist structure they’ve thrived under, and how quickly this mindset gives way to techno-fascism. There’s also Evelyn’s former team member, Nora, who has quit the tech world in favor of being a DJ “activist,” and her current lead Rae, a compassionate person who genuinely believes in the power of Eliza to better people’s lives. The writing does an excellent job of justifying everyone’s points of view and highlighting the limits of their ideology without simplifying their sense of morality.

Why this game works so well isn’t just its willingness to stare in the face of uncomfortably relevant subject matter, but its ultimately empathetic message. It offers no simple solutions to the world’s problems, but also avoids falling into utter despair. Instead, it places measured but inspiring faith in the power of making small, meaningful impacts on the people around you, and simply trying to put some good into your world. It’s a game both terrifying and comforting in its frank conclusions.

2. Death Stranding

For a game as willfully dumb as this one often is - that, for example, insists on giving all of its characters with self-explanatory names long monologues about how they got that name - Death Stranding was one of the most thought provoking games I’ve played in a while. Outside of its indulgent, awkwardly paced narrative, the game offers plenty of reflection on the impact the internet has had on our lives. As Sam Porter Bridges, you’re hiking across a post-apocalyptic America, reconnecting isolated cities by delivering supplies, building infrastructure, and, probably most importantly, connecting them to the Chiral Network, an internet of sorts constructed of supernatural material of nebulous origin. Through this structure, the game offers surprisingly insightful commentary about the necessity for communication, cooperation, and genuine love and care within a community.

The lonely world you’re tasked to explore, and the way you’re given blips of encouragement within the solitude through the structures and “likes” you give and receive through the game’s asynchronous multiplayer system, offers some striking parallels for those of us particularly “online” people who feel simultaneous desperation for human contact and aversion to social pressures. I’ve heard the themes of this game described as “incoherent” due to the way it seems to view the internet both as a powerful tool to connect people and a means by which people become isolated and alienated, but are both of these statements not completely true to reality? The game simplifies some of its conclusions - Kojima seems particularly ignorant of America’s deep structural inequities and abuses that lead to a culture of isolation and alienation. And yet, the questions it asks are provocative enough that they compelled me to keep thinking about them far longer than the answers it offers.

Beyond the surprisingly rich thematic content, this game is mostly just a joy to play. Death Stranding builds kinetic drama out of the typically rote parts of games. Moving from point A to point B has become an increasingly tedious chore in the majority of AAA open world games, but this is a game built almost entirely out of moving from point A to point B, and it makes it thrilling. The simple act of walking down a hill while trying to balance a heavy load on your back and avoiding rocks and other obstacles fulfills the promise of the term ‘walking simulator’ in a far more interesting way than most games given that descriptor. The game consistently doles out new ways to navigate terrain, which peaked for me about two thirds of the way through the game when, after spending hours setting up a network of zip lines, a delivery offered me the opportunity to utilize the entire thing in a wildly satisfying journey from one end of the map to another. It was the gaming moment of the year.

1. Outer Wilds

The first time the sun exploded in my Outer Wilds playthrough, I was probably about to die anyway. I had fallen through a black hole, and had yet to figure out how to recover from that, so I was drifting listlessly through space with diminishing oxygen as the synths started to pick up and I watched the sun fall in on itself and then expand throughout the solar system as my vision went went. The moment gave me chills, not because I wasn’t already doomed anyway, but because I couldn’t help but think about my neighbors that I had left behind to explore space. I hadn’t known that mere minutes after I left the atmosphere the solar system would be obliterated, but I was at least able to watch as it happened. They probably had no idea what happened. Suddenly their lives and their planet and everything they had known were just...gone. And then I woke up, with the campfire burning in front of me, and everyone looking just as I had left it. And I became obsessed with figuring out how to stop that from happening again.

What surprised me is that every time the sun exploded, it never failed to produce those chills I felt the first time. This game is masterful in its art, sound, and music design that manages to produce feelings so intense from an aesthetic so quaint. Tracking down fellow explorers by following the sound of their harmonica or acoustic guitar. Exploring space in a rickety vessel held together by wood and tape. Translating logs of conversations of an ancient alien race and finding the subject matter of discussion to be about small interpersonal drama as often as it is revelatory secrets of the universe. All of the potentially twee aspects of the game are balanced out by an innate sense of danger and terror that comes from exploring space and strange worlds alone. At times, the game dips into pure horror, making other aspects of the presentation all the more charming by comparison. And then there’s the clockwork machinations of the 22-minute loop you explore within, rewarding exploration and experimentation with reveals that make you feel like a genius for figuring out the puzzle at the same time that you’re stunned by the divulgence of a new piece of information.

The last few hours of the game contained a couple puzzles so obfuscated that I had to consult a guide, which admittedly lessened the impact of those reveals, but it all led to one of the most equally devastating and satisfying endings I’ve experienced in a video game recently. I really can’t say enough good things about this game. It’s not only my favorite game this year, but easily one of my favorite games of the decade, and really, of all-time, when it comes down to it.

#outer wilds #death stranding #eliza #anodyne 2 #control #judgment #resident evil 2 #fire emblem: three houses #Ape Out #Amid Evil #games #video games #GOTY

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authoressofdarkness · 5 years ago

Text

Beauty and the Beast (Chapter 2)

Stark’s hand closes over both of his wrists, and in the next instant, they’re both encased in metal. It’s nanotech, Peter is sure immediately. This is the same stuff that armor is made out of, and even his super strength won’t make a dent in it. He knows from experience.

Notes: Hey everyone! It's unlike me to not leave an author's note on a chapter, especially a first one, but I was busy and pretty proud of the first chapter so I decided to just post it and see how it went. Never fear, I'm back now! Thanks so much to everyone who read, reviewed, left kudos, etc! Love you all 3000!

I had a few people ask in the comments if this was going to be a oneshot or a short thing, because apparently I'm a dumbass and had it accidentally marked as complete. The answer is a big NO from me! I have a lot of things being tossed around for this fic and it's probably going to be massive. It's also going to get VERY dark before it gets anywhere near a happy ending, if it ever does, so PLEASE take care of yourselves. I'll try to remember to put trigger warnings at the beginning of the chapters, but just remember: I chose not to use archive warnings. ;)

Also, shoutout to @itfeelssogoodmrstark for being a great cheerleader and inspiring me to write this. Much love xo

Trigger warnings: Massive blood loss, Tony being a jerk, non/dubiously consensual touching in multiple ways, needles. Think that's all for this one.

“Behave?” Peter looks up at him, heart racing. “What do you mean, behave? I thought-“

“What, that I was going to kill you?” Stark chuckles, stalking back to him. “Hardly. What a waste that would be. What, with all the knowledge and pretty plans packed into your head. I told you, we have much to discuss.”

“Like what? You know what I’ve been doing, obviously. You know who I am. And if you think I’m going to help you-“

Stark stops in front of him and laughs that dark laugh again. “Oh, you really are naive if you think I would for a second let you work as a double agent for me so that you could double cross me at the first opportunity. I don’t think so, sweetheart.” He tilts his chin up, studying his face with those piercing blue eyes. “No, my interest in you is much more… personal,” he murmurs, lips quirking up in a devious smirk.

Peter shivers. His spider senses are going nuts. He can feel the hair on his arms and the back of his neck standing on end, and every instinct in him screams to pull away, to resist, but all he can think about is Ben being dragged to God knows where and there’s no way in hell he’s getting out of Stark’s sight to rescue him any time soon.

“What do you want?” He sounds defeated, even to his own ears.

Stark smirks, stroking a cold metal finger down his jaw. “Right now? Your wrists.”

The words throw him for a whole second before Stark raises an eyebrow at him, clearly ready to scold him already for disobeying, and then he jolts back to reality and thrusts his wrists out in front of him. It only makes sense that he’s going to be bound before they go anywhere. It just… was not the response he was expecting, though he couldn’t bring himself to fathom why.

Stark gives him a tug forward, and this time it’s his lips on Peter’s jaw. He purrs audibly as they drag over Peter’s stubble, which grows in quicker with his enhancements, so of course it’s back despite him shaving before leaving this morning for class.

Classes he’ll likely never go to again. When he was just starting college. And now he’d never get to finish.

Times like right now, when the villains got too close — and they all did, invariably, every once in a while, and of course there was still more around than just the one in front of him — he questioned why he’d become Spider-Man in the first place. He wanted a life. He wanted so much, and then-

And then Stark’s lips brushed against his jawline again, and it both served to jolt him back to reality and remember exactly why. So this person — if he could even be considered one anymore — couldn’t hurt anyone else. And if nothing else good came out of this situation, at least the more time he spent with Peter, the less time he spent hurting anyone else.

Stark steps back, keeping his grip on Peter’s wrists despite the nanotech. “Up,” he orders, and Peter obeys. Stark starts walking, towing Peter along behind him, and he follows silently, knowing better than to ask where they’re going.

At least he’s silent until he realizes where they’re going, and then he sets his heels into the ground, bringing them to a stop. “No.”

Stark raises an eyebrow at him, not even turning to face him completely. “You will do what I tell you,” he tells him. “It’s not a discussion.”

“If you think I’m going to let you-“

“I don’t think you’ll be letting me do anything. I’ll tie you up, if I have to.” Stark cocks his head. “It will be a lot less painful if you cooperate, Spiderling.”

Peter swallows hard. He’s been here an hour, tops, and Stark has him ready to beg for the second time. It’s almost laughable. “Please don’t do this.”

Stark sighs heavily. “Are you always this dramatic?” He gives him a firm tug, jerking him towards him. “We’re going to go in there, and you’re going to do what I tell you, or I’m going to go pay your uncle a visit and make you watch on the security cameras. Do you understand?”

That makes him freeze, and any thought of protests goes out the window the moment he brings Ben into it. “I thought you weren’t going to kill me.” Although I might prefer it if you did. “You’ll never get as much as you want out of me without doing it.”

Stark resumes walking, not-quite-dragging a reluctant Peter behind him again. “I don’t want full schematics. Not yet, at least. Just some blood. Don’t worry, I’ll even take it the easier way.” He stops in front of a door and taps in a code, pushing it open before shooting him a feral grin. “This time, anyway. Now get inside before I change my mind.”

It takes most of his self control to not shuffle his feet around to delay going in, but he still hesitated for the barest second in the doorway. Thus far, Stark hadn’t seemed to lie to him, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. Although why he would when Peter obviously couldn’t get out if he tried…

Stark’s lab looks even more expansive inside than what he caught a glimpse of through the glass on the outside. This one is obviously for medicinal purposes - or mostly, anyway. A glance around showed full specs of equipment in various sectioned off areas, including everything from what looked to be an x-ray setup to metal tables that he didn’t even want to imagine what happened on them. Just the thought makes him shudder almost as much as the antiseptic smell.

Stark enters behind him not even a second later, and the door hums in quiet confirmation of the lock resetting. Then Stark grabs his arm, guiding him not-so-gently towards one of the areas in the back.

He pulls him to a stop in front of a metal chair - metal, always metal, some part of him notes, and he shudders to think of the reasons why - and the bonds on his wrists melt away. “Bag off and sit,” Stark orders before turning to a nearby counter. “Don’t do anything stupid, or we will do this the hard way.”

Peter complies, albeit reluctantly. He’d again forgotten he was even still wearing his book bag, but he doesn’t really want to take it off. He knows the likelihood he’ll see it again once it’s off his body is incredibly low. His chest aches at the thought of losing the suit, but he knows the likelihood he’ll ever get to use it again is even lower than the likelihood of seeing it.

He sets the bag down with a resigned sigh, and sits in the chair.

Stark turns around a moment later, looking both pleased and amused at his clear resignation. He walks back over, putting a hand on his shoulder, and the bonds on his wrists remateralize, effectively cuffing him to the chair as Stark tilts his head to the side.

Peter catches a flash of silver from the corner of his eye and can’t help the reflexive gulp. “What are you doing?”

“Exactly what I told you.” Something cold and wet brushes his neck, and he grimaces at the burn left in its place.

“You’re taking blood from my neck?”

Stark heaves a sigh. “Bigger veins, closer to your heart. More blood, faster, less chance the vein will collapse, and I can make it gravity fed so I don’t have to stand here the whole time. But I suppose next time I can just cut you open and get the blood that way, if it suits you.”

The threat doesn’t scare him as much as it should. Not as much as the idea of a needle in his neck, anyway, which is probably irrational and ridiculous, but it’s true.

He winces as the needle pierces the tender skin on the side of his neck, and then Stark tapes it in place and steps away, letting his head go. He feels the urge to try to rub at it, but doesn’t want to give Stark the satisfaction of watching him pull at the bonds. “Christ. How much blood are you taking?”

“A few pints, to start,” Stark answers, from somewhere out of his line of sight.

“A few pints? You are trying to kill me.” He sounds more surprised than he probably should.

“You really are over dramatic, aren’t you?” Stark reappears in front of him, rolling his eyes. “I know what I’m doing. You won’t lose more than thirty percent of your overall blood volume. I’m monitoring it. You may still pass out, though,” he admits with a shrug. “Or maybe not, with your advanced healing.”

Peter startles. “How do you know about that?”

Stark snorts. “Please. We’ve encountered each other… what, twice, in person? Both times you sustained injuries that might have killed someone else and were at class the next day. You’re not great at being inconspicuous.”

Peter frowns a little. He doesn’t remember much about either of the encounters, although he knows they happened. Recollection is faint — likely because of the injuries he sustained. He’s had a lot of concussions that didn’t exactly get treated properly. Oops.

“Oh,” is his brilliant response to that. Then, “If you know about my powers… what are you testing? What is there to talk about if you know all my secrets?”

Stark chuckles. “I wouldn’t say that. Not yet. Besides, there’s other things to discuss.”

By now, Peter’s head is starting to feel fainting fuzzy. Sentences are hard to form. He imagines this is what bleeding to death feels like, although the line in his neck is controlled, making it agonizingly slow. “Like what?”

There’s a faint feeling of fingers on his chin, and only then does he realize that his eyes had fallen closed, and forces them open. Stark is in front of him, of course, studying him with his brows drawn together.

He only gets a clear image for a minute before his eyes start to refusing to work. Things are going in and out of focus, fuzzy, and the effort of trying to refocus them make him dizzy, so he simply closes them again.

Stark releases his chin and steps away. “Even if I told you right now, you wouldn’t remember it later.” It’s not a threat, just a statement of fact, and right now he’s inclined to agree.

How much blood has he lost already? It’s starting to feel less like it’s flowing out and more like it’s being sucked. His limbs, head, and even his tongue are starting to feel heavy. It would take too much effort now to even consider trying to move, even if he had to rip the line out to save his own life.

It doesn’t exactly hurt. Numbness and fatigue creep up on him, not painfully but still agonizing in their slowness. He finds himself wishing Stark would just bite him next time like the vampire he is. At least that would be quicker.

Stark’s chuckle sounds like it’s echoing from far away. “I wouldn’t invite me to bite you, silly boy. Although there’s plenty of time for that later. I’m sure we can incorporate that into my plans.”

Peter is vaguely confused. Did he say that aloud? No way to know, not when his mouth is refusing to work for him when he wants it to. He lets his head fall back against the chair behind him, feeling his consciousness slowly fade away.

A keyboard is clicking from somewhere far away, accompanied by a low murmuring and then something that sounds like dial tones. A moment later, sounding so far away, he hears a single word from a voice he’s sure he knows, but can’t place through the fuzziness in his head: “Hello?”

“Hello, Doctor. I don’t suppose you’re around and would like to swing by the tower. I’ve got something you might like to see…”

The words float in and out of his head, just out of reach as soon as they enter. But the half a second’s grasp he has on them is enough to make his heart race again, even if he has no idea why after. Reality is fading away. No, maybe he is fading away from reality.

The itch of danger is there until the end, though, and he forces his eyes open one last time to catch a glimpse of a blurry face and brown eyes before passing out.

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let-it-raines · 5 years ago

Text

Catch Me If You Can (12/?)

298 days. That’s how long Killian Jones was away from a baseball field. It’s less than a year, only part of a season for him, but it might as well have lasted a decade as he alternated between physical therapy and spending an excessive amount of time sitting on his couch.

But then he came back and won the World Series.

It’s something no one saw coming, and it’s certainly not something anyone who knows about his arm would predict. Now it’s a new season with new possibilities, and anything could happen. On-field reporter Emma Swan will be there to cover it all even if she is not his biggest fan right now.

Asking her out live on-air will do that.

Rating: Mature

A/N: Sorry not sorry for giving my main man Rafa’s ass a shoutout in this chapter. Can you guys tell that the summer tennis season was in full swing when I was writing this? 🎾

Thanks to @resident-of-storybrooke for reading through a massive amount of words and saying positive things about them to feed my ego.

Found on AO3: Beginning | Current

Tumblr: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |

Tag list: @eala-captian @mariakov81 @ultraluckycatnd @royalswan @shey-starsfury @sals86 @iam2307 @ashley-knightingale @karenfrommisthaven @skyewardolicitycloisdelena91 @scientificapricot @captswanis4vr @ultimiflos @jamif @idristardis @nikkiemms @resident-of-storybrooke @tiganasummertree @wellhellotragic @bmbbcs4evr @onceuponaprincessworld @jennjenn615 @mayquita @captainsjedi @teamhook @notoriouscs @kmomof4 @ekr032-blog-blog @cs-forlife @andiirivera @jonirobinson64 @galaxyzxstark @qualitycoffeethings @thejollyroger-writer

-/-

Emma: Can you do me a favor?

Killian: I feel like I need to know the favor before I say yes to that.

Emma: You’re no fun.

Killian: I have been reliably informed by my nieces that I am fun.

Emma: It’s great that you mention your nieces, because the favor is for my nephew.

Killian: Well, you should have said that first.

Emma: You’re the worst.

Killian: What do you need, Swan?

Emma: Like a month ago, I told Leo that I could get you to sign a hat for him, and I was just reminded that I haven’t done that yet.

Killian: Ah, so now I know why you’re really dating me.

Emma: Exactly.

Killian: I can most definitely get your nephew a signed hat. I’ll give it to you tonight?

Emma: Perfect. I can’t thank you enough.

Killian: You could come over on our off day tomorrow?

Emma: I like that idea. We’ve pretty much only texted for two weeks.

Killian: Or talked with a camera in our faces.

Emma: Exactly. See you tonight. I hope you have fun sitting in the dugout the entire time.

Killian: I’ve had a pretty woman sitting next to me the last few games, so it’s enjoyable.

Emma: Julia Roberts????

Emma: Okay, I really have to go, but don’t forget about the signed hat. It’s the only way that I’m going to come over tomorrow.

Killian chuckles at Emma’s last text before closing out his phone and placing it in the front pocket of his sweatpants as thunder roars to life outside, shaking the glass panes of his window as rain starts to fall from above. It’s a light sprinkling for about thirty seconds before a torrential downpour starts taking place, the sounds of the city drowned out by the late May storm that’s happening outside. He knew there was a chance that it was coming, has checked the weather obsessively as he tends to do whenever there’s the possibility of rain, and all he can do is hope that it’s a quick summer storm that dissipates long before tonight’s game so that the field can dry enough for them to play.

If this thunder and lightning continues, however, he doesn’t think that anyone will be stepping onto the field tonight.

Humming to himself, he steps away from his window and walks the few steps to the kitchen, opening the refrigerator to find the ingredients he wants for an omelet and setting them out on the countertops. It takes him but a few moments to piddle around and start cooking himself a late breakfast, his coffee maker brewing behind him as the smell of coffee fills his nose, and soon enough, he’s raking his fork through his omelet so that metal scratches against glass as the rain continues to pour down outside, the sky only lightened by the occasional flash of light. It’s been a good while since it stormed like this, and oddly, he finds it relaxing.

Likely, it helps that he’s in the safety of his apartment and not currently wandering the streets of Manhattan trying to find somewhere to wait this thing out like so many others are.

When he’s finished eating his food, he settles back down on the couch and continues to watch the tennis match that’s playing, idly following along with the tournament as he scrolls through his phone and Instagram. He doesn’t follow that many people, mostly only his family and work-related things, so he sees a picture of Will and Belle smiling at the camera from the date that he knows they went on the other night, another photo of Elsa and the girls on Addy’s last day of kindergarten (how is his niece old enough to be finished with kindergarten?), and then one of Emma sitting with Ruby, the brightest smiles on their faces. They went out last night to celebrate Ruby’s boyfriend getting a raise, and while he hasn’t asked how the night went, it looks like it was a nice time.

And Emma is up early this morning, so she must not be too hungover. He’s both interested and terrified to know what his girlfriend would be like hungover.

His girlfriend.

They didn’t explicitly say the words, but they aren’t dating anyone else, aren’t planning on dating anyone else, so that’s what Emma is to him, right? It sounds childish and juvenile in a way, but it’s also…exhilarating. He never planned on feeling this way about a woman again, never planned on wanting to receive texts and have late-night phone conversations or hushed rendezvous in this little secluded corner outside of the clubhouse.

He’s really starting to like that secluded corner.

He’s most definitely starting to fall in love with Emma. He’s not…he’s not quite there yet, but he knows that it’s coming.

Terrifying. Exhilarating. Wonderful. Every feeling all at once.

His phone buzzes in his hand, Ariel’s contact popping up at the top of the screen.

Ariel: Game is cancelled for tonight. You have three days off now, but don’t just sit on your ass. Do some exercises.Get Will or Robin to practice some pitches with you. Work out that arm.I’m sure Al will text you in a minute.

Killian: I was thinking about living a sedentary life, actually. I’d like to really screw the team over again whenwe’re currently leading the AL East and have another home series against the Sox coming up.

Ariel: Don’t be an ass.

Killian: I promise that I will exercise. I already did my run this morning.

Ariel: Good boy.

Killian: I am not your dog.

Ariel: That’s debatable. You and Max are similar. I’ll talk to you later. I think Eric and I are finally going to repaint the living room.

He’s just about to close his phone when another message pops up, this time one he’s definitely not going to ignore.

Elsa: I heard the game is cancelled tonight, and that means you’re coming over for dinner. No questions asked. We changed Sunday night dinner since you’re pitching against the Sox that night and we can’t miss that. Liam insisted.

Elsa: And Anna is cooking tonight.

Elsa Jones knows all, and he loves her for it.

-/-

“Look at the paper that Mrs. Johnson gave me,” Addy tells him as she stacks a certificate on top of the toys already sitting in his lap, several things from Lucy but mostly arts and crafts that Addy has decided she must show off by drowning him with them. It’s this or drown in the rain that’s still going on outside. “It’s because I’m smart.”

“I can see that. I think you get that from me.”

“I get it from Mommy.”

“Well, that too,” he chuckles, flexing his toes in his sneakers so that his feet don’t fall asleep, the slight tingling sensation already appearing.

“Killian,” Lucy whispers, coming up to him with a stuffed giraffe that’s bigger than she is and placing it next to him, “I have a giraffe.”

“I don’t think that’s smelly enough to be a giraffe, little love.”

“I gave her a bath.”

“Ah,” he sighs, Lucy very obviously not getting his joke. He’s still trying to figure her out, her seriousness extremely unlike Addy’s loud and boisterous personality, but he gets that. She’s likely overpowered by her older sister, and he can understand that. So, the younger siblings very obviously have to stick together. It’s in all of the unwritten rules. “Did you use soap?”

“Yep.” “What about water?”

“Uh huh.”

“Hmm, okay.” He taps his chin as he thinks before reaching forward and bopping her nose so that it scrunches up on her face. “What about peanut butter?”

“No,” she giggles, her smile lighting up her face as she pets the giraffe before pressing it forward so that it’s giving him kisses. At least, that’s what she’s told him before, so he assumes that’s what is happening now. “Peanut butter is too sticky.”

“And it’s for eating,” Addison says before she’s placing yet another drawing on top of his lap. Where does the kid get the supplies for this? There’s no way it’s all coming from her school.

“Speaking of that, what do the two of you say about us leaving your playroom and going down to the kitchen to see when I can get some food in my belly. I’m a growing boy. I need my food.”

“You’re not growing anymore because you’re an adult.”

He winks at Addy, amusement running over every inch of him. “That’s what you think, sweetheart.”

Carefully, he starts undoing the pile that’s been covering him, making sure not to rip any of the papers or stack the stuffed animals in the wrong way, before he stands from the ground, his knees popping the slightest bit. That was an awkward position for him to sit in for a long time, hence the feet that fell asleep, and he definitely doesn’t need to be hurting himself in unconventional ways when he’s already prone to injury. His arm has felt fine since Florida, all of his games pitched until the fourth or fifth inning, and he’s convinced himself that it was simply a one-time thing. It’s not going to get that bad again.

He won’t let it.

He can’t. He won’t miss any other physical therapy sessions with Archie, and he’s not going to overdo it.

“Alright,” he laughs, leaning down and scooping each girl up over his shoulders to the sound of their giggles, “let’s go find out what your Aunt Anna is cooking for dinner.”

They’re still so small right now, but with Addy turning six at the end of June, he’s not sure how long he’s going to be able to hold both of them at once as he walks down the stairs of the townhome from their playroom to the kitchen where he can already hear everyone who wasn’t pawned off onto the kids talking.

“Killian,” Elsa scolds the moment she sees him, “put them down. Your shoulder.”

“It’s fine, Els,” he huffs even as he puts them on the ground, a slight bit of relief running through his body. “I can pick my nieces up.”

“But – ”

“I am fine,” he promises, stepping into the room to brush his lips over Elsa’s temple. “It smells good in here. What are we eating?”

“Stuffed shells,” Anna answers as she chops up a cucumber, hopefully for a salad and not the stuffed shells. “I had some leftover marinara sauce and wanted to use it.”

“Bless you,” he sighs, resting his elbows against the countertop. “Are your parents coming tonight?”

“They are stubborn and refuse to come to Sunday dinners when it’s not on a Sunday,” Anna tells him as she presses up on her toes to check in the oven. “They do not understand baseball in the way that we understand it.”

“To be fair, it’s not like someone they’re related to is a player,” Kris says.

“Hey, I am a not-so-distant relative by marriage, thank you very much.”

“I’m their son-in-law,” Kris adds, a slight roll of his eyes as he eats a roll, “and sometimes they don’t even acknowledge me.”

“Well, that’s just because they don’t think your job is a real job, sweetie.”

“Someone has to decorate the city for Christmas! It’s real! Killian plays a sport for a living!”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Killian playfully scoffs, cutting his toward Kris, “we don’t have to shit on my job to build yours up.”

“Language,” Liam warns before he takes a sip of his beer. All of them look over to the girls only to find that neither are paying any attention to them. Good. he doesn’t want to be the reason they start cursing. That is not something he’s going to have blamed on him. “And we all love the Karlssons, but they are definitely a little more old-fashioned on things. I’m a doctor, though, so I don’t have to worry about any of their judgment.”

Elsa chuckles before she slaps Liam’s shoulder, her eyes practically rolling to the back of her head. “Don’t be a jerk when you are far too invested in your brother’s career and have Kris come and decorate the house every year. A job is a job, and they have two really cool ones.”

“I was kidding, darling.” He leans in and presses his lips against Elsa’s, lingering a little too long, but that’s how they are sometimes. It’s sweet and awful all at once, and it makes him wish that he could bring Emma along to things like this instead of being the fifth wheel, seventh if Addy and Lucy can be considered a pair. “Killian, how are you handling having so many unexpected days off? I’m surprised you can even sit still when you’re so used to having something to do.”

Killian shrugs his shoulders, his nails tapping against the countertop as he feels four pairs of eyes staring at him and waiting for him to answer. “I mean, I wasn’t playing any of these days anyways, so I did my workouts at home today instead of going into work. Tomorrow will be the same, and then we’ll have games again.”

“Oh. You have tomorrow off?” Elsa asks, her eyes lighting up.

“Uh, yeah, I should. I’ve just got to do some weight training exercises and do my shoulder exercises. Why?”

“Do you want to watch the girls?”

Oh.

Shit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Reaching up to scratch behind his ears, he tries to think of an excuse, any excuse, but is coming up all kinds of short. Dammit.

(He’s probably going to be the reason Addy and Lucy start cursing.)

“I’m a little busy, love.”

“It’s your off day. What could you possibly be doing?”

“Doctor’s appointment and then a few errands,” he lies, enough guilt festering in his stomach that he may as well go ahead and schedule an appointment for his stomach. Then he won’t have really lied, right? “By the time I get everything done, you’ll practically be off work. I can spend another day with them, though. I’ll take them out to eat or to the park or even the zoo.”

“What kind of doctor’s appointment? Everything okay?”

“Just a normal check-up.” He clicks his tongue, his toes bouncing him up and down on the floor. “So, everyone’s coming on Sunday, right? Let me know where you want to sit, and I’ll get Ariel to arrange everything.”

It’s the most obvious change in conversation that he can think of, but it’s also literally all he can think of. He’s an asshole for telling Elsa he can’t spend time with the girls, but he was kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place there. It’s either disappoint his nieces or disappoint Emma, and while he’d like to disappoint no one, that’s not really an option. He had plans with Emma first, and that’s what he’s going to stick to. Maybe one day they’ll be in a situation where he can take the girls with him, and all four of them can do something without him having to lie to his family.

Today is not that day.

They’ll figure it all out.

There’s another loud crash of thunder outside, and his head turns to the side to look at the darkness outside. He’s not sure if this rain is every going to stop, and he’s really kind of dreading going home in this weather.

“Do you remember when we were younger, and you used to try to get struck by lightning?”

“Because I’m an idiot,” Killian chuckles to Liam, leaning back from the countertop and pulling a barstool out to sit on. “I thought I’d be Thor or something if I got struck by lightning.”

“That’s pretty cute, actually,” Anna gushes. “Elsa used to think that she could control the snow because she’d ask for it to snow and it usually would.”

“Anna,” Elsa laughs as she buries her face in her hands, “why are you always sharing such weird things about me?”

“Because Liam was sharing weird things about Killian, and I thought it would be funny.”

“Growing up, you guys spent December in Norway,” Liam points out while he rubs his wife’s back. “It snowed all the time. Of course you thought you could control the snow. That’s cute, sweetheart. You and Killian think you can control the weather.”

“Els, are you feeling attacked right now?” he asks.

“Absolutely.”

“I think we should get more food than everyone else for this torture.”

Elsa peeks through her fingers with a smile. “I like the way you think.”

-/-

“A signed hat, just as you requested, milady.” Killian holds the hat he signed for Leo out to Emma as he mockingly bows down in front of her while motioning her into his apartment.

“You’re so dramatic,” she laughs even as she takes the hat, placing it between her fingers before she’s wrapping her arms around his neck and slowly sliding her lips over his, her teeth already nibbling as his hands find her hips, tugging them closer to his. Bloody hell has he missed being able to do this and feeling the warmth of Emma even if she is chilled by the rain. “Thank you for that hat.”

“No problem,” he murmurs against her mouth before he closes the door with his foot and backs Emma up against it so that their bodies can press further together, her mouth opening for him as their tongues curl together in a slow, warm heat that’s simmering over every inch of him. Emma’s fingers are nimble against the back of his neck, and when she cants her hips up, brushing where he’s already half-hard against her, he groans into her mouth, weeks and months of wanting starting to boil within him. It’s hungry and rough, and he has to stop himself from stripping them out of their clothes right then and there by pecking her mouth two times before resting his forehead against hers and inhaling a sharp breath. “Hi, Swan.”

“Hi,” she sighs as her hand falls from his hair to rest on his chest, right over his wildly beating heart. She can likely feel it. “We probably should have said that first.”

“Eh, I liked our greeting better.”

She blinks up at him, her face bare of makeup so that her lashes are blonde, and her freckles are showing, before she smiles a smile so bright that he figures that happiness can be tasted on her tongue.

“It was a good greeting. I approve.”

“Me – ” he presses the inch forward to kiss the smile, “ – too. Have you eaten?”

“It’s seven in the morning. No, I haven’t eaten.”

“That’s what I figured. You want to order in, or do you want me to make you something?”

Emma hums, her bottom lips pulled between her teeth as she thinks. “You can cook. I’m here to use you for your autograph skills, your cooking, and your cable.”

“What about me?”

“You’re on the list somewhere.” Emma giggles when he runs his fingers against the skin above her shorts, and he catalogs that spot away in the back of his mind because he can most definitely use that in the future. “I’m going to get to the TV part first, though, because Roland Garros is on, and there are some matches I want to watch.”

“It’s already on.”

“I like the way that you roll, twenty-nine.”

She pushes off of him and walks the few feet into his living room, flopping down on the couch and immediately resting her feet up on his coffee table. It’s a comfortable move, and he likes that Emma feels comfortable in his home. He’ll never quite get over that. All of their private moments are here or in one of their hotel rooms when they’re on the road, and as much as he sometimes loves those rooms, nothing compares to this.

He ate too much yesterday, Anna’s stuffed shells and rolls still residing in his stomach, so he only bothers to make enough batter to make Emma a waffle since she never said what she wanted, even when he just prodded her for more information. He knows that she likes them considering she’s always eating them in the hotel dining rooms, and since the other option that came to him was a grilled cheese sandwich at seven in the morning, he figures a waffle will have to do. He very much doubts Emma is going to complain when he’s found that the way to her heart is most definitely food.

Junk food specifically.

When the waffle maker beeps several minutes later, he opens it up and plates Emma’s food, grabbing some fruit out of the fridge and topping it. He most definitely sneaks away a few of her blackberries, but, really, he deserves that. He cooked after all.

(And this is his apartment.)

“Thank you,” Emma says when he places it in her lap before sitting down next to her on the couch, their shoulders hitting together before he wraps his arm over the back of the couch, his fingers tapping against her shoulder. She leans to the side and presses a kiss to his cheek. “You’re sweet.”

“Oh, I most definitely know.”

Her eyes roll. “You didn’t want to eat?”

He groans at the thought. He’s already gotten up and done some of his stretches, drinking a protein shake, and he probably won’t eat anything else serious until tonight. “I ate too much yesterday, and I’ve had this really bad influence on me lately for how I’m eating so I’m trying to be better.”

“Sorry not sorry,” she mumbles, her cheeks puffed out with waffles inside. Did she just stuff the entire thing in there? There’s a thwack of a tennis ball against a racket on his television screen, and he turns his attention from Emma chewing to watch Rafael Nadal slide against red clay, making it all look effortless even when Killian knows that nothing about being an athlete is effortless, not even natural talent. “Damn,” Emma sighs, “that is one good ass.”

If he was eating, he’d choke on his food.

“W-what?” he sputters out, looking between the TV and Emma.

She pokes her fork at the screen, waving it in the air. “Rafa’s ass. That’s, like, a dream ass. Just look at it.”

His mouth is gaping open as he looks between Emma putting her plate of food on the coffee table and the television screen, his eyes taking in another man’s ass like this is the most normal conversation for him to be having before eight in the morning. But then again, when is anything about his relationship with Emma normal?

“I mean, it’s okay,” he lies, sinking down a little further in the couch as a ball launches into the air. “I’ve been told time and time again that my ass is pretty good too.”

Why in the world did he say that? What is wrong with him?

“I mean, you have a good ass that I very much appreciate, but no one has an ass like…that. It’s insane.”

“Should I feel insecure about the fact that you’re admiring another man’s ass?”

“No,” she promises, not even bothering to look at him as she pats his thigh, her hand likely a little higher than she intended as he grits his teeth at the touch, “but you should admire this man’s body. And his tan. People would pay a lot of money for a tan like that.” She twists her head to the side to look at him, quirking her brow. “What?”

“Nothing, nothing,” he laughs as he reaches down to her hand and threads their fingers together, bringing her knuckles up to his lips to brush a kiss there, “I’m simply coming to the realization that my girlfriend as a thing for other athletes.”

“Step up your game, Jones.”

“I’ll try, I’ll try. I didn’t know I had any competition, so I was unprepared.”

“That is shame. I look forward to seeing how you make up for it.”

“I’ll start thinking.”

They lapse into easy conversation like they always do when they’re together, and despite all of their early complications and some of the complications that they still have, that’s what this relationship is…easy. He’s got no clue why Emma agreed to his crazy plan, but she did. That’s all that matters. As the rain continues to pour down outside for the second day in a row, he tells her about his day yesterday and how ridiculous his family is in their group meals and constant conversation. He loves them, but he imagines that to anyone else, it would be overwhelming to come into that environment. Emma shares that she spent her morning with David yesterday, hence the reminder of the autographed hat, and tells him that Ruth is planning on coming into town sometime in June. He can’t tell if she’s happy or nervous about that, but he imagines it’s somewhere in between for how Emma feels about her foster mother and the distance there.

Families and almost-families and non-families are all so damn complicated, and as fucked up as his past family life is, it makes him thankful for what he has now. They’ve gotten him through some of his darkest times, and very few people make him smile in the way that they do.

Emma.

Emma makes him smile like that.

As the morning passes, tennis ending and Netflix being switched on instead, Emma relaxes further into him, and he finds that under the dull roll of rain, nothing and no one else exists outside of the two of them. His fingers trace the skin of her upper thigh, an absentminded motion that becomes more focused when he sees small little bumps rising over her pale skin. He never thought he could enjoy the sight of pale skin so much until he saw the way Emma’s thighs look in these shorts.

She is exquisite.

“Killian,” she gasps when his nails move to her inner thigh, and when he looks over to her with a smirk, he can see the blush rising on her cheeks as her lips part and her eyes blacken with desire.

He’s wanted this for far too long, even with the short time that they’ve been together, and it’s what has him leaning into her and cupping her cheek with his palm, his thumb pressing into her bottom lip to open her up into him so that he can lick into her mouth with absolutely no hesitation, another warm, toe-curling slide that has Emma sighing into him as her hands grapple to grab onto his shirt.

It’s a quick escalation, something he can’t quite keep track of with the way that she feels under him, moving against him, and the only coherent thought that he has is the fact that this couch must be damn lucky for everything that’s happened on it.

Which is a ridiculous thought.

Desire continues to run through him, vibrations moving down each of his vertebrae and to the base of his spine, and the little sounds that Emma is making are nearly driving him into madness at the thought of sliding into her, feeling the slick heat and tight walls and…

“Ah fuck,” he murmurs into Emma’s neck, physically and mentally cursing himself.

“What?” she gasps, still rolling her hips up as her nails scratch across his biceps.

“I don’t have any condoms.”

“Oh? I – ”

“I can go buy some from the Duane Reade right across the street. It won’t be any problem, love.” He pulls back from Emma with a hiss, his pants incredibly tight despite the elastic band, only for her to yank him back down, their bodies melding together. “W-what?”

“Later,” she speaks against his lips, and it’s only now that he sees the utter darkness in her eyes, hears the deep desire in her voice. “We’ll get condoms later. We can do other things until then.”

Well those words go straight to his groin.

He arches a brow as he rolls his hips into Emma’s, his hardness meeting her softness through clothes, and she lets out a moan that he wants to memorize for all of eternity. “Yeah? Like what?”

Emma rolls her eyes, but there’s still the slightest bit of a smile on her face. “You’re a baseball player. Don’t you know about all of the bases? I feel like we’ve talked about this before.”

Killian has to press his mouth into the skin of her collarbone, his laugh muffled and the vibrations of it working their way through Emma as his fingers trace the hem of her shorts, dipping just below the elastic waist so that he can feel the edges of her underwear.

Fucking hell.

“I hate you for making that joke,” he sighs against her. His left hand keeps getting lower as his right moves higher and higher until his fingertips are ghosting over the soft swell of her breast. “You are ridiculous.”

“But you like it.”

“And I imagine,” he whispers as he bites down onto her collarbone and readjusts himself so that his knee is between her thighs and that his fingers are brushing against her clit, “that you like this.”

Emma lets out a sharp gasp, and he looks up to see her practically panting at his touch and at the slow circles that he’s working to build her up all the while he palms her breast, her nipple pressed between his thumb and forefinger. It may have been some time, but he knows that it’s not a lot of pressure, just a simple up and down motion between her bundle of nerves and her opening, but from the sounds Emma is making and the way her body is moving, he knows that he’s got a pretty good rhythm going on.

“So, you like that?” he murmurs into her neck as his fingers slip inside of her, curling the slightest bit.

“Oh, fuck yes.”

“That’s a good girl then.”

It’s almost overwhelming for him to see Emma like this, to see her lose her composure, her careful words and guarded heart, and he rather likes the way that he’s making her fall apart and under his touch, several curses and mutterings escaping her kiss-swollen lips as he tests out what she likes and what she doesn’t, letting her instruct him when she needs to.

Emma Swan sprawled out on his couch coming apart under his touch is something he always knew would be so damn wonderful but that he never thought would happen. It seemed to be too much of a dream.

With two more thrusts of his fingers and one circle around her clit, she goes quiet, her eyelids pressing together and her lips parting, and he presses up to cover her mouth with his, capturing the gentle moan himself as he works her through her orgasm, maybe even riling her up some more as his hips rolls against her thigh, desperately seeking some kind of friction.

This is like some kind of pleasant torture for him, and he wants both to stay like this forever but also needs more.

“I knew you knew the bases,” is the first thing she mutters afterwards, and he drops his forehead against hers, his nose pressing into her cheek so that he can breathe her on while he tries to regulate his breathing and his pounding heart.

“No more jokes about my job, love. They’re cheesy as hell, and if we’re not careful, I’m going to have an erection while on the mound.”

“Oh my God…there’s about five opportunities for a dirty joke right there.”

“I know, I know,” he chuckles, softly kissing her as he starts to focus on their surroundings and the reality of the step forward in their relationship that they just took hitting him. “You okay, Emma?”

“Yeah,” she promises, nodding her head and cupping his cheeks as she smiles that beautiful smile, this time a little more sated than usual. “I’m more than okay.”

His phone buzzes in his pocket, and he pulls it out so that he can turn it off only to see a text from Al pop up.

Al Dalton: I’m calling a mandatory practice in an hour. Be there.

“What?” Emma questions when he groans. Instead of answering, he simply hands his phone to her, letting her read the message. “Oh, that really sucks.”

“You’re telling me. I was having a much better time here.”

Emma adjusts herself under him so that he’s no longer covering her body, and he sits down against the couch, adjusting his joggers and thinking of every boner killer that he can possibly think of. He probably just needs a cold, bracing shower.

“Go to practice,” Emma sighs, a slight smile on her face, as she makes an attempt at fixing her hair. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? You’ve got to kick some Boston ass. And then maybe when that’s all over, we can continue what we started.”

“You have no idea how much I’d like that.”

She nods to his crotch with a smirk. “I think I do.”

#catch me if you can #cs fic #cs ff #captain swan fic #captain swan

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sauveteen · 6 years ago

Note

Imagine where your Shawn’s gf but also his photographer bc that would make my heart actually melt 😍😩

not my best work but i really wanted to post wksjs i'm Sorry

"I don’t think this was in my contract?”

“What contract are we talking here?” Shawn’s arms reach towards you, fingers ghosting your sides as he slips his hands under your top, “Shawn Mendes’ Official Tour Photographer Contract, or Shawn Mendes’ Girlfriend Contract?” He pulls you towards him, thighs parting to adjust your body between his legs. There’s an indescribable look on his face; soft, yet teasing. His cheeks are an unabashed shade of red, a result of the cold and the alcohol alike. Huddled between a horde of plushies, Shawn fits right in with his gentle demeanour and soft nature. Lips quirking into the faintest of smiles, he lifts a hand to boop your nose with his finger, singing Booooop to make sure you’re aware of his intentions.

“There’s a Shawn Mendes’ Girlfriend Contract too?” You tease, letting him warm his cold hands on your skin. You shudder at the contact, but the satisfied hum he lets out is reward enough to endure his freezing touch. He tips his head forward, resting it gently against your stomach. The hand that isn’t holding your camera tangles into his hair, softly scratching his scalp as he murmurs incoherently into your sweater.

“You didn’t know?’ He pulls back, tilting his head to the side to smile at you, “My assistant probably misplaced it.”

“Probably,” You decide to humour him, letting go of your camera, the strap pulling taut against your neck as the camera hangs down to where Shawn’s head had previously been, “And what did it entail?”

“Hmm, a lot of things,” He sneaks a hand out from underneath your sweater, reaching up to curl around the back of your head. Shawn pulls you towards him, craning his neck upwards to capture your lips in a sweet, short kiss, “Like constant kisses,” He pecks you several times, nose brushing against yours, “And letting me warm my cold reptilian body with yours,” His fingers playfully squeeze your sides, a chuckle bubbling up your throat and putting a smile on his face.

“That’s it?”

“And cuddles,” Shawn falls back onto the soft toys, pulling you with him, and groans when your camera juts into his stomach. Laughing, you roll off, cradling it with one hand and letting your boyfriend grab your other, pulling it towards his lips to press kisses against your knuckles, “Loads, and loads, and loads of cuddles.”

“Sounds pretty okay,” You grin, tilting your head to catch his eyes staring at you, all the stars in the universe pooling in his hazel eyes. If there was one thing that you used to hate, it was being cheesy; and if there’s one thing that Shawn’s got you to fall in love with, it’s being cheesy, because there simply is no other way of describing what the two of you have. The way he makes you feel. Like you’re the most important person in the world, and nothing matters more than your happiness. Like your laugh is his medicine and his yours. Your fingers unconsciously tighten around his at the thought.

“Okay?” He echoes, feigning offence, “Sounds okay?” And then his fingers are poking into your sides, clawed hands sneaking under your top to relentlessly tickle your bare skin. You squirm, laughing, your head thrown back in mirth. Shawn simply sees it as an opportunity to dance his fingers under your chin, causing you to squeeze your eyes shut and try pushing his hands away.

“I lied!” You exclaim between bouts of laughter, leaning away from your childish boyfriend, “The contract sounds amazing.”

“That's what I thought,” He sounds smug, and you tip your head up to see him smirking down at you. Pursing your lips together, you swat his chest, muttering, “Ass.”

“Dick, ass, heart,” His arm over your shoulders, he pulls you into himself, “All yours, baby.”

You smile to yourself, shaking your head, and bring your camera to your face. Switching it on, you feel your grin start to grow as you click through the pictures, a sudden warmth spreading through the inside of your chest.

“Babe, look,” You say, holding your camera a little higher so he can see. You giggle, zooming in on Shawn's face. Tangled between hotel sheets, hair tousled, eyes droopy, he's midway through a yawn, slack jaw pulled tight with the movement, “You look adorable.”

“I don't think sneaking pictures like that was in your photography contact?”

“No,” You smirk, shifting to press a kiss against his chest, “But it was in my girlfriend contact.”

So the two of you lay there, flipping through the images on your camera, reminiscing on the fond memories the two of you had made together. At one point Shawn's eyes avert from the tiny screen to spare you a glance, your head tucked under his chin, chest rising and falling in sync with his breath. You're zooming in on random faces in the photos, laughing to yourself, and he's never been more in love with you. The reminder that this tour is drawing to a close, that you'll probably pack your bags and head home and so will he, has something sour burning in his mouth. He's grown so accustomed to having you around, so used to hearing your evil laugh every time you catch him doing something stupid on camera. The sound of your shutter clicking is registered in his brain now, and he perks up every time he hears it in the distance. He never knew he'd be as gone for you as he is right now, but as long as you're smiling, he's okay with whatever the future holds.

“You looked amazing that day,” Shawn comments, combing a hand through your hair, curling the tresses around his fingers. The picture on the screen is of the day of his album release, when all of his friends and staff had gathered in his condo and drunk their weight in alcohol. Shawn doesn't remember much from that night — his head feels like a woozy, dizzy mess, but he remembers you. You in your band tee and weird pants, red lipstick staining your lips, camera cradled in your hands. You a stark contrast against the dolled up beauties, you a beacon of light in the otherwise dark thoughts that he was trying to drink away. The way you had combed his hair away from his face as he had bent over the toilet seat, the way your reassuring words had fought to replace the doubts in his bloodstream.

“You’ve done amazing, Shawn, they're going to love the album,” You had muttered, helping him to a glass of water as you rubbed circles into his back, camera long forgotten on a kitchen counter. Shawn didn't know a lot about you, but he'd never seen you without a camera, and he knew you wouldn't take it off without good reason. For a reason he still can't put into words, that simple gesture had warmed his heart beyond words.

“What if they don't? What if I peaked when I was sixteen and it's only downhill from here?”

“Shawn, come on,” Your voice was calming, and although gentle, it floated atop the loud trap music, “The album is beautiful. Take it from me. It's fucking flawless, okay? It's your best work yet.”

“You have to say that,” Shawn had turned away, gulping the water in his glass and slamming it back on the counter, “You work for me. I'd probably fire you if you said it was shit.”

He remembers you wincing, him immediately regretting his words, and then expecting you to walk away. You didn't. You stayed, although silent, but a gentle reminder that he wasn't alone in this. That no matter how deep he fell into the inevitable pit that is self-doubt, there was someone to help him coax him right out. And he had never been more glad.

Now he's staring at his own face on the screen, hair a little tamer and cheeks flushed just as red, wishing someone had taken a photo of you. He'd like to frame it, signing it in bold letters, The Day I Started Falling for Her.

“I looked like a bum, Shawn.”

“Well, that you always do,” The corner of his mouth quirks up in a smirk, “But that doesn't make you any less amazing.”

“I'd be offended if I didn't love you.”

“I'd be offended if you didn't love me, honestly.”

“Shut up,” While your words indicate annoyance, your smile gives you away. Pushing yourself up, you uncap your lens, “Let's get this over with.”

“Nooo,” Shawn whines at the loss of contact, reaching out towards you with grabby hands, “I don’ wanna anymore! Come back and cuddle me.”

You place a hand on his chest, leaning down to quickly peck him, pulling away just as fast, “We've rented this entire room out for a day. We have to do this photoshoot now, though I still don't know what for.”

“Who cares?” Shawn grabs a random giraffe toy from the lot, cradling the plushie to his chest, “I can think of other things to do in this room.”

“We're not doing anything with seven thousand glass eyes staring at us, Shawn.”

“Really? Always pegged you for an exhibitionist, if I'm honest.”

You pluck a toy from the lot, playfully hurling it at your boyfriend. Hearing his laughter reverberate through the room, followed by a determined, “Okay, Ms. Official Photographer, let's do this.”

big shoutout to @shawnsmoose for helping me find this gif lmao ily

taglist: @muffinmendussy @fuckneymar @heavenly---holland @sammyrhm @sinceweremutual @fiftyshadesofeveryfandom (just ask to be added!)

send me blurb requests!

#shawn #shawnmendes #imagine #fluff #blurb #mendes #cute #photographer #shawn mendes fanfic #shawn mendes imagine

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gamerwoo · 6 years ago

Text

Wonwoo & Mingyu: Glitch

Characters: Wonwoo x female reader but also Mingyu x female reader

Genre/warnings: hacker au, angst, fluff somewhere in there, enemies to lovers, mentions of abuse, kidnapping, implied torture/abuse, mention of death a lot, depression, mention of separation anxiety, brief mention of alcoholism, and smut at the end (threesome, ig sub!reader???, oral [male and female receiving] double penetration, some praise sprinkled in]

Word count: 18,751

Summary: After your boyfriend goes missing and you can all only assume he’s dead, your boss assigns you a new partner. But considering you don’t want to get close to anybody again in fear of something going wrong again, living together is a lot easier said than done. However, you don’t get hurt the way you think you will.

a/n: wow my longest writing yet!!! shoutout to @neverknewgrey2016 for helping me with the fighting toward the end because i didn’t know how to end this bitch, and also shoutout to markiplier because i had him playing fnaf in the background while i wrote the smut lmao

Masterlist

Very few things in this world could bring you joy: hot cup noodles at 3am, honey butter chips that greased your fingers and your keyboard, warm blankets fresh from the dryer that draped over your shoulders while you worked, and the rare moments of free time where you could spend time with the one thing that made you the happiest.

Mingyu was the one who would cook you ramen at 3am when you hadn’t eaten yet, would keep the cupboards stocked with your favorite chips that he’d gotten you addicted to, and would toss your favorite fuzzy blankets in the dryer to keep you extra comfortable while you worked. He was your best friend, your partner in crime, and the only person you truly loved in this world. You would do anything for him, and he would do the same for you. Despite your dangerous jobs, you loved each other more than anything.

You met through work. You two were the hacker extraordinaires that the agency relied heavily on. That was how your little rivalry started. He’d hack you, you’d hack him back; it was almost a game, really. It started out with ddosing and deleting important files, but it quickly turned into changing wallpapers to memes and leaving dumb notes open for the other. You were always one to keep people at arm's length because your job could get you killed, but you found yourself looking forward to Mingyu’s dumb antics everyday.

Eventually, you just grew closer. Mingyu wanted to video chat out of nowhere -- he just called, he didn’t even ask -- and the first thing that came out of his mouth was, “Should I dress as a sexy maid for this next mission?”

“Uh...what?” you asked, his question causing your fingers to stop typing codes.

“I have to go out for a mission, and I have this sexy maid costume I never used,” he explained as if he was talking to a close friend. “It’s not something I got myself but since it was a gift, I figure I--”

You interrupted his babbling, “Why did you call me?”

“Because,” he sighed happily, holding up his phone for you to see the screen, “I found your info on the agency’s database and you looked cute.”

“I-- Why are you hacking into the agency’s database?”

“Because I wanted to know who I was messing with for the last three months.”

You wondered why you didn’t bother trying to look up Mingyu. You also wondered why the agency’s database was easy enough for one of their workers to hack into it -- then again, you and Mingyu were the top hackers and could hack pretty much anything.

But now that you were looking at who was supposed to be your rival to compete against, you realized...he was really cute. His shaggy brown hair, tanned skin that glowed, and his smile that was even brighter, you wondered how someone like him was a hacker and not some kind of model. Then again, you didn’t think you were awful looking, so…

You spoke with Mingyu for hours while you worked. Even when the two of you fell silent to work, it was comfortable having Mingyu there -- well, not physically but still. That was how your relationship grew until he was taking you on a date, moving in with you, and talking about your future together. Mingyu was the only thing in this world that you truly had an attachment to that you wanted to keep safe -- other than his friends, who quickly became your...acquaintances.

But Mingyu was the same way, which was why he did what he did.

For once, you were asleep in your bed beside Mingyu, clinging to his side to steal his warmth. You had been awake for three days straight, so Mingyu wasn’t surprised when you slept through the intruder alarm going off. The alarm had never gone off before since your security was so tight, but it was a good thing Mingyu installed the precaution anyway. It just made an annoying beep that wasn’t too loud to alert anybody else to you knowing there was a break-in, but it was just annoying enough to wake anybody who hadn’t pulled an all-nighter for the last 72 hours.

Mingyu climbed out of bed, making sure not to wake you as he grabbed his gun and checked the small monitors. Apparently the intruder was in the lounge where the front door opened to. He opened the door quietly and went out to go apprehend the intruder.

That was around the time you woke up. Mingyu yelled, there was a loud bang like somebody had fallen, and you immediately jolted up.

“Gyu?” you asked into the dark bedroom. Realising he wasn’t beside you, you got out of bed as quickly as you could, pressing the emergency button by the door as you exited the bedroom. “Gyu!”

But Mingyu was gone. And there were no traces of him or the intruder.

Various people from the agency arrived to investigate. They said that your push of the emergency button was the only one they got -- Mingyu never pressed it. You wondered why he wouldn’t press it if there was an intruder. You wondered how there was absolutely no trace of him. The place was so clean that even the best investigators couldn’t figure out who took him or how they broke in.

But you held out hope, along with his friends, for three months. They’d reassure you that Mingyu must be out there somewhere, fighting to get back to you. Everybody knew that Mingyu loved you more than he loved anything, and he would do anything to be with you.

“Are you sure you don’t want somebody to come stay with you?” Seungcheol offered. “It might make you feel less lonely.”

“Plus with somebody breaking in, it’s better for you to have more protection in case it happens again,” Minghao agreed.

“Ah, I heightened the security,” Soonyoung scoffed. “She’s safer than the Crown Jewels.”

“I’ll be fine,” you reassured them, though you weren’t smiling, and your heart still hurt over Mingyu. You weren’t really fine. “It would be...awkward having anybody else live with me.”

“Gyu thought it was awkward living with you at first too, and yet…” Hansol’s sentence trailed off with a chuckle. “You guys really were perfect for each other.”

“Dude, shut up!” Seungkwan scolded him.

You opened your mouth to speak when there was a knock at the door. Your head shot up, looking at the monitor only to see a masked figure dressed in all black leaving your front door. Immediately, your hand hit the emergency button, and you could hear the alarm going off in the back of the video call of a few of the agents you were speaking with.

“___?” Seungcheol sounded worried. “What happened?”

“Somebody showed up at the door, but they were dressed in all black and hiding their face,” you reported as you went to review the security tapes. “They left something on the doorstep.”

“Don’t touch it,” Joshua advised.

“Yeah, we’ll be there soon!” Jeonghan chimed in before he ended his call.

One by one, they ended their calls to get to you.

When the agents arrived, they scoped everything out before deeming this another cold case. Nobody knew where the person came from, where they had gone, or who they were. They even checked whatever the person left to see if it was safe, and after careful examination -- including seeing what was inside -- Jihoon gave you the small box.

“You… You’ll want this,” he mumbled, handing it over to you.

As the boys continued searching for clues through the security tapes, you lifted the small lid on the box. There, resting on the cardboard, was Mingyu’s promise ring. The ring that looked exactly like yours; the rings neither of you took off. They signified that one day, the two of you would get married and be happy without worries.

Giving you this ring was like giving you his dead body. You fell to your knees, unable to even touch the ring, like it would burn your skin. Your eyes welled with tears that you couldn’t contain, and a loud sob cut through the murmurs of the agents and the clicking of keys.

It was official. Mingyu was gone forever.

“___, did you sleep at all?” Seokmin wondered as he stared at the dark circles under your eyes. He knew that the camera didn’t show just how severe they were, but the sight still worried him. “You can’t keep staying awake for days on end just to pass out for a few days straight and then repeat.”

“I slept enough,” you shrugged before letting out a wide yawn. “Fuck, I need another energy drink.”

“You need sleep,” he sighed. “I know it’s only been two months but you need to take better care of yourself--”

“Or you’ll send someone to take care of me,” you groaned, sitting back from the computer and rubbing your face with your hands, “I know, I know. You sound like my parent, y’know.”

“Somebody has to since you clearly can’t function as a real adult,” he chuckled.

“Are any of us real adults?”

“Cheol, maybe. ...Not so much Hoshi, though.”

“He’s good with security, though,” you laughed softly, stretching your arms above your head and letting out a groan. “Hey, have you heard from the boss yet?”

“About what?” he questioned.

“I was approved to move but he had to pick the location,” you explained, spinning slowly in your computer chair. “I was hoping he would’ve told one of you to relay the message since he’s avoiding my calls and emails.”

“Why would he be avoiding you? Don’t tell me you scare the boss?”

“No, I think I annoy him more than scare him.”

Suddenly, your phone started ringing on your desk. You checked the ID and saw it was Seungcheol, so you told Seokmin to be quiet before answering the call.

“Hey, ___,” he began, though he sounded...uncomfortable.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, furrowing your brows together. “You don’t sound too good.”

“Because I think you’ll find this news to be not-too-good,” he chuckled nervously. “So uh...boss decided it’s best that instead of moving, he’ll give you a new partner to work with.”

“No,” you immediately replied, your mind already made up. “If I didn’t want any of you to live with me--”

“I know, ___, but that’s out of our hands. We just got a new guy in a few weeks ago, and boss thinks he’s about as good as you -- if not, better.”

“Better?!” you scoffed, rolling your eyes. “Please, nobody’s better than--”

You heard your front door open, causing you to pause your sentence abruptly. Seungcheol kept saying your name while Seokmin watched you curiously. He had heard the noise too.

“Do you want me to call somebody?” he offered.

“Is anybody home?” you heard a deep voice call out.

“Ah!” Seungcheol’s voice suddenly sounded brighter. “I guess Wonwoo’s found his way to your place!”

“Wonwoo?” you repeated.

“Wonwoo?” Seokmin repeated after you, looking confused. “Isn’t that the new hacker?”

“Helloooo?” the intruder apparently named Wonwoo repeated, holding out the last vowel.

You sighed, getting out of your chair and leaving Seokmin on his own, “Seungcheol, I’m gonna call you back.”

After hanging up on your friend, you left your room to go find this Wonwoo character. He was in the lounge, looking around with a duffel bag over his shoulder, and round glasses pushed up his nose. His sharp eyes landed on you when you appeared, but his expression stayed neutral.

“Oh, there you are,” he said as if he was playing a casual game of hide-n-seek. “You know, your system to keep out intruders is very complex.”

“Then how did you get through it?” you quizzed, crossing your arms over your chest.

He just shrugged, “I said it was complex, not impossible to get through.”

“You could’ve rang the bell like a normal person.”

“Considering how long it took you to emerge from your room to find what could’ve been an intruder, I can only imagine how long I’d be waiting outside for you.”

“Yes,” you nodded, turning your nose up at him, “because I didn’t agree to a roommate.”

“I’m not a roommate, I’m a housemate,” he corrected. “My name’s Wonwoo.”

“Do you tell every stranger your real name?” you sighed. “Don’t you have an alias?”

“Woo.”

You frowned, ‘Just like Agent Gyu.’

Wonwoo either didn’t take notice of your facial expression, or he didn’t care, “Do you have one?”

“Glitch.”

He chuckled with a snort, “Where’d you come up with that?”

“It was Agent Z, but...somebody gave me a new one,” you nodded, saying the last part softly.

Wonwoo nodded before he went back to scoping out the lounge. There were a few articles of clothing thrown around, a few empty soda cans, chip bags, and ramen noodle cups, and you weren’t sure when the last time you vacuumed was, but Wonwoo didn’t comment on any of it. Hey, he was a hacker too, there was no way he could always be clean.

“So…” he began slowly as he took careful steps further into the house as if he hadn’t hacked into your security system and technically -- no, he did -- break in, “where do I stay?”

“Away from me,” you replied, turning on your heels and starting back toward your room. “You can crash on the couch.”

“Where does my setup go?!” he called after you.

“Not my problem!”

You didn’t see Wonwoo for two days. You were holed up in your office doing work the entire time, and you lived off of the few snacks you had stored in there. But your friends knew when you ran out because your stomach would make loud noises that nobody could miss.

“___, you need to eat something,” Jeonghan had scolded.

You just shrugged and carried on with your work, ignoring Junhui’s comments about your dark circles. You knew you looked like a mess but you always invested so much into your work -- even more so after Mingyu died. Did they really think you’d suddenly change just because some guy had to move in with you?

But things did change. On the third day, there was a soft knock on the door. When you didn’t reply, the door opened slowly, light from the hallway streaming in and making you squint. Wonwoo walked in with a plate a sushi, setting it beside your keyboard. You stared at it like you’d never seen sushi before.

Truthfully, nobody had ever taken care of you, even if it was just bringing you food. Mingyu was the only person who ever made sure you ate. Other than that, it was completely up to you -- other than your friend berating you to eat something or catch some z’s. So your new housemate suddenly showing up with food was...weird.

“What...is this?” you wondered before you looked up at him.

He shrugged, “You haven’t been out of the room in three days and I didn’t know if you had anything to eat. I ordered some takeout and I figured you might want some. Do you like sushi?”

“You know there’s plenty of ramen, right?”

“Clearly, you live off of ramen, and that’s awful for you. I also noticed all those chips and--”

“Don’t touch the chips,” you snapped.

He held his hands up in surrender, chuckling, “I wasn’t planning on it. My point is, you can’t only eat ramen and chips. Just say thank you for the meal, and I’ll leave.”

“Why should I say thank you for something I didn’t ask for?”

Wonwoo let out a deep sigh, his glasses slipping slightly from his nose, “You’re stubborn, aren’t you?”

“Mmm,” you just hummed in reply, looking back at your computer screen.

He just shook his head and left the room, leaving you in the dark once again.

You didn’t touch your sushi.

“So what’s her deal?”

Your friends had brought in a nice welcome wagon for the new recruit, and they quickly became friends. Seungcheol had called to make sure he was settling in well, and of course, the conversation drifted to you. Wonwoo explained how you were cold toward him and had hidden away in your room for the last week. So far, your new housemate knew virtually nothing about you.

“Oh, uh,” Seungcheol scratched the back of his head, unsure how to explain your situation, “it’s...a long story.”

“Didn’t you say she had a housemate before me?” Wonwoo wondered as he did some side works on his computer. “How did they warm up to her?”

“Mingyu? Oh, well...I think he hacked the agency to look up her information.”

Wonwoo’s eyebrows furrowed together, glancing at the screen where Seungcheol’s face was, “Why would somebody do that? Didn’t he get in trouble?”

“Nobody even knew he did it!” Seungcheol laughed, remembering Mingyu bragging to him about it. “The two of them were the top hackers in the agency, and now it’s you two; that’s why the agency had you live with her. She was originally going to move away somewhere else.”

As Seungcheol spoke, Wonwoo’s fingers danced across the keyboard, interested in getting more information on you -- or at least whatever the agency had available. He knew it was an invasion of privacy, but he didn’t want to live with someone he was so distant with. He wanted to know more about you, and hopefully help you at least sort of tolerate him.

“Why was she going to move away?” Wonwoo wondered, his eyes scanning the screen as his fingers moved diligently.

“Well, if you’re doing what I think you’re doing, you’ll find out soon enough, won’t you?”

Quickly, Wonwoo found the files he was looking for. He scrolled down the names, noting a few of them as he scanned them. Choi “Coups” Seungcheol: active. Lee ��Dino” Chan: active. Kwon “Hoshi” Soonyoung: active. Kim “Gyu” Mingyu: terminated.

Wonwoo stopped, his eyebrows pulling together as he clicked on the file.

“Who was Mingyu, and why was he terminated?” he questioned as he began to scan through the information. “Oh, was he Glitch’s roommate?”

“Yeah,” the older boy nodded solemnly, “but he’s why she was going to move.”

“Because he was fired? Oh wait...oh…”

Wonwoo got to the bottom of the page and read that he was deceased. It said the cause of death was unknown, but that he was kidnapped from his home -- the home that Wonwoo knew he shared with you.

“No wonder she wants to leave…” Wonwoo muttered as he continued his search.

“Yeah…” Seungcheol nodded. “Mingyu and her were inseparable.”

Wonwoo kept Mingyu’s profile up but went in search for yours next. He didn’t know what to look for since he didn’t know your name, but he knew he could at least find you based on your alias. But as he scanned all the files, he found nothing. Every name he didn’t recognize did not have the alias he was looking for. Kim “Kai” Jongin. Park “Chim” Jimin. Lee “Onew” Jinki. You just weren’t there.

But then he remembered what you had told him.

“It was Agent Z, but...somebody gave me a new one.”

Wonwoo went down the list again, softly clicking his tongue as he looked for the new alias. Sure enough, there it was: ___ “Z” ___: active.

“Cheol,” Wonwoo spoke up as he opened your information, “isn’t her name Glitch?”

Seungcheol shook his head, “Not officially.”

There wasn’t much information on you except your name, your address, your height, the year you were born, and a picture of you. Other than that, it said you currently weren’t deployed for an outside mission, and a few details about Mingyu’s kidnapping. It said you were in the house and asleep when it happened, that you knew nothing, and you weren’t a suspect. He also saw that it read, ‘priority,’ on your profile, which he assumed meant you were a valued hacker and were to be taken special care of. He only knew because he was added to that one-person list, so now it was the two of you.

But he at least had something to work with. He knew your name, that was good. That would have to suffice, at least for now. Although, he was a little curious about you and this Mingyu person, but Seungcheol had warned him prior to not say anything about your previous housemate. Maybe he could work up to it, though.

Wonwoo stretched, deciding he was hungry now, “I’ll be right back, Cheol. I’m gonna find some ramen or something.”

“‘Kay,” he replied as he continued to do whatever he was working on.

That was around the time you decided to emerge from your dark room to stock up on more food. You walked into the lounge, expecting to see Wonwoo working away since that’s where his desktop was now -- you only knew thanks to security cameras you accessed from your office. However, he was gone, but his work was still up.

You didn’t think much of it, simply glancing at his screen as you walked to the kitchen. But then something caught your eye: you. Your face was shown on the screen. So you walked over and sat down, scanning the page. He’d hacked the agency’s files to research about you. Your jaw clenched. He was doing exactly what Mingyu had done, and it had those memories flooding back into your head. You hated it because those happy memories only made you more upset.

You were about to look away to go chew out Wonwoo, but then it only got worse.

The familiar smile of Mingyu was peeking out behind the window that had your information, and you saw that Wonwoo was even researching about him. Boy, were you livid now. It was bad enough he was snooping around about you, but now Mingyu? Why would he do that? What right did he have to bring up Mingyu after what happened?

“Oh, ___!” Seungcheol jumped when he realized you were there, red faced and glaring at the screen, hot tears burning your eyes.

Wonwoo heard the older boy say your name, so he walked out of the kitchen to see you standing up to face him, your hands balled into fists at your side.

“So, your name is ___, huh?” he smirked, leaning up against the doorway.

“Do you really think I’m here to joke around with you?” you asked, seething with rage that dripped into the tone of your voice.

Wonwoo’s joking demeanor fell as he really took in your body language. You were so mad, you were shaking Tears were about to spill over, and he’d never seen your face so red.

“___--”

“Why did you look up all that information?” you demanded, cutting him off from whatever he planned to say to attempt to make this better.

He gestured to the computer, getting defensive, “So it’s okay that Mingyu did?”

“Don’t talk about him like you know him!” you shouted, your voice breaking toward the end. “You and him are two completely different people. Why did you even look him up? You don’t need to know anything about him except that he’s gone, and that’s it! Anybody else who mentions him to you will have to deal with me, because he is none of your business, got it? And if you ever look me or him up again, you’ll be the next person to disappear without a trace.”

All Wonwoo could do was stare at you, his mouth slightly agape. You thought it was because you’d really yelled at him, but then you realized you were crying when tears started to fall onto your shirt.

“___, I’m--”

“Shut up,” you snapped, wiping your tears before quickly stomping out of the room.

Wonwoo stood in the same spot for a moment after hearing your door slam before going over to the computer again. Seungcheol looked disappointed in himself, carding his hands through his hair. He let out a deep sigh, shaking his head.

“I shouldn’t have said anything to you,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

“No, I was the one who decided to research,” Wonwoo nodded. “It was my own fault. I was hoping I could use the information on her to get to know her better but…”

“She’ll come around,” the older boy promised. “She did before.”

Wonwoo gave you space the next week. He knew you were upset because of something dumb he did, and he did plan on apologizing, but he wanted to give you space beforehand. He knew you needed to cool off, but he also needed to figure out how to go about making it up to you. He wanted you to know he did really feel bad for snooping.

He didn’t know much about you, but he picked up on something you liked a lot: honey butter chips. The only times he ever saw you, it was when you made the walk from your office to the kitchen, and you had to go through the lounge. You’d walk back toward your room with your arms full of the bags before he’d hear your door close again. Well, after his little stunt, he noticed you were clean out of the snacks. He didn’t know if your feelings were causing you to eat more of them or not but he knew he should buy you more anyway just to apologize, even if it was a small gesture.

So Wonwoo went to the store in some sweats to grab you some. The cashier definitely gave him a weird look for buying copious amounts of chips -- only chips, and one box of protein bars for when Wonwoo couldn’t have a real meal -- and leaving, but he didn’t pay her any mind. He just wanted to get home so he didn’t have to be out in public for too long. He knew nobody would know he was an agent or anything, but he still hated being in public without some sort of disguise, or a hat at the very least.

When he returned home, there was no trace of you. You hadn’t left your office in four days, and he wasn’t sure if you were even sleeping anymore. But clearly, now wasn’t the time for him to lecture you on how to live your life.

He walked down the hall to your office, where he could hear a male’s voice.

“___, you need to sleep in a real bed, not your office chair,” they sighed.

At least you were sleeping, then.

“Are you sure you’re not working more to keep your mind off of...something?” a new voice asked.

“If you’re talking about Wonwoo, the answer is no,” you replied sharply. “I don’t care what he’s doing as long as it doesn’t involve Mingyu anymore.”

It hit Wonwoo that he shouldn’t be listening in on your conversation. So he knocked on your door before waiting for a reply. When he didn’t get one, he slowly opened the door, peeking inside to see you staring blankly at your many monitors. He frowned seeing the state you were in. Your hair was greasy and matted, your eyes had bags and dark circles, and you were hunched forward like you were going to pass out at any second.

“___?” his voice was soft as he fully entered the room. “I wanted to apologize.”

“You’re forgiven,” you said flatly, “now get out.”

He let out a sigh, “I’m serious! I even went out and bought you more honey butter chips, but I won’t give them to you if you don’t listen to me.”

Your eyes shifted from the screen to your housemate, narrowing at him as he dangled one of the bags in front of you, “You’re forcing me to listen to you with food?”

“Is it working?” Wonwoo asked with the hint of a smile.

“...Maybe.”

“I really am sorry for what I did, ___,” he repeated, turning serious again. “I won’t do anything like that ever again. I just wanted to get closer with you since we live in the same space, but your life should be your life; you should tell me what you want to, and keep secret what you want to. I should’ve respected that, and I’m sorry.”

You just stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly, “Thanks.”

“Then, here’s your chips,” he said, dropping the bag on your desk, “but you have to promise to eat this first.”

He then opened a box he had pinned between his arm and torso, and took something out of it. He tossed it to you, and you read the wrapper, scrunching up your nose, “Why?”

“If I’m being honest, you look awful,” he chuckled. “You can’t live off of chips, ___.”

“That’s what we tell her!” one of the voices from her computer shouted.

“Then make sure she eats that,” Wonwoo told them before exiting your room.

Immediately, you set the bar down on the desk, and went to open the chip bag. You were interrupted by Junhui’s voice.

“What was that?” he wondered.

“It’s a meal replacement bar,” you shrugged, pulling down on the chip bag to rip the side.

“Eat it,” Minghao ordered.

You paused, looking at the boys on your monitor, “Why? It’s still not real food.”

“But it’s better than chips!” Seungkwan agreed. “Please just eat it before you eat more chips. You haven’t been taking care of yourself, and you need to.”

“If you’re not in good health, you know what the boss will do,” Junhui reminded you.

With a groan, you tossed the chip bag onto the desk and picked up the bar. You tore the wrapper open with your teeth, spitting the plastic off into the darkness of your room before taking a bite out of it, and silently cursing Wonwoo.

You wandered out of your room one night to get some ramen or something. Seungcheol was scolding you because of your health and eating habits, so you were forced to go find some “real food” or Seungcheol would tell the boss.

With your shitty luck, you ran into Wonwoo as you passed through the lounge. He was staring at his setup before he noticed you walking by. He frowned, seeing you in real light for the first time. You looked even more awful than he thought.

“___,” he called your name softly, though you didn’t stop on your way to the kitchen.

“What?” you spat.

Wonwoo stood to follow you, pushing his glasses up his nose, “You should take some time for yourself before going back to work. Shower, take a nap, and such.”

“You should mind your business,” you shot back, looking through the pantry.

Suddenly, the door you held open was slammed shut. Wonwoo was staring down at you, his expression neutral, “___, please.”

“And what do you care? Huh?” you quizzed.

The two of you stood there in silence, simply having a staring contest with each other. Finally, you let out a loud groan and went to a cupboard. You opened it, took out a bottle of sake, and left the kitchen. You made it a point to stare at Wonwoo as you casually opened the bottle and took a swig before exiting.

“That’s not what I meant by taking time for yourself!” he called after you.

“This is my self care, asshole!” you shouted back before he heard the slam of your door.

Truthfully, it was your self care for a long time. It was how you coped with Mingyu’s disappearance for a while, which definitely wasn’t the most healthy way to deal.

Anybody would argue that your current actions -- or lack thereof -- were because of what happened to Mingyu. You didn’t take care of yourself, you deprived yourself of nutrients, sleep, and hygiene, and you shut people out. People like Wonwoo who were just trying to do their job, and help you. But you always insisted you did all of that because it wasn’t pertinent to your job.

You thought about all of this as you flopped down onto your bed, staring up at the ceiling. Mingyu had stuck a bunch of glow-in-the-dark stars up there because the two of you hardly got to go outside to look at them at night. He thought it was a funny joke, and you thought he was a big dork for it. But that was why you loved him. He was a big dork, but it made your life more tolerable; maybe even enjoyable.

The more you thought about all of it, the longer the drinks you took from the bottle became. You’d never admit it, but you missed Mingyu so much that it hurt. You missed him so much that it felt like every breath you took ignited a fire in your lungs that made it hard to keep breathing. You missed him so much that your heart felt like it was slowly shattering each and every second, to a point where it was hard to stand anymore. You just wanted your Mingyu back, but he was never coming back. The ring that belonged to him that you wore on the thin silver chain, hidden away under your shirt, was a reminder of that.

Mingyu was gone forever.

“Fuck,” you sighed, realizing your eyes were welling with tears.

So you wiped them with your sleeve, and took another drink.

You had no idea what you were doing. Stumbling out of your room an hour or so later, drunker than you’d been in a while, and sputtering out your need for chicken and pizza.

Of course, Wonwoo heard you down the hall, and concern showed on his face. He’d never heard your voice so garbled before. But then he remembered how you walked off with the bottle of sake, and he assumed you probably had a lot to drink from the bottle.

Soon enough, you found your way into the lounge where Wonwoo was, and you raised your eyebrows when you saw him standing up already, “You’re...tall.”

“Yeah,” he nodded, “I noticed. Are...you okay, ___?”

“Yeaaaah,” you slurred, waving away his question while almost knocking yourself over from the movement, “no biggie.”

“You sure?” he asked, moving away from the couch and coffee table to go over to you.

Hesitantly, Wonwoo put an arm around your waist, and almost relaxed himself when you let him. You leaned into his side, having a hard time standing on your own, and gripped the side of his shirt with one hand. He led you over to the couch he was sitting on, setting you down slowly. However, you didn’t release your grip on Wonwoo.

“I haven’t been around anybody since Mingyu,” you spoke up, just blathering out whatever was on your mind, and Mingyu was all you could think about. Your voice was soft, but your words still ran together, and you were hiccuping between every few words. “You’re...warm.”

Wonwoo chose to ignore the first part, knowing you didn’t want him talking about Mingyu, “Do Seungcheol and the others not come visit you?”

You shook your head, “Nobody has the time. I lived with Mingyu, but...he was taken.”

Clearly, you wanted to talk about Mingyu, so Wonwoo had no choice but to ask, “He was taken?”

“Kidnapped,” you nodded, your face falling before you added on, “and killed.”

Wonwoo sat down beside you, “How do you know he was killed?”

“They sent me this,” you pulled the ring out from under your shirt, letting Wonwoo examine it between his fingers. “We had promise rings, and this one was Mingyu’s. I still wear mine. I couldn’t...I couldn’t take it off.”

Wonwoo heard you sniffle, and his eyes glanced up at your face as he let the ring drop from his hand. You rubbed at your eyes like a child, wiggling your nose as you sniffled again. Wonwoo frowned.

“___…”

“I miss him,” you admitted, coughing like you were trying to hide the fact you were about to cry. When you removed your fists from your eyes, your eyes were red and glossy. “I miss having somebody that loved me as much as I loved them.”

To that, Wonwoo didn’t know what to say. You had only been cold to him, and now you were suddenly blabbering everything you felt. While he was happy you were letting him in, he felt dirty because he knew it was just because you were drunk.

He noticed you started to cry, so he did the only thing he could think to do: he held you. He pulled you to him and let you cry. You weakly held onto his shirt like it was a security blanket, letting out all of the emotions you kept held in. He rubbed your back, trying to soothe you as best as he could.

Wonwoo let the two of you sit like there for a moment before he decided to take you to the bathroom to get you cleaned up, and hopefully a bit more sober. He managed to lift you relatively easily, carrying you down the hall to the bathroom. He set you down on the counter before going to turn on the shower and setting the temperature.

“Wonwoo?” you spoke up suddenly, watching him from where you sat. He looked over at you, humming in response. “...Why are you nice to me still?”

He shrugged, unsure of how to reply, “Well...if we live together, it would be kind of shitty to hate each other, right?”

“I guess,” you shrugged, leaning back against the mirror. “It’s just...hard. You remind me of Mingyu sometimes.”

That piqued Wonwoo’s interest, “I do? How?”

“He went by Gyu, and you go by Woo.”

“That’s it?” he chuckled, walking over to lean against the counter beside you.

“I wasn’t done,” you huffed. “You both always tell me what to do. Like, he would tell me I have to eat real food, and so do you. And you’re always like, looking out for me, I guess. Nobody looked out for me other than Mingyu.”

“So...do you want me to stop?” he wondered, furrowing his brows together.

“I...don’t...know,” you decided chewing on your lower lip as you thought about it. Part of you liked it -- liked Wonwoo, even -- but part of you still felt uncomfortable about that. You wanted to both push Wonwoo away, but also pull him closer.

But what if you lost Wonwoo too?

You didn’t want to think about that.

“You should shower,” Wonwoo said after the brief silence. “I’ll be in the living room when you’re done. I’ll make you some food, okay?”

“Wonwoo?” you slid down from the counter as Wonwoo opened the bathroom door. “Thank you.”

It was the first time you has genuinely thanked him before, and he smiled, “No problem.”

After the door was closed, you peeled off the clothes you’d been wearing for however many days -- you lost track -- and stepped into the shower. The water was hot, but not scalding. You found it comforting, and just stood there for a while without doing anything. You just...thought about things. About Mingyu, and Wonwoo, and how things were different but how things were still similar.

You spent a lot of time thinking about Wonwoo, though. You tried your best to avoid him, but you just chalked it up to you being angry about people moving on from Mingyu’s death so quickly. You were telling everyone -- including yourself -- that you were angry because you wanted to be alone and move out of this house, but the boss gave you the exact opposite of what you wanted. And sure, that’s what it was at first, but then it was something else.

Wonwoo watched over you. He made you eat real food, he tried to learn about you in the same manner as Mingyu, and he even used the same method of choosing an alias as Mingyu had. He reminded you so much of Mingyu, and it upset you and frightened you. You liked Wonwoo. You saw familiar things in him that made you feel something, and that scared you. What if Wonwoo got taken away too?

In your drunk state, you started crying all over again. You felt so many things at once that your drunk mind couldn’t process, so you just cried. And once that was all out of your system, you washed your hair and body before getting out of the shower and wrapping towels around yourself.

Once you were dried and dressed, you walked out of the bathroom and into the lounge. Wonwoo was working to pass the time, but immediately looked up when he saw you. He was pleased to see your hair was a wet mess, meaning you did actually wash your hair.

“How do you feel?” he asked.

You shrugged, “Still kinda tipsy, and I have a headache.”

He gestured to the coffee table, “Aspirin and water.”

“Thanks,” you mumbled, shuffling over to take the medicine and gulp down half the water bottle. Then you sat down beside him, pulling your knees to your chest. “I’m sorry for--”

“Don’t be sorry about anything,” he told you, sitting away from his computer and laying his head back against the back of the couch. “Somebody important was taken away from you; I can’t imagine how you’d be feeling.”

“And I’m not the best at expressing feelings,” you deadpanned with a breathy laugh.

“That’s okay,” he shrugged, “not everyone can express themselves with words. We’ll make things work.”

You nodded, staring straight ahead at the TV that wasn’t turned on -- you weren’t sure when you had last used it. Maybe before Mingyu was taken? You wondered if Wonwoo ever used it, and what he watched.

“Are you hungry?” Wonwoo’s deep voice pulled you from your thoughts.

You nodded, so he stood and gestured for you to follow. He had you actually sit at the counter -- something you hadn’t done in months -- to eat the meat and rice he’d made for you. It definitely wasn’t the prettiest plating, and it looked slightly overcooked, but hey, he tried. So you sat down and ate while he ate the little bits you didn’t want, as well as what was left in the pan.

While the two of you ate, you each found out small things about each other. How you were in love with the honey butter chips because of Mingyu, and how Wonwoo had a soft spot for cheesecake. How Wonwoo was terrified of dogs, and you always wanted one -- that made him laugh a bit nervously. But they were all tiny details, nothing like major facts about your backgrounds and where you came from.

By the time you were done eating, you were yawning and rubbing your eyes. There was still a little bit of food on your plate, but Wonwoo made sure to give you extra since you had barely eaten anything other than chips and ramen.

“C’mon, I’ll help you to bed,” Wonwoo offered with a warm smile as he went around to the other side of the counter to help you.

He placed an arm around your waist and guided you to your room as you tripped over your own feet. You were too sleepy, which mixed with the fact you were still a little bit drunk. Thus, you were half-dragged to your room where Wonwoo helped you lay in bed. He even tucked you in.

“Goodnight, Wonwoo,” you said softly, already half asleep.

He half-smiled, turning just as he exited your room to see you pull the blankets closer, “Goodnight, ___.”

After he closed the door and walked back to the living room, he thought about you. You said you were bad at expressing your feelings, but truthfully, so was he. Wonwoo was always alone; he never had anybody to take care of. He always wanted somebody he could look out for and take care of, but he never had it. So he usually shoved that want to the back of his mind, pretending like he didn’t feel completely alone.

But now he had someone to care for. Now, Wonwoo had you.

You slept for three days. Wonwoo made sure to check on you every few hours when he was awake -- he just wanted to make sure you hadn’t fallen into a coma or something -- and was prepared to order plenty of food when you did wake up because he knew his cooking skills were subpar.

When you did wake up, it was morning. The sun streaming in from your slightly-parted curtains was a clear indication of that. You checked your phone that was about to die where it was in your pocket, and you were impressed with how long you slept. However, you were also impressed with the amount of texts and emails you had.

You got out of bed, changed clothes, and went straight to the bathroom to at least fix your hair a little. You’d brush your teeth after eating, which was also a top priority. Your stomach loudly rumbling was a clear indication of that.

When your bladder wasn’t close to exploding, and your hair wasn’t as big of a mess as it was, you left the bathroom to go to the living room. As expected, Wonwoo was there, already working. However, he dropped everything he was doing when he saw you, his face brightening.

“Well, look who’s alive!” he teased with a bright smile that even made you smile a little.

Honestly, getting all your drunken feelings out kind of made you feel a little better about being around him. Sure, you didn’t completely tell him how you felt, but you definitely felt less tense around him.

“Unfortunately,” you joked with a yawn, stretching out your limbs.

“Your friends were worried about you, but I told them you finally went to sleep,” he chuckled, holding up his phone to signify that he was also blown up with messages. “They sure get worried about you.”

“They were Mingyu’s friends before they were mine,” you explained as you walked over to the couch and plopped down. “They’re nice, though. They make for good company since I was always alone.”

“Didn’t it get weird having them just...pop in out of nowhere?” he wondered, sitting back as he stretched out his arms with a grunt.

“Sometimes,” you nodded with a soft laugh. “It’s definitely a bit weird, but it’s something I got used to.”

Wonwoo just nodded, letting the two of you fall into an oddly comfortable silence. You could hear the purr of Wonwoo’s setup but that was all the noise you heard. You were surprised that you didn’t feel uncomfortable, and you assumed it was because you’d pretty much broken down that barrier you had put up between you and him. But was it really that easy? Just crying about your pent up feelings really solved everything?

It seemed too easy.

“Are you hungry?” Wonwoo’s voice broke you from your thoughts.

As if it understood, your stomach growled loudly. Wonwoo’s laugh was deep and loud and warm, and it made you smile. It reminded you of the loud laughs Mingyu would let out at the dumbest things. Your heart fluttered for a moment.

You did understand Wonwoo and Mingyu were different people, but there were things you saw in Wonwoo that reminded you of Mingyu. Did that mean you only liked Wonwoo because he reminded you of Mingyu? No. You liked Wonwoo because he did things that made you happy. Mingyu just happened to also do those things.

But did you want to like Wonwoo? No.

“C’mon, let’s go out for breakfast,” Wonwoo suggested as he pushed himself off of the couch.

Your thoughts seemed to stutter to a stop as your head whipped around, following Wonwoo as he walked toward the door, “Out? Like...to a restaurant?”

“Yeah,” he shrugged, slipping his feet into his sneakers. “I think there’s a diner nearby, right?”

“Uh...I-I think so,” you stammered.

“What?” he chuckled, noticing how odd you were acting. “Do you not go outside?”

“I haven’t in a long time, no,” you answered truthfully, finally getting off the couch to go put on your shoes that had stayed untouched by the door. “I get everything delivered to me.”

“We need to get you some vitamins,” he said, making a face as he opened the door. “Let’s hope you don’t melt in the sun.”

The walk to the road was pretty long considering your security measures. Your front door could only be reached by a long driveway, which had plenty of cameras, motion triggers, and the like. Of course, you could turn them off via your phone, but the walk was still long because the path was long to give plenty of opportunities for warning and/or capture of any intruders in case any of the other traps didn’t work.

Once the two of you reached the road, you turned right toward the diner Wonwoo was talking about. You hadn’t been there in months -- the last time was with Mingyu -- but you remembered exactly where it was. You didn’t know if it was still there, but if it wasn’t, you could probably find somewhere else to have breakfast.

You reached a crosswalk, and went to just walk even though the little light didn’t tell you to. It was something you always did when there wasn’t traffic or the cars were momentarily stopped, figuring it wasn’t a big deal. However, Wonwoo grabbed your shoulder and pulled you back, almost pulling you over.

“Hey, what the--” you whined, turning to face him.

“You have to wait, ___,” he stated, hitting the button with the side of his fist. “If you get hit by a car--”

“I have yet to get hit by a car,” you told him, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Everyone has a first time to die, ___,” he stated matter-of-factly, “and it’s usually their last.”

You opened your mouth for a rebuttal, but came up with nothing. So you just snapped your jaw shut, taking note of the smirk on Wonwoo’s face.

When the light showed the little glowing person, Wonwoo gripped your upper arm and helped you across the street like you needed the assistance. But instead of pulling away, you just let him.

When you reached the diner, you sat yourselves at a booth, sitting across from each other. Wonwoo grabbed the menus from where they were pushed up between the wall and condiment holder, handing one to you before he opened his own. But you already knew what you wanted because you always got it, and Mingyu would tease you for it.

Wonwoo noticed you just put the menu back, smirking at you from behind his glasses, “Already decided that quick?”

“Chocolate milk, coffee, scrambled eggs with wheat toast, bacon, and potatoes, and two cinnamon buns,” you stated with a solid nod.

“Why do you need chocolate milk and coffee?” he asked with a chuckle.

“To appease the child in me, and the other part of me that’s dead inside,” you deadpanned.

Wonwoo nodded, raising his eyebrows as his eyes drifted back down to his menu, “I’ll cheers to that.”

The waitress came over to take your order, and you repeated everything you wanted, exactly how you wanted it. Wonwoo then gave off his order, and the woman wrote it down before going to turn to leave.

“Oh!” you suddenly spoke up, remembering something you forgot. “Can we have a Belgian waffle as well?”

The waitress added that to the list before walking back to the kitchen.

Wonwoo laughed, shaking his head at you, “You really are going to eat all of that?”

“Oh, the waffle was tradition for Mingyu and I,” you explained as another woman came over to pour coffee into the mugs already on your table. “We used to share it when we’d come here.”

Wonwoo thanked the woman before his attention was back on you. He looked interested in your little story, his hands folded together in front of him.

“So...should I share it with you?” he wondered softly, before quickly added, “Unless you want to keep it your thing with him.”

“I...don’t know,” you admitted, your brows knitting together as you thought about it. Would you feel like you were betraying Mingyu by sharing something you did with him, with Wonwoo? “What do you think?”

Wonwoo chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought it over, “I think...you should leave the other half. For him. Kinda like pouring one out.”

You nodded, looking back at Wonwoo with a warm half-smile, “I like that.”

So you enjoyed your breakfast with Wonwoo, eating only half of your waffle. You laughed, talked, and you ultimately felt closer to Wonwoo afterwards. The two of you split the check, but Wonwoo insisted on leaving the tip himself. And then you left the diner, leaving the other half of the waffle behind for Mingyu. In a way, it felt like some form of small closure.

Things got better over the next two and a half months. You and Wonwoo spent more time together, you left the house more, and your health was getting better. You didn’t sport dark circles as frequently, and you were forced to eat a proper dinner at least four times a week. Wonwoo typically ordered out, but he was trying to learn how to cook. You taught him little things you’d picked up from Mingyu, since he was a fantastic cook despite his laziness when it came to actually making meals. You even let him sleep in your room since you didn’t have a second bed, and you often found yourself laying extremely close to him when you woke up in the morning. You also let him move his setup to the bedroom since yours took up the entire office.

Your friends noticed the change, too. They were pleased to see you weren’t as grumpy, and they wondered if you were finally coming out of your depression over Mingyu. Obviously, there wasn’t a time limit on how long you could mourn somebody, but you had mourned Mingyu for a long time, and you hadn’t really let your feelings out until that night you got drunk and cried in front of Wonwoo. You didn’t completely let everything out, but you addressed the biggest thing: you missed Mingyu, and you hated feeling alone. You’d conquered those feelings, and let somebody new in. Now, you didn’t feel so alone.

Wonwoo and you were closer than ever. However, that scared you. You realized you were starting to feel similar feelings toward him that you felt toward Mingyu, but you didn’t feel those things because he sometimes reminded you of Mingyu. You felt those feelings because he was Wonwoo, and you just liked Wonwoo.

Maybe even loved Wonwoo…?

When you thought about it, the fact was that Wonwoo took care of you, and you liked it; you loved it. You loved feeling cared for and loved. You loved having Wonwoo nag you to take care of yourself because he wanted you to be healthy. The fact Wonwoo took time out of his day just to make sure you were doing alright made your heart race, and your stomach do flips. That was something only Mingyu did for you, but now Wonwoo was doing it, and you thrived off of it. You figured it was because you never really had a proper family to care about you, but you absolutely loved being cared for.

But there were things Wonwoo did that Mingyu didn’t do, and you still loved those things. He wouldn’t let you go on work binges where you’d stay up for days at a time. He would force you to go outside at least once a week, even if it was just for walks. He liked to invite you to watch movies with him that weren’t just crappy comedies that the two of you would make fun of. Sometimes they were horror films based off of real events, or sometimes they were documentaries that made you think about the world, and cry sometimes. But Wonwoo was always there to comfort you, and he never laughed at you for crying.

Mingyu was Mingyu, and Wonwoo was Wonwoo, but you loved Wonwoo like you loved Mingyu, and that terrified you.

But some sadistic part of you wanted to love Wonwoo anyway.

One of the times the two of you were on the couch together watching a movie, you decided to play a drinking game. You were watching some classic horror movie, and you were supposed to take a shot every time a certain thing happened or someone said a significant word or line. It didn’t get you really drunk, but it got the both of you drunk enough to start talking about your past lives.

“Don’t you wonder why other people leave their lives and families to do this?” Wonwoo wondered after swallowing a shot. He placed his shot glass on the table before leaning back and sighing. “This is the shadiest job ever, so only people with shit lives could take up the offer.”

“So you had a shit life?” you assumed, hiccuping at the end.

He nodded, running his slim fingers through his hair, “I had a younger sibling who passed away from leukemia. My parents stopped giving a shit after that so...I left.”

“Oh…” you nodded, not really knowing what else to say. “I’m sorry.”

He just shrugged, “‘S okay. What about you?”

“I was raised in an abusive household, and one of the neighbors basically stole me away and had me training for the agency ever since,” you explained shortly before taking a shot just for fun. “That’s why I’m the best.”

“One of the best,” Wonwoo correct with a smirk. He wiggled his eyebrows when you playfully glared at him. “You and me are tied, cutie pie.”

“Cutie pie?” you scoffed, trying to ignore the heat rising in your cheeks. “That’s new.”

“You know what I think, ___?” Wonwoo asked, leaning over to pour himself another drink. He didn’t continue what he was saying until he had another shot ready in his hand. “I think Mingyu started calling you Glitch because you like...glitched out his heart.”

You paused getting yourself another drink, all of your attention hyper focused on Wonwoo now, “...What?”

“In our business, we’re not supposed to give a shit about anybody, right?” he asked. “But I give a lot of shits about you, ___. You like, glitched out my feelings and you just...you made me feel...things.”

All you could do was laugh, but the kind where you just exhaled out of your nose, “I make you feel things?”

“Yeah, like...warm, fuzzy, heart racing feelings.”

“Are we in kindergarten, Woo? You can just say you like me.”

“But I don’t like you,” Wonwoo groaned, running both hands through his hair, “I love you!”

You were completely frozen now. Yes, you loved Wonwoo, which you were still coming to terms with, but you didn’t think in a million years that he would ever love you back! So...what did you do now?

“Y-you love me?” you stammered out in a whisper.

Wonwoo just stared back at you, staying silent for a few seconds, “You know, if I wasn’t kind of drunk, I wouldn’t have told you like this.”

“How would you have told me?” you wondered, just staring at Wonwoo.

“Well…” he began slowly, sitting up a little straighter and taking your hands in his, “I’d sit you down, completely sober--”

“Already doing great,” you joked lightly.

He snorted a bit, but kept going, “And I’d look you in your eyes…”

You just barely nodded, “Y-yeah…”

Wonwoo leaned in slowly, his lips getting closer and closer to yours, “And I’d ask if I could kiss you��”

You stayed still, anticipating what you knew would happen next. When you didn’t stop him, Wonwoo let his lips press softly to yours. Your hands instinctively went up to his shoulders, and one of his hands cupped your cheek as the other held your waist. His kiss was slow and sweet, his lips moving cautiously against yours in case you wanted to stop. But nothing in you wanted to stop. In fact, every single part of you wanted to keep going.

His lips tasted like the alcohol the two of you were drinking, but it somehow seemed like the alcohol from his lips got you drunker than the alcohol straight from the bottle. Your head felt like it was spinning in the best way possible, and your heart was pounding in your chest. You hadn’t felt like this in a long time, and you didn’t want it to end. You didn’t feel afraid to love Wonwoo anymore, you felt somewhat comforted.

As the kiss got deeper and his lips moved a bit faster with yours, you found him suddenly on top of you. You were on your back, your legs wrapped around his hips as Wonwoo held himself above you just enough that he wouldn’t completely crush you.

“I love you,” he mumbled into the kiss, making your heart beat so quickly, you were sure he could feel it.

“I love you,” you replied, not even giving it a second thought.

You could feel Wonwoo smiling against your lips, pulling back to look at you, “Really?”

You nodded, “Really. I was afraid to, but...I do.”

“It’s okay, I get it,” he reassured you, stroking your cheek with the pad of his thumb. “We’ll take it slow, don’t worry.”

“You...do realize you’re completely on top of me, right?” you laughed.

The serious, sensual mood suddenly shifted as Wonwoo let out a deep belly laugh, his face turning red, “Okay, yeah, you make a good point.”

Wonwoo sat up, climbing off of you and sitting back in his original spot on the couch. This time, though, you sat closer to him, resting your head against his shoulder.

“Actually, that was why Mingyu called me that,” you informed him suddenly. “He started calling me Glitch when he started to like me, and then he told me he loved me by hacking into my computer because he said it was ‘only fair’.”

Wonwoo laughed deeply, shaking his head, “He sounds like he was funny.”

“He was definitely something,” you agreed with a laugh of your own. “It doesn’t hurt to talk about him anymore. I still miss him, but I don’t mind telling you about him.”

“That means you’re coping,” he chuckled, letting his head rest on top of yours.

You fell into silence, just watching the movie. You weren’t really paying attention to the movie, though, because you couldn’t get over what just happened. Wonwoo actually loved you, and you loved him. You had to realize you couldn’t just shut yourself out from others; you had to move on if Mingyu wasn’t ever going to come back. These last few months, you had realized it’s okay to be happy.

And Wonwoo really made you happy.

You sat at your computer, eyes staring at the screen. They were dry, but you just powered through, wanting to get this last bit of the project done before you stopped. Once it was done, then you would take a break. That’s what you told yourself.

Of course, it wouldn’t be work without somebody distracting you.

“How’s it gooooing?” Soonyoung sang.

“Do you ever do work?” you asked with zero emotion in your voice.

“Do you ever take breaks?” he shot back. “Don’t you know what day it is?”

“I do, but I need to get this done,” you replied, your eyes flickering back and forth between monitors. “Besides, Wonwoo’s working too.”

“Is he?” Soonyoung asked with a smirk in his voice.

You finally peeled your eyes away from your work to look at Soonyoung’s face in the corner of your screen. As expected, he was smirking at you expectantly, wiggling his eyebrows.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” you asked with a sigh.

“Go see for yourself,” was all he said before ending the call.

You let out an even deeper, longer sigh as you leaned back in your computer chair, running both hands through your messy hair. Deciding you could just pick up where you left off, you went to go check on Wonwoo like Soonyoung suggested, trudging to the bedroom in your sweatpants and thin t-shirt. However, your bedroom was empty.

“Woo?” you called out.

“Kitchen!” he replied.

You groaned loud enough for him to hear across the small house as you stomped toward the kitchen, “Why are you and Soonyoung doing this to me? I’m almost done with work, and you guys just--”

You stopped when you saw the kitchen lights dimmed, a chocolate cake with the words “Happy One Month Anniversary” written poorly in red gel frosting, and various takeout boxes on the counter. Wonwoo was smiling brightly, gesturing to it all.

“Happy anniversary!” he cheered.

“Oh my god!” you laughed, shaking your head. “Woo, it’s just one month!”

“One month since I told you I love you, and that’s a big milestone for both of us,” he stated proudly as he walked over to you, his hands settling naturally on your hips, “C’mon, let me have an excuse to eat junk, drink alcohol, and get you naked.”

“You just want your dick sucked,” you scoffed, playfully rolling your eyes as his lips pressed against yours.

“Sort of,” he grinned, “but that, among other things. My dick is not the point, ___.”

“Well, thank you for buying all of this food,” you finally sighed, letting him kiss you again. You backed away from him to grab some food since you hadn’t eaten since morning. “I appreciate it.”

After that night that you and Wonwoo confessed to each other, you both just kind of...assumed you were dating. He referred to you as his girlfriend, and you referred to him as your boyfriend. Nobody was really surprised -- to be fair, Wonwoo had told all of your friends about his feelings for you -- but they were definitely happy that you were moving on.

Things were going well, too. You still got anxiety about Wonwoo suddenly getting ripped away from you, but he did everything he could to make you feel better about it. He definitely understood you had separation anxiety after what happened, so he always tried to make you feel like everything would be okay. He had yet to really see how afraid you were -- you never had somehow been able to avoid anxiety attacks around him -- but he knew you were severely worried. But he did manage to make you feel better. You really had to learn to trust him, and you were. So much so that you took off the ring that matched Mingyu’s -- you still wore Mingyu’s on a necklace, but nobody expected you to take it off.

Wonwoo grabbed plates and got you some food before getting his own. As the two of you sat at the counter to eat, you suddenly felt your phone vibrate where you had stashed it away in your pocket. You ignored it, wanting to just spend time with your boyfriend. However, you then heard the security system announce an “intruder”.

“It might just be a package,” Wonwoo shrugged, thought he went to stand up to check anyway.

“Security disarmed,” the system said in it’s female-sounding voice.

Your eyebrows furrowed, knowing only very few people could disarm the system: You, Wonwoo, Soonyoung, Junhui, and Jihoon. However, the next words from the system had your heart stopping completely.

“Person identified: Kim Mingyu.”

Wonwoo whipped his head around to look at you, his expression unreadable. You just stared back wide-eyed until you managed to fumble around in your pocket and fish out your phone. You opened the security app and searched through all the cameras until you saw a figure in tattered clothes, but his head was aimed down. However, the height was the same, and his build almost looked similar to Mingyu -- just thinner than you remembered him.

But...there was no way...

“Stay here,” Wonwoo said before going off to investigate.

He did grab a knife before he left the kitchen, going toward the lounge. But despite Wonwoo’s instructions, you followed behind him, wanting to know who was pretending to be your dead boyfriend.

Wonwoo stalked up to the door right as there was a loud knock. You gripped the back of Wonwoo’s shirt tightly as you poked your head around him to see.

Cautiously, he opened the door, but it was quickly shoved open before being slammed closed behind the intruder. They were panting, and looked afraid with their clothes a dirty, tattered mess, and their face just as dirt-stained and beaten up. However, you still recognized him under all the blood, bruises, cuts, and grime.

“Mingyu?” you breathed out, stepping out from behind Wonwoo.

“Oh god, ___!” Mingyu sighed, already holding his arms out for you.

Without a second thought, you threw yourself into his arms, immediately sobbing into his shoulder. Mingyu just held you -- he definitely felt thinner than you remembered -- enjoying the feeling of having you in his arms again.

“Fuck, I was afraid they got you, too,” he mumbled.

Wonwoo wasn’t really sure what to do -- you were his girlfriend now, but here was the boy you were in love with first -- but Mingyu’s last sentence really caught Wonwoo’s attention, “Who’s ‘they’?”

Mingyu lifted his head to study the unfamiliar boy in his house, but kept his arms around you as you cried, “The pricks that kidnapped me! We need to get out of here; they’ll come find us.”

“W-what?” you pulled away to look up at Mingyu, your face streaked with tears. “H-how did you…?”

“I barely escaped, but I did,” he explained quickly, “but I’ll tell you everything when we get somewhere safe. Call Seungcheol, tell him there’s a code black. I’ll start packing things.”

“I’ll call,” Wonwoo told you as Mingyu pulled away from you to go pack some of your belongings, “you help him.”

Even though Wonwoo was trying to help, you could tell his demeanor shifted. His eyes seemed...sad. But you couldn’t focus on that, you had bigger things to worry about, like everybody making it out alive.

You ran off to help Mingyu pack and delete data from the computers while Wonwoo called in the emergency. Seungcheol was confused as to why there was a code black, but he couldn’t question it when everybody was safe. So Wonwoo was connected to the boss, to whom he explained the situation.

“There’s a safehouse on Jeju Island, inside the city so it’ll be harder for any kidnappers to be discreet,” the boss told Wonwoo. “Delete all data before going to the airport. You’ll have three plane tickets under the name ‘Kim Jisoo’. I’ll have Agent Vernon drop off your fake IDs in one hour, so please be there on time.”

“Three?” Wonwoo questioned.

“You’re also in danger if you live there, Agent Woo,” the boss stated. “You’ll go with Agent Z and Agent Gyu to Jeju; please do not be late.”

With that, he hung up.

Meanwhile, you and Mingyu had come out of the bedroom with duffel bags and backpacks. Mingyu had changed into cleaner clothes -- you had kept a few of Mingyu’s things just because they were your favorite things to steal from his closet. He tossed a bag to Wonwoo before helping you get your jacket on.

“You’re coming, breadstick,” he stated.

“That’s Wonwoo to you,” Wonwoo informed him neutrally.

“What did the boss say?” you asked as you slipped on your sneakers.

“We’re going to Jeju Island, and Vernon will meet us at the airport in an hour,” Wonwoo reported.

“Then let’s get going,” Mingyu said, opening the door and ushering you and Wonwoo out. “The sooner we get to the airport, the safer we’ll be. I’ll drive, you keep ___ safe.”

Mingyu pulled a gun out from the back of his jeans, tossing it to Wonwoo like it was nothing. All Wonwoo did was nod curtly before placing a hand on the small of your back and leading you to the garage under the house.

You knew which car Mingyu would go to since it was “his baby”. It was the fastest car in the garage but you had never touched it since he was kidnapped. But getting back into the car in so long made you nostalgic for the rare midnight drives with him. The car even still smelled like him.

Mingyu got in the front to drive while Wonwoo sat in the back with you, one arm protectively around you. All thoughts of your one month anniversary were gone now that he knew you were possibly in any danger, so all he could focus on were the windows. His eyes were scanning the surroundings carefully while Mingyu peeled out of the garage and left your house behind, pulling onto the road and weaving easily through traffic. He was always amazing at driving.

“So,” Mingyu began as his sharp eyes checked every mirror while also watching the road to make sure nobody was following him, “who’s this?”

“Wonwoo,” you replied as Wonwoo muttered, “Why does it matter?”

You looked up at him, “What does that mean?”

“I think you know what it means, ___,” he said harshly.

“Is he your…?” Mingyu let his question trail off, unsure if he even wanted to know the answer.

“Well…” you began slowly, but you knew things would only be made worse with Wonwoo if you didn’t outright say it, and it was better to only deal with an angry Mingyu rather than two angry boys, “yeah; Wonwoo’s my boyfriend.”

“Oh,” Mingyu said flatly, and you noticed his knuckles gripping the wheel tighter.

You groaned, “Jesus, Gyu, can we deal with this when we’re not in danger?!”

“As much as I’d love to get through this awkward situation as soon as possible, I agree,” Wonwoo decided.

“Nobody cares what you think,” Mingyu grumbled.

“Mingyu!” you growled.

“Alright, alright!” he sighed, deciding to drop the topic for now. “But once we’re on that plane, we’re having a talk. All of us.”

After that, the car fell into a tense silence as Mingyu drove to the airport. Thankfully, Wonwoo didn’t seem to see anybody following the three of you, but he refused to let his guard down. That meant all you were left to do was think. Think about how you loved Wonwoo, but you still loved Mingyu. About how you’d have to choose between them but you weren’t sure how that would ever happen because you loved them both just the same.

Mingyu finally pulled into the airport parking lot and went to the trunk to grab all your stuff. Wonwoo helped you out of the backseat and held you close even as Mingyu handed him things to hold. Mingyu stood on your other side, keeping an arm around you almost in a territorial manner as the three of you walked into the airport to find Vernon.

Wonwoo took out his phone to find the information given about where to meet Vernon, “He’ll be waiting by the McDonald’s with Hoshi.”

You heard Mingyu let out a short laugh, so you looked up at him. He was actually cracking a smile, and it made your heart flutter.

God, you missed that smile.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen them,” he said, running his free hand through his matted hair. “They don’t know I’m back, huh?”

“No,” Wonwoo replied, “I haven’t told them. Only the boss knows, unless he told them, too.”

“At least Hansol has to know,” you realized, remembering that it was Hansol that was usually in charge of making fake documents. “If he had to make our IDs, he would need to know Mingyu’s alive if he was asked to make one for him.”

“Can we at least keep the reunion short?” Wonwoo requested as he held the door open for the two of you. “We’ll be safer waiting at the terminal.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Mingyu replied, waving his free hand. His other hand moved away from your waist to hold your hand tightly. “C’mon, breadstick.”

“For fucks sake, it’s Wonwoo!” he groaned.

Without even having to think about it, your other hand reached behind you to grab onto Wonwoo. He walked closer to you, putting his arm around your shoulder. Your arm went around his waist, your hand fisting his shirt as Mingyu dragged you toward the McDonald’s to meet Vernon and Hoshi.

The two boys weren’t hard to spot. They were standing up against the wall together, talking casually, but their eyes were sweeping the airport in search of the three of you. When they spotted you, Vernon’s face broke out into a smile, and Hoshi looked like he was about to pass out.

Mingyu let out a loud laugh before letting go of your hand to go hug his friends. Wonwoo scoffed beside you, but you weren’t going to feed into his immaturity.

When you reached their little reunion, the three boys were talking and laughing like old college friends meeting at a bar. Vernon’s eyes finally landed on you while Soonyoung was still giggling at Mingyu. Vernon looked confused, and you noticed his gaze had zeroed in on how you and Wonwoo were holding each other. He had seen you and Mingyu holding hands just before the tallest agent had ran over…

But thankfully, Hansol didn’t ask.

“We’ll make sure you’re safe,” he assured you. “I have the passports, and Soonyoung will bring the car to HQ so Mingyu doesn’t have to worry about his baby.”

“Good,” Mingyu nodded with a pout. “Don’t scratch her.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Soonyoung smiled, waving away Mingyu’s concerns.

“Here’s your documents,” Hansol said as he distributed them to their respective owners, “and some money.”

Vernon held the back of one of your hands in his palm before placing a wad of money in your hand and closing your fingers around it. He looked deeply into your eyes for a moment, trying to tell you something you couldn’t understand. It was like he was worried for you specifically, and you had a feeling you knew what it was: he was worried you’d be left alone again. He knew you loved Mingyu, and he knew you loved Wonwoo. So the money was for you to take care of yourself more than anything else.

Hansol suddenly pulled you in for a hug, pulling you away from both boys to wrap his arms around you.

“Be safe,” he whispered, “and watch out for yourself. Call if anything happens, and we’ll come get you.”

“Thanks,” you replied quietly, letting your arms drape around his waist.

He pulled away and hugged the two boys while Soonyoung pulled you into a spine-crushing hug. Once all the goodbyes were done, Hansol dragged Sooyoung off to get Mingyu’s car and get back to HQ. That left your awkward trio alone once again.

“Alright,” Mingyu nodded, “guess we should get going. Do you need anything before we go through security?”

Both boys were looking down at you -- Mingyu really didn’t give a shit if Wonwoo needed anything, and vice versa -- so you shook your head, “No… I’ll relax when we get on the plane.”

“Okay,” Mingyu sighed, placing a hand on the small of your back and leading you toward bag check.

Everything went by in a blur. Your bags were taken care of, you got through security no problem -- you trusted Vernon’s skills -- and you were waiting at the terminal in what seemed like a short amount of time. Your head rested on Mingyu, your eyes looking up at him as you couldn’t believe he was here in front of you. He had excused himself to the bathroom to wash up, so you could actually see his skin a lot better. He was a little bit paler, he had some scars you didn’t recall him having before, and he still had some cuts on his face that were healing. He definitely looked tired, but his eyes were hard and determined as he stared straight ahead.

Meanwhile, your hand was in Wonwoo’s, gripping it as tightly as you could. His hand was warm despite the tense situation. He was silent the whole time, only speaking up to ask if you needed anything. But you could tell he didn’t really want to hold your hand since his grip wasn’t as solid as it normally was. It was loose, and he didn’t lace your fingers together. He held your hand like Mingyu liked to hold your hand, but Wonwoo always held your hand with your fingers woven between each other. It just didn’t feel right.

But what did feel right currently? Mingyu was angry, Wonwoo was upset, and you were caught in the middle. Nothing felt right anymore, at least not right now. And you were pretty sure nothing would really feel right after this, either.

You didn’t notice your eyelids drooping as you thought about the two boys beside you. You hadn’t realized you’d dozed off until Mingyu helped you up so you could walk down the terminal and onto the plane. But once you were in the seat between the two boys, you were out once again, and you wouldn’t remember the walk from the airport to the airplane.

Neither of the boys spoke to each other on the plane. Mingyu stared out the window while Wonwoo just stared blankly at the movie playing in front of him. They chose to pretend the other wasn’t there instead of at least trying to be civil. Mingyu hated Wonwoo because he was the new guy, and Wonwoo hated Mingyu because he was the old guy who was supposed to be dead. Both had ruined the others plans.

But then there was you. They were both upset with you: Mingyu was upset that you moved on, and Wonwoo didn’t know why he was upset with you, but he was. You knew deep down that both of them had some harsh feelings toward you, but you were trying to put that conversation off for as long as possible. You were scared they’d both just leave you, and you couldn’t handle that. You lost Mingyu once, you couldn’t lose anybody else anymore.

The plane landed safely in Jeju, and Mingyu gently shook your shoulder while Wonwoo gathered your carry-ons. Wonwoo just carried everything off the plane while Mingyu helped you walk in your sleepy state. A car was ready for you when you got to Jeju, so all you three had to worry about was getting the rest of your belongings from bag check, and following the directions to your new house.

By the time the three of you reached the car, you were wide awake. You helped put bags in the trunk before getting in the backseat with Wonwoo -- he refused to sit near Mingyu -- again. Mingyu just started up the engine and drove to where the GPS told him to, not saying anything to either of you.

It was nighttime, but you couldn’t see the stars here like you did back home. The lights of Jeju City made the stars invisible, and it made you miss your home even more. But you couldn’t focus on that, you had to let the agency know you arrived safely in the city.

You texted Seungcheol to let him know, and he called you immediately after. You put the phone to your ear, guessing exactly what he would say next.

“Vernon and Hoshi said Mingyu’s alive,” he said quickly, though it sounded like a question.

“He is,” you insisted, nodding even though he couldn’t see you. “He just...showed up.”

“Holy shit,” Seungcheol breathed. “How is he?”

“Thinner, paler...dirtier,” you listed off, remembering the scars you’d seen on his skin. “He hasn’t said much about what happened, so I can’t tell you anything. Sorry.”

“Can I talk to him?”

“He’s driving.”

“Can you have him call me as soon as he can? But make sure he gets some sleep. The boss will call when you guys get to the house, though.”

“Alright, got it.”

Seungcheol kept the conversation short since he figured you were stressed out and exhausted. But that just left you once again in an awkward silence among the people in the small car. But hey, you’d be living like this for a while, so you might as well get used to it.

The house was small but it had a basement with computers already set up. There was a bedroom on the main floor -- the house was only one floor if you didn’t count the basement -- and a bed in the computer room in the basement. That meant only two beds, and three of you. So somebody was sharing, and you weren’t sure who it was going to be.

Other than the beds, though, there was a bathroom, and a small living room/kitchen. Basically, the house had the bare minimum, but it was really all you needed for now. Besides, the less conspicuous, the better.

All of the bags were dropped on the floor in the basement while Mingyu turned on all the monitors and towers. While he did that, Wonwoo looked around slowly before breaking the silence.

“I guess we should talk about this now, then,” he decided.

“No, we--”

“Good idea,” Mingyu agreed with a way-too-cheery tone. His sharp gaze went straight to you, and you almost flinched. “___, care to tell me why you’re dating someone else?”

You gave Mingyu an incredulous look, “Are...are you serious?”

“I was only gone for a few months!”

“Mingyu, everybody thought you were dead!”

“Oh,” he let out a harsh laugh, “is that why I found this in the nightstand?”

Mingyu’s hand came out of his pocket, holding your promise ring between his index and middle finger. His eyebrows were raised, waiting for your response, but all you did was stare at the ring, every memory with Mingyu suddenly hitting you all at once. You missed him so much it hurt, but all he was doing was accusing you for doing what? Moving on? Not being miserable forever?

All of your emotions escalated into anger.

“Mingyu, you’re acting like a dick!” you burst.

“Me?” he snorted before his expression turned dark. “I was kidnapped and tortured, and you went and found someone new as soon as you could!”

“I waited months, Gyu!” you told him, standing toe-to-toe with him and leaning up to get even more in his face.

“Yeah, she held out hope for a dead guy,” Wonwoo scoffed to himself, but it was still loud enough for both of you to hear.

You looked over at him where his fingertips were running over one of the keyboards, and you saw his eyes roll in the dim glow of the monitors.

“And you,” your anger was now zeroed in on Wonwoo, who looked up at you like he didn’t expect the outburst, “what do you have against me now? Do you think it’s my fault I loved Mingyu before I even knew you existed? Is it my fault Mingyu came back?”

“No, but you have to choose one of us,” Wonwoo stated, trying to avoid making sense of why he was so angry at you. “We both know it has to happen.”

“Ugh, I can’t!” you shouted, your hands slapping against your thighs as your head dropped back and you just stared at the ceiling. You lifted your head to look between the two boys that were surprised by your outburst. “I still love Mingyu, but I love you, too! I-- I can’t help it; I can’t decide!”

“Just admit I’m a second choice, ___,” Wonwoo scoffed.

“Oh, fuck off. You and I both know that’s not true. You reminded me of Mingyu, but you are not Mingyu. I didn’t fall in love with you to get over Mingyu, I fell in love with you for you.”

“Then what am I, huh?” Mingyu chimed in, holding his arms out. “Just the dead boyfriend?”

“Oh, don’t you act like I haven’t been clinging to you since you walked through my door,” you frowned, your hands balling into fists at your sides. “I think we all know how I feel about you, otherwise Wonwoo wouldn’t be acting like a huge fucking baby right now.”

“That’s not--”

“You--”

“You numbskulls do realize we’re all being hunted down by whoever the fuck took Mingyu, right?” you quizzed them, interrupting their arguing. “So until you two can get your goddamn priorities straight, you two can share the bed down here!”

With that, you grabbed your things and marched up the stairs before slamming the door closed behind you, leaving the two boys in a stunned silence.

You didn’t go see either of them for two and a half weeks. You were furious and upset and afraid and confused all at once. All you did was cry and talk to whoever was available to listen to your worries. You knew you should’ve tried to fix things, but you were just so angry with them for worrying over who gets your heart when you could die at any moment. Not only that, but you loved them both. How could you let one of them go?

Slowly, though, you were gathering your thoughts. You were figuring out the best way to go about handling the situation -- with a little help, of course -- and you were mentally preparing yourself to finally go and talk to them. It had been two and a half weeks, anyway, so you figured you should go check on them.

“What’s the worst thing that could happen, anyway?” Hansol had asked through the phone.

“They could both decide to not be with her,” Jihoon deadpanned.

“Technically the worst thing that could happen is that the island explodes,” Seokmin interjected.

“Neither of you are helping,” Hansol sighed.

Jihoon shrugged, “You asked.”

“I’m just gonna go do it before you idiots make it worse...” you grumbled before hanging up from the call and trudging down the stairs.

To your surprise, all was silent.

“U-um...” you didn’t really know what to say, but the sound of your voice made both boys look up from their work, “hello...”

“Wow,” Mingyu was the first to speak up, “I thought you were going to leave us down here to rot.”

“We’d deserve that,” Wonwoo nodded, standing up from his chair. “Are you feeling better, _____?”

Your eyebrows furrowed, “You guys...aren’t...mad at me anymore?”

“We shouldn’t have gotten upset with you in the first place,” Mingyu admitted with a sigh, standing up as well and going to stand beside Wonwoo in front of you.

“We did some talking and--”

“You talked?” you asked.

Wonwoo chuckled, “Well, after messing with each other for like, a week -- give or take a few days.”

“But we realized we were the jerks,” Mingyu continued.

“And we’re both just afraid of losing you,” Wonwoo admitted.

“So,” Mingyu’s face began to break into a smirk.

You made a face, eyeing the taller boy up and down, “I don’t like the look you’re giving me...”

“Stop that,” Wonwoo scolded, whacking Mingyu in the stomach and making him laugh. Then he turned his attention back to you, looking at you softly. “It’s okay if you love us both.”

Your eyes widened, playing his words over and over in your head, making sure you heard him correctly, “I-it is...?”

“Yeah, only if you’re okay with it,” Mingyu smiled to show you that everything was okay now. He even tossed an arm around Wonwoo’s shoulder. “We can share, we’re big boys and shit.”

“W-wait,” you stuttered, leaning away to look seriously at Mingyu, and then up at Wonwoo who was watching as his chewed on his lip, “what about...you two?”

Mingyu shrugged, “I mean, I personally don’t get what you see in him, but I think he’s alright.”

Wonwoo playfully scoffed as he brushed Mingyu’s arm off of him, “You’re no prize, either,” he chuckled before turning serious again and looking at you. “We’ll make it work, _____. We know you're afraid of losing both of us, but you won’t have to worry anymore. Neither of us are going anywhere.”

“Yeah, nobody will leave,” Mingyu agreed, walking over to stand behind you, his hands moving to your waist and holding you flush against his body, “okay?”

You nodded slowly, breathing out, “Okay.”

Mingyu’s lips pressed to the skin of your neck, nipping softly and playfully as his thumbs pushed up your shirt just enough for him to touch our skin just above your shorts. You whined and tried to elbow him away.

“Stop, I missed you!” he whined back. “I haven’t seen you in forever!”

“Yeah, but Wonwoo--”

“He can watch, I don’t care,” he chuckled. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting to get my hands on you again? The boss could walk in and that wouldn’t mean shit to me.”

Wonwoo’s eyebrows twitched upward as he turned to go sit back in his chair, “Yeah, pretend I’m not even here.”

Mingyu cupped your cheek and turned your head to look at him, gently pressing his lips to yours. Mingyu bit down a little harder on your flesh, making you gasp, and he deepened the kiss. But Mingyu was always a little more impatient when he hadn’t seen you in a while, and this time, it had been the longest you’d gone without seeing each other. So he was already trying to tug your shirt off over your head.

“She likes being teased more,” Wonwoo murmured, his eyes scanning his screen as if he wasn’t even paying any attention to the two of you.

Your eyes snapped open again at the sound of his voice, already so lost in Mingyu that you actually kind of did forget his presence.

“I will tease her,” Mingyu pouted, managing to pull your shirt off over your head before throwing it directly at Wonwoo, the clothing landing on the older boy’s head. “Don’t tell me how to fuck my own girlfriend.”

“She’s my girlfriend, too,” Wonwoo reminded him, glancing over at him. “Maybe I should show you how to do thing properly with her since it’s been a while for you.”

You tensed as arousal suddenly shot through you at the thought.

Mingyu smirked as he caught your reaction, “I think she likes the idea.”

“Oh really?” Wonwoo asked, a smirk of his own growing on his face as he slowly stood and walked over to you until he was right in front of you, cupping your jaw. “Would you like that, baby? Do you want me to join you and Mingyu?”

Slowly, you nodded.

Wonwoo leaned down to kiss you, his thumb rubbing softly against your skin. Mingyu brought his attention back to your neck, nipping and sucking and kissing. After a moment, the two men switch spots with Mingyu’s lips on yours. But you soon turned in his arms and your lips went to Mingyu’s neck to nibble on him like he had with you. Your hands moved straight to the waistband of his sweats, slowly pulling them down. Mingyu whined into the kiss -- he hated when you didn’t pull his pants down quickly, and you knew it.

The clothing pooled around his ankles, and you let one hand drift over his boxers as you sucked a mark on Mingyu’s neck. You could feel his member starting to get hard, so you palmed him through the thin material, smirking when he moaned softly. You even heard the older boy chuckle.

But your actions were stopped when you felt a hand on your wrist, tugging your and away from Mingyu’s crotch. You pulled away to see Mingyu staring at you with a raised eyebrow, “You don’t get to tease me, baby. We’re going to tease you.”

Wonwoo smirked immediately, eyeing you up and down, “I kind like that idea. Why don’t you strip for us, baby?”

The two boys moved to sit back in their computer chairs. Wonwoo undid his belt and jeans while Mingyu pulled his half-hard member from his boxers and started to stroke himself. Both pairs of eyes were on you as you stood before them in just a shorts and your bralette.

Your clammy hands moved up to grab your bralette and tug it over your head. You heard Mingyu suck in a breath between his teeth, and when the article of clothing had dropped to the floor, you could see him staring at you through lidded eyes.

“Fuck, I haven’t seen you in so long,” he groaned as his hand stroked up and down his length slowly. “My memory did not do you justice.”

“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” Wonwoo agreed as his fist wrapped around his own cock, watching you as he licked his lips.

“You two talk too much,” you smirked, rolling your eyes. “Neither of you know how to just shut up and enjoy a show.”

Mingyu’s eyes slid closed momentarily, “She still loves to talk back, huh?”

Wonwoo let out a low groan, “Y-yeah. I think she likes punishments.”

You were almost completely hypnotized by the boys in front of you that you almost forgot to remove the rest of your clothes. You shimmied out of your shorts before kicking them off to the side, and then you turned around and bent over as you slowly discarded your panties that had your arousal pooling in them.

Wonwoo pointed over to the bed, “Go lay down on your back.”

You did as you were told, swinging your hips as you went. You sat down on the mattress and laid back on your elbows, watching the two boys. Mingyu walked right over to you, taking off his shirt and boxers, tossing the clothing off in a random direction. Wonwoo just watched you as he started discarding his own clothes.

Mingyu eagerly kissed your lips, his hands finding yours and holding them above your head. His lips trailed down lower, his tongue momentarily flicking over one of your nipples before he carried on, going lower as his hands slid down your body. He held your hips in place with one hand while the other parted your legs. He settled between them, his hot breath fanning against your core. You could feel your arousal dripping down your thighs and onto the bed, and Mingyu smirked as he assessed how wet you were.

“You want both of us, hm?” his voice was low and rough as his eyes glanced up at you through his lashes. “C’mon, _____, I know you can speak. Say you want both of us.”

“I want both of you,” you breathed.

“Good girl,” he hummed before pressing his tongue flat against your clit.

You let out a soft moan, trying to push your hips into Mingyu’s face, but he kept his grip on you solid. You went to at least move your hands down to his hair, but you felt the bed dip before you felt strong hands on your wrists. You looked up and saw Wonwoo kneeling beside you, his hands holding yours above you, and his half-hard cock in your face.

“I think the idea was for you to stay where you are,” he mused as you bit your lip, feeling Mingyu’s tongue slip in and out of you. “Maybe you need a distraction.”

Wonwoo used one of his hands to hold his length, lightly tapping the side of your face with it. You opened your mouth, looking up at him with wide eyes because you knew he loved when you looked at him like that. He bit his lip, inhaling sharply.

“Fuck, you look so good like this,” he grunted, cupping your cheek.

Mingyu looked away from what he was doing to watch you and Wonwoo. Your head bobbed at a slow pace, trying to get him fully erect before you did anything more. You sat up on one arm while your other hand wrapped around the base of Wonwoo’s member. The older boy let out a shaky breath as he watched you before his eyes flickered to Mingyu, meeting his darkened gaze for a moment.

You started taking more of Wonwoo in your mouth, letting him thrust into your mouth as he pleased while his head dropped back, letting out throaty moans. His hand moved from your cheek to your hair, guiding your head to move just how he liked. His Adams apple bobbed as he swallowed thickly, groaning softly.

“Fuck, you’re so good, love,” he mumbled.

Mingyu wrapped his lips around your clit and sucked, making you moan around Wonwoo. The vibrations made the older boy moan out louder, and he suddenly pulled himself out of your mouth with a pop.

“I wanna cum inside you,” he said softly, his finger tracing over your jaw. He turned to look at Mingyu, who was still working his tongue against you. “I have an idea. Lay on your back.”

“Since when am I taking orders from you?” Mingyu mumbled, sitting up before crawling to lay on his back beside you.

“Since now,” he replied before he looked at you and nodded toward Mingyu. “I want you to ride him.”

“What do you have planned for yourself, then?” you quizzed as you straddled Mingyu’s hips.

“You’ll see,” Wonwoo sang with a smirk before he got off the bed and walked over to the corner of the room the bags were still dropped in.

As you sank down on Mingyu’s length, you let out a soft moan, enjoying each delicious inch of him. Mingyu just watched you, relishing in the look on your voice, and the noises you made. His hands held your waist, guiding you down onto him.

“You feel so much better than I remember,” he groaned, waiting for you to move. “Fuck, I missed you so fucking much.”

Just as you were adjusted and ready to start moving your hips, you felt something cold against your hole. You sucked in a breath between your teeth, not expecting the sudden coldness.

“Shh, relax,” Wonwoo cooed as he swirled around his finger coated in lube. “Have you done this before?”

“Plenty,” Mingyu replied with a breathy chuckle. “She’ll be okay.”

“So,” Wonwoo began, his voice a little more mischievous than you would’ve liked, “if I did this, then…”

Wonwoo slid his long digit in slowly, leaning around you to watch your face for any signs of discomfort. While your eyes did close, the noises you made were all out of pleasure. You whimpered, but pushed back on his finger, therefore swiveling your hips a bit on Mingyu, causing him to let out a quiet moan.

Wonwoo smirked, “You like that, don’t you? You want more, huh?”

You nodded, biting on your lip.

“Words, baby,” Mingyu told you teasingly.

“I-I want m-more,” you managed to stammer out.

Slowly, Wonwoo added more of his index finger, making sure you were still okay before each move he made. Mingyu was patient about it, not expecting you to move much while Wonwoo stretched you out with more fingers. Just being inside you, watching your expressions, and hearing your moans was enough for him anyway. It had been so long since he was touched at all that even this was amazing to him.

Finally, Wonwoo coated his length in the cold lube before lining his tip up with your hole, “Relax, baby.”

You nodded, feeling his warm hand move down your back before resting on your waist. Carefully, he inserted his cock into you, your eyes squeezing shut as your mouth opened without sound coming out.

Mingyu watched, biting his lip as one of his hands moved down to your clit. His thumb rubbed small circles into the bundle of nerves, and your hips jerked at the sensation. He smirked, nodding to Wonwoo who was looking to Mingyu to see if you were okay.

“Shit, you’re such a good girl for us, _____,” Wonwoo breathed when he was completely buried inside you. “Look how well you take both of us at once.”

The praises motivated you to slowly lift your hips before moving them back down, a low, long moan trailing from your lips. Mingyu groaned out your name quietly while Wonwoo sucked in a sharp breath.

“Oh fuck, you’re so tight,” Wonwoo mumbled before slowly thrusting in and out of you in small movements.

Mingyu matched his pace despite the fact he wanted things hard and fast. He knew he wouldn’t last nearly as long as the two of you, but he just wanted to finally cum. But he held back and copied Wonwoo’s movements to bring you the most pleasure.

You’d never felt anything like this before. You’d never felt so full, and the feeling was euphoric. You couldn’t even open your eyes, your nails digging into Mingyu’s chest as he held you close to him. Wonwoo’s hands held your waist tightly as his thrusts became longer and faster, and your moans started to turn into high cries of pleasure.

“Are you gonna cum, baby?” Mingyu cooed in your ear as he thrust up into you in between pants and gasps, his thumb still circling your clit. “Are you gonna cum on my cock like a good girl?”

“God, fuck--! Y-yes,” you cried, nodding frantically as you swiveled your hips, chasing your high.

Your need to reach your orgasm had Mingyu releasing without warning, filling you with warmth as his head dropped back. You peeled your eyes open to see his Adams apple bobbed as he groaned out your name, his hips bucking up into yours sporadically.

Wonwoo leaned down slightly, still thrusting into you. You whimpered loudly as your orgasm hit you, your eyes meeting Mingyu’s for a brief moment. Your eyes squeezed shut as your back arched forward and away from Wonwoo’s front that was flush against your back. Your toes curled, and your legs shook from the intensity, everything behind your eyelids going white. You clenched around both boys, making Mingyu cry out softly, and Wonwoo groan deep in his throat.

“Fuck, that’s it,” Wonwoo’s breath was hot on your neck as he praised you through your orgasm.

With a few more thrusts, Wonwoo released into you as well, his arms snaking around your waist and holding you close to him, his face buried in your neck. Mingyu ran one hand through your hair as he rode out his release, his teeth grazing against your bare shoulder.

“Fuck,” Wonwoo panted, gently pulling out of you before rolling over to lay down on his back beside Mingyu. “God, that was… Fuck…”

Mingyu placed a kiss on your jaw before looking up at you, smiling as brightly as he could for somebody was tired out from sex, “You did so well, baby. I’m proud of you.”

You let yourself relax onto Mingyu’s chest, your cheek squished up against his sweaty skin. One of your hands wandered over to Wonwoo, your thumb stroking his cheek as you stared at him.

“I love you,” you mumbled sleepily. “Both of you. I don’t ever want either of you to leave.”

“We won’t,” Wonwoo promised, holding your hand to his cheek as he leaned over to press a chaste kiss to your forehead. “Neither of us.”

“Promise?” you asked as your eyelids got heavier.

“Promise,” Mingyu mumbled, pressing a kiss to the top of your head.

“Promise,” Wonwoo agreed, his smile being the last thing you saw before your eyes closed.

You rubbed your dry eyes, letting your head drop back against your computer chair. You knew you should’ve gone to bed two days ago, but you thought you were on the verge of getting through this firewall. But then there were other obstacles that had popped up, and you kept telling yourself you were almost there. Therefore, you persisted on for three days straight.

Wonwoo wasn’t happy about that, and neither was Mingyu.

“_____!” Mingyu called your name from up the stairs. “Dinner’s ready!”

“Just a sec!” you called back, your hands moving from your face, up to your hair and carding through it.

“No, now!” you heard Wonwoo’s deeper voice shout.

You let out a loud groan, frustrated you had to stop your work when you were -- yet again -- so close to being done. But you knew better than to argue against both of your boyfriends, so you pushed yourself up from your chair and went up the stairs.

The house smelled like food, and you knew Mingyu was trying to teach Wonwoo how to properly cook. Both boys were in the kitchen, bickering as usual. They were facing away from you, looking down at the stove instead. Mingyu seemed to be showing Wonwoo something while the older boy watched beside him, squinting down at the stove like it had just insulted his mother. The two continued to bicker about something Wonwoo didn’t understand about cooking.

“Hey, don’t tell me dinner is ready when it’s not,” you pouted, crossing your arms over your chest.

Wonwoo turned around, laughing at your expression, “Don’t ‘hey’ me. Dinner is ready, he’s teaching me how to make dessert.”

“But it’s our one year,” you pointed out, sitting at the counter as you waited for Wonwoo to bring over the plates, “I thought we had...not food for dessert.”

“No, that’s still the plan,” Mingyu nodded, untying the apron from his waist, “but he wanted to know how to make something himself.”

You rolled your eyes as Wonwoo placed a plate full of food in front of you, “Woo, you act like you’re a worse cook than you actually are.”

“She has a point,” Mingyu agreed, walking around to the other side of the counter to sit beside you and eat.

Wonwoo shrugged, bringing over the last two plates, “Yeah, but Mingyu’s better.”

As the three of you ate in a comfortable silence, your mind wandered to moving. The three of you were moving into a new house tomorrow that would be larger to accommodate all of your things. Since it had been a year since Mingyu escaped his kidnappers -- he never would tell you exactly what happened, though he did tell Wonwoo, and Mingyu often woke up from nightmares -- the agency deemed it safe for the three of you to move into a better living space. Security would still be tight, and you were going to be living closer to Minghao, who was a pretty decent assassin when he had to be.

“_____, stop that!” Mingyu frowned, his thumb pressing down on the crease formed between your eyebrows.

You looked up at him, “What, stop thinking?”

Wonwoo snorted, covering the lower half of his face with a napkin.

“You’re stressing over moving again,” he sighed. “C’mon, we have everything packed, and nobody is tracking us. Things will be okay.”

Mingyu’s warm hand landed on your knee comfortingly, his ring shining in the light from the kitchen. Then, you felt Wonwoo’s on your other knee, stroking your leg through the fabric of your jeans with his thumb. He had gotten you and him promise rings about six months after that first night the three of you spent together. You looked between the two boys, both giving you looks like just screamed, ‘stop worrying’.

So you sighed and nodded, knowing with both of them with you, things would be okay, “Alright, fine.”

“Good,” Wonwoo smiled before pressing a chaste kiss to your temple.

“Well then,” Mingyu sighed, shoving his half-empty plate away, “I’m ready for dessert.”

“We’ve hardly even started eating!” Wonwoo pointed out.

“Just wrap it up,” he shrugged before he stood up. You thought he was going to go get whatever Wonwoo had made, but instead, you were tossed over Mingyu’s shoulder as he said, “I’ll take dessert to go!”

You let out a squeal, “Mingyu, put me down!”

“Yeah, put her down!” Wonwoo agreed, which had Mingyu pausing as he went to walk to the bedroom. But the older boy’s next sentence had him laughing with glee. “We’re supposed to share dessert, remember?”

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blueboycal · 6 years ago

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Number One - Ashton Irwin

REQUEST: A jealous ashton request when he gets really jealous/ possessive because of one of the other 5sos boys being too handsy + An insecure ashton request where he thinks he isn't good enough for you

AUTHORS NOTE: shoutout to @flannelpunkcalum for editing this and helping me in general.

PAIRING: Ashton x Black!Reader

WARNINGS: mentions of racism, self harm

WORD COUNT: 1,912

She followed closely behind the boys as they entered the bar. She held on tightly to Ashton’s hand. They’d gotten off stage about an hour ago and were going to celebrate their third record debuting at number one. Ashton found a booth for them and they sat down while the others were at the bar ordering drinks. She checked her phone to pass the time before the other boys sauntered back to the table carrying drinks in each of their hands. Soon glasses were passed around the table and she picked hers up.

“We’re number one in the U.S baby!” Michael shouted. He lifted his in the air and brought it to his lips, downing the shot. Cheers erupted around the table. Everyone echoed Michael’s actions.

“You guys earned this. I’m so proud.” She beamed looking around at the boys. They’d worked so hard to get where they are now, and their hard work was paying off.

Ashton slipped an muscular arm around her bare shoulders attached his lips to her pink plump ones. He could taste the strawberry gloss that coated her lips. He broke the kiss satisfied that he left her breathless.

“Get a room!” Calum hollered in disgust, while Michael made a gagging gesture from the other side of the table.

“Oh, we will.” Ashton fired back.

She felt her cheeks burn at her boyfriends cheeky remark, she took another sip of her drink as her eyes wandered around the club. The boys began to strike up a conversation about how excited they were to play shows. She continued to sip on her drink and half listen. She slid out of the booth and began to head towards the dance floor when a hand tugged on her arm.

“Where you going?” Ashton asked.

“To dance.” She nodded her head in the other direction. “You coming?” She asked, hoping he’d join her on the floor. He may not be the best dancer in the world, but she loved his energy.

“No, I think I’ll sit this one out.”

She giggled. “Haven’t you been sitting all night?”

“I’ll have you know drumming isn’t just sitting.” He retorted.

She rolled her eyes at him. She knew a lot of physical exertion went into drumming, she just liked to give him a hard time.

“I’ll dance with you. I feel like I’m gonna explode if I don’t move around.” Luke said, getting up from his spot at the table.

With a flick of her red box braids, she led the way to the dance floor with Luke trailing behind her still wearing his stage outfit from earlier. As soon as she stepped on the neon tile her body was swaying to the beat of the music that blared from the speakers. He grabbed her hand twirling her in a circle and pulling her close to him. Back at the booth Ashton occupied, he watched as Calum left to join the others. Michael had stepped outside to call his girlfriend.

He was left alone at the table with his thoughts.

He watched as Luke danced with his girlfriend, he felt a tinge of jealousy within. His green eyes followed their every move. Deep down he knew he had nothing to worry about; Luke was one of his closest friends and wouldn’t try to steal his girlfriend. There was something in they way he held her that bugged him to no end. The way he rested his hands on her waist and brushed her braids out of her face that made his fists clench. Ashton forced himself to look away and take a few deep breaths.

“There’s nothing going on between them.” He whispered to himself. He was acting jealous over nothing. It was just his overactive imagination making him see things where they aren’t. He had been sneaking glances at the two of them while scrolling through his social media.

Several derogatory comments caught his attention as he scrolled through the You section on Instagram. He clicked on the photo he posted days ago, it was taken before he’d gone onstage. He had his arms wrapped around her while she planted a kiss on his lips, she had her back to the camera so no one could see her face. In the photo she wore the white Youngblood hoodie which was a stark contrast against her dark skin and braids. Andy had taken the photo without either of them noticing and then sent it to him after the show was over. Ashton asked for her approval to post the photo and she agreed.

It wasn’t the first time he’d seen the photos of her receive hate but it was the first time he posted a photo that confirmed their relationship. She made a point to ask him to keep her face out of the photos he posted online of her. He fought tooth and nail to keep her out of the spotlight when they first got together. They’d take separate cars and enter restaurants separately. If management wanted paparazzi to follow him around he’d make sure to tell her ahead of time. The two of them kept a low profile by going out at night in places where they wouldn’t be spotted. He’d even entertain wearing disguises so he could hold her hand out in public. The hiding in plain sight was thrilling at first but he soon tired of the charade and wanted to be a bit more open about the relationship. In interviews he’d mention he was seeing someone or he’d mention her discreetly in tweets.

He was several beers in when she had come back over to the table. “I’m ready to go, are you?” Ashton asked standing up from the table, her jacket and purse in his hands.

“Yeah.” She took her jacket and slipped it on and put her purse over her shoulder. The two of them gathered their belongings and said goodbye to the other boys. Ashton couldn’t help but feel like she took too long saying goodbye to Luke.

Ashton rushed up the steps to his house after getting out of the Uber. He unlocked the door and headed inside without bothering to see if she was even behind him. She closed the door and took off her heels and jacket. She set her heels by the door and went over to the hall closet to hang up her jacket. She observed her boyfriend unsure of what to say. The sound of his boots stomping around the house made her jump.

She didn’t understand why Ashton’s mood had soured. He was all smiles before they had gotten to the club. The screeching of the dining room chair being dragged across the floor sent chills up her spine.

She went upstairs and changed into one of his t shirts and a pair of shorts before she crept into the kitchen. Ashton was sitting at the table with his back to her. He held his head in his hands, lost in thought.

“Did I do something wrong?” She asked breaking the suffocating silence that had hung in the air ever since they left the club. Her brown hand clung to the door frame. Tucking a loose braid behind her ear she walked over to him and pulled out the chair closest to him and took a seat. Her brown arms sneaked around her sides as she tilted her head to look at him.

Ashton slowly lifted his head up at the sound of her voice. Guilt spread through him; he didn’t mean to make her think that he was upset because of something she did.

“No.” He said softly, meeting her worried brown eyes.

“What’s wrong then?” Her eyes darted back and forth trying to get a read of his facial expression, but she couldn’t figure out what he was thinking no matter how hard she tried.

Ashton ran a hand through his brown locks and let out a sigh. “I don’t feel good enough… for you.”

“Good enough how?” She gently pried.

“I don’t deserve you. There’s plenty of other guys who could make you happy. I’m not good enough to be your boyfriend.”

“That’s not true.” She reached across the table and put her hand over top his, lightly rubbing it with her thumb.

“Yes it is! Look how you are with Luke.”

She furrowed her brows in confusion. “What about Luke? We’re just friends.” Ever since she met Luke they’d gotten along very well and although she found him attractive, she was never interested in him in a romantic way.

Ashton scoffed. “He seemed a bit too friendly when you were dancing together.”

She pulled her hand back and began twirling her hair. “Okay first, there’s nothing going on with me and Luke. And second, you are literally the best boyfriend I could ask for.”

“All I do is bring negative attention into your life and I hate it.” He frowned.

She shook her head. “People on the internet are assholes and they always will be. Nothing can change that. It’s better to ignore it.” She learned a long time ago that you couldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea.

“But-”

“Ashton you bring me so much joy and laughter in my life. You have a way of making me smile on my worst days, and you listen and try to understand the things I go through. You see me as person, and that’s all I could ask for.” She placed her fingers underneath his chin and titled his head upward so they were eye level.

“You’ve gone out of your way to defend me to your fans when you didn’t have to.” When they first started dating, Ashton wanted to show her off to the world and would constantly post pictures off her on his Instagram stories. It sparked an awful amount of hate from ‘fans’ who couldn’t understand why he’d choose to date someone who looked nothing like his last girlfriend.

It got so bad she deleted her Instagram. Her account had always been set to private but she had hundreds of message requests that contained nasty and hurtful words. Some ranging from racial slurs to strangers telling her to hurt herself or bleach her skin because she was 'too dark’.

She stayed off the internet for three months and eventually decided to create a new account because she didn’t want to let internet trolls take away one of social media platforms that brought her happiness. The hate she was getting resulted in Ashton having to write a series of tweets condemning the fans who wrote awful things about her, and him asking them to be more mindful of people’s feelings. It broke his heart to see how racist people were towards his girlfriend. He had to set the record straight. He was in love with her and no amount of hateful comments could change that.

“I don’t want you to feel like you can’t talk to me about serious things,” She paused. “When you’re feeling insecure I want to know. Communication is the only way I’ll know what’s going on in that head of yours.”

Ashton was speechless, he didn’t realize he had such a profound impact on her. He nodded in agreement. "Okay, I’ll try to be more open about how I’m feeling.” She got up from the chair and pulled his head against her chest. She ran her fingers through his brown locks while his arms wrapped around her waist. She pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek.

“You’re my number one.” She whispered.

#ashton irwin imagine #ashton irwin fanfiction #ashton irwin angst #ashton x reader #ashton x black!reader #5sos fanfiction #5sos fanfic

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the-lupine-sojourner · 6 years ago

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Takara’s Hero Academia Season 2 Episode 4 [Eijiro Kirishima/OC] [Female!Aizawa/Hizashi]

Okay, guys! Here we go! The rest of the obstacle course! I’m sorry about not being able to finish episode 2 last time, but hopefully, this will make up for it.

Now, before we get to the story, I want to give a huge shoutout to @elite-guard-hardygal for this chapter because they’re letting me use their OCs, Hiyoko and Ryuji Teichida! They are AMAZING characters and I am so thrilled that Hardygal trusts me with them! ^.^ Hope you like this, my friend!

I’m also tagging @souskena , @dailyojiromashirao , and @fandoms-fandoms-everywhere99 . I hope you all like this chapter, too!

The last thing is the Masterlist for This Story.

Anyway, let's get going!

God Bless and Good Day!

~The Lupine Sojourner

(I couldn’t find a better gif. Sorry!)

I didn’t even know what had happened till I looked where Eijiro and the other guy were standing, only to see a pile of frozen robot parts.

“Eijiro!” I scream. Was he under there?! Had he been crushed!? “Eijiro, hang on!” I am running forward before I can think, not knowing what to do, but desperately hoping Eijiro was okay.

I ran to the collapsed robot, uncaring and unhearing of anything around me. Part of me knew that, with Eijiro’s Quirk, it was more than likely that he’d be okay, but...but what if he hadn’t activated it in time?! What if he was stabbed by a chunk of the robot?!

Thousands of possibilities ran through my head, but as I ran forward, I could feel the vibrations of two people bulldozing their way through the robot, climbing higher. I blink. Oh...shit. I completely forgot that other guy! Was he the one who pushed me out of the way? I felt both boys climbing, but one was faster, and soon enough rumbling and crunching metal was heard, as well as breaking ice.

Suddenly, in a last-ditch effort, Eijiro’s voice was heard screaming above the murmuring crowd. “I’m aalliivvee!” He screams, thrusting up through the last layer of metal with his arms up and a pissed expression on his face. The neck of his PE uniform was tattered from using his Quirk to protect his head, and I clambered up the robot, relieved that he was okay.

“Kirishima from Class 1-A! What a hardcore debut for this rookie!” Dad announces happily just as I come to the top of the robot. Uncaring of the cameras and people watching, I hug him. “Hey, you okay?” He mumbles, embarrassed. I pull back, smiling at him.

“Yup. I was just shocked when the robot fell on you. I wanted to help you out, but couldn’t move the robot with my Earth Quirk, and there’s no water I can control, sorry.” He smirks, moving to more solid footing.

“No sweat. I saw it falling and activated my Quirk just in time. Thanks for wanting to help, though.” I nod. Dad gives a quick explanation of Eijiro’s Quirk, calling it an ‘ultimate shield or a devastating weapon’. I like that line a lot and smile at Eijiro.

“No problem. Anytime.” It had become a kind of promise to each other, ‘anytime’. We were assuring each other that we would always do our best to help each other, no matter what.

Eijiro then growls and glares down the path where Todoroki had vanished. “I can’t believe Todoroki pulled something like that. Geez, anyone but me would have been killed.” He then turns to me and I swear his cheeks are a little pink. “I thought you’d gotten crushed, too, actually, so I was trying to get out to find you as quick as I could.” I shake my head, focusing on making as much of the ice as I can melt as I had water to work with. He...he was that concerned about me? No! Focus!

“I was pushed out of the way by- -” I then start to feel the rumbling of the other person about to emerge and turn just as the silver-haired guy comes to the surface.

“Class 1-A really is full of jerks!” He growls as he smashes through the top of the robot. “I’ll smash that ice guy when I get my hands on him!” I sigh, noting that now his entire body was silver, glinting like he was a living statue or something.

“--him.” I finish, pointing him out. I walk over. “Hey!” I call. “Glad you’re okay...and thanks for pushing me out of the way.” He scoffs.

“That’s what a hero does, right? Heroes save people, no matter what they think of them.” I nod, not sure if I should take that as a compliment or not, then listen as Dad announces this guy’s name.

“Tetsutetsu from Class 1-B was also stuck underneath! What’re the odds?!” I look back at Tetsutetsu.

“Takara.” He nods, then Dad begins the brief explanation of Tetsutetsu’s Quirk; it makes him able to turn his skin into steel. It was pretty close to Eijiro’s Quirk, actually. In fact, Dad used the ‘ultimate shield or devastating weapon’ line again, which to Eijiro’s chagrin.

“Our Quirks are basically the same!” He groans. “How’m I supposed to stand out now?!” I almost stop moving. Huh...I wonder where that came from. Does he seriously think he’ll have trouble standing out? No way! He’ll do just fine, I’m sure!

“You damn copycat!” Tetsutetsu growls. I roll my eyes.

“Calm down, you two. Just be yourself, Eijiro! You’ll be great!” I reply, smiling at him and giving him a thumbs up. He doesn’t reply, still looking upset. Tetsutetsu then nudges me.

“You’re the girl that had the boot on, right? Glad you toughened up for this competition.” Tetsutetsu replies. I nod, continuing to jog over the top of the robot, picking up as much water as I could without using too much blood sugar.

“Yeah, me, too! Recovery Girl helped a lot, and training practically day and night got me back on track for the Festival.” I explain as I slide down the side.

“Good! So it’ll at least be a fair fight before I beat you!” I laugh.

“We’ll see how this goes, Tetsutetsu.” Landing on the ground, I continue running, searching ahead with vibrations to see what the next obstacle is, but then have to stop as several loud booms were heard and Dad announces that Katsuki is using explosions to rocket over the robots. “Clev-ah!” He praises, and something about the way Dad says it makes me laugh. We continue running, and I can’t really tell anything from the vibrations, but I keep trying periodically. The vibration trick took hardly any blood sugar, so as long as I don’t do it continuously, and use my other abilities well, I should be fine. Plus, I now had water, so I had a better chance.

“Class 1-A has learned not to hesitate.” Mom notes, “They’ve seen what the real world is like. They’ve felt the fear, and pain in some cases, of fighting villains. And yet, they fight on, trying to overcome that fear.” I smile at Mom’s praise. It was accurate, and I couldn’t help feeling a sense of pride and happiness as I ran, despite almost being singled out in an announcement again. It still wasn’t something I was used to, though I suppose after today, I’ll be a lot more recognizable, so I have to get used to the spotlight. “They’ve grown, all of them, and they know they have to act quickly if they want to stay alive.” In the distance, I hear more explosions and feel the powerful vibrations of robots falling. I feel a large gathering of students around the curve, and begin to slow down, wondering what they were stopping for.

“For those of you who thought the first obstacle was easy,” Dad snarks, “let’s see how you feel about the second one!” I come up around the bend with Tetsutetsu and Eijiro to see (and feel) a huge canyon with several platforms with thick wire ‘bridges’ left for us to get across.

“Geez, dad!” I groan. “You weren’t joking about this being harder than robots!” How was I supposed to get across?! There’s still no water to add to the amount I have on me, and I doubt just holding on to the wire and scooting across is a good idea. But I can’t see better options right now...so I look around and notice that the wire I’m standing in front of is at a small decline toward the platform at the end of the wire. I grin. Perfect. I grab Eijiro’s arm. “I’ve got an idea!” I whisper. If people heard, they might try to take advantage of my plan. It wouldn’t take a whole lot to power, and it was the only thing I could think of at the moment. I make the platform, being sure to have the pole running through it, and take a breath, hoping this wouldn’t end badly. I motion Eijiro on it. “C’mon, before anyone else sees and tries to hop on,” I whisper. He blinks.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, just hang on,” I reply, stepping on and Eijiro gets on. It’s harder than I thought to keep it up, but I grit my teeth and push off, getting a bit of speed and having to hang on to Eijiro’s waist. I blush but don’t say anything, focusing on the approaching platform. I had to disengage the platform at the right time or the landing would hurt. I leap off and release the platform, returning the water to floating by my side and panting.

“You okay?” Eijiro asks and there is definitely a blush to his cheeks. I nod, moving to the other side of the platform.

“Yeah, c’mon. The quicker we get across, the better.” He nods.

“Right.” I move to the next wire and bite my lip. I was extremely lucky; it was also had just enough decline to do the same trick, but I couldn’t do it too many more times. I still had a decent amount of stamina and blood sugar left, but I couldn’t keep pushing myself like this.

As I stand there catching my breath, I see a girl with short blonde hair practically crawling along the wire, her fingertips glowing as she moved, these solar-panel type things on her back. Intrigued, I watch as she leaps out, the light from her fingertips now also on her feet, seeming to provide her enough grip to climb the last little bit onto the platform.

“You know, watching these kiddoes reminds me of our Festival, honey.” Dad notes, an almost wistful tone to his voice. I shake myself. This wasn’t the time to stop and look at different Quirks. Shortly after the girl, a boy with hair similar to Hitoshi’s appears, with tired eyes and bough physique, climbs from the wire onto the platform. I can’t tell what his Quirk is, but he seems to know the girl, who doesn’t look like she wants to hang around and wait for him.

“In some ways, yes, but we did a points-based Scavenger Hunt as our first game in the Festival.” Mom replies, bringing me back to the task at hand as I move to the next wire.

“It also reminds me that, in the world of heroes, it can hard to get noticed without a flashy Quirk, eh Shota?” I can almost see Mom grit her teeth in irritation at the tease. Dad had nearly won against Mom, he’d told me. Then Mom was able to win by forcing herself to use her Quirk on him to suddenly shut him up and gain an advantage over him, tying him up quickly and winning their match. Dad described the moment as the moment he knew he wanted to hang around Mom a lot more. He said there was something so intriguing about her to him from then on.

All that to say, the difference in the flashiness of their Quirks was a tease Dad used against her sometimes.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Mom growls.

“Wasn’t talking about anything.” Dad is quick to backtrack. “Love you, Shota.”

“Uh-huh.” I smile and get the platform ready again.

“We’re doing that again?” Eijiro asks. I nod.

“Yeah. This wire’s also on a decline, so let’s go.” I urge. He hesitates, biting his lip before he nods and motions me on. Something’s off...but I can’t tell what...

“I’ll push off this time.” He mumbles. I nod and get on. Eijiro shoves off and I can’t help blushing as his arms slip around my waist for balance. I have to focus on keeping the platform stable, but his arms are so strong, it’s a little distracting. If I’d focused more on the way he held me, though, I’d have noticed that he seemed sad and upset, barely clinging to me, but I was too caught up in the fact that his arms were around my waist to actually process anything else, and we reach the next platform too quickly for me to get over the sensation and think straight. People were catching up, so we had to keep moving. This next wire had an incline, so we had to climb, not ride. I grit my teeth. I’d use the water to make footholds.

“Guess we can’t ride on this wire.” Eijiro groans, looking anywhere but me. I shake my head.

“Nope. I’ll make footholds, so stay close.” I reply and start moving. Eijiro frowns.

“No. You go ahead. I’ll climb up on my own.” I frown back at him.

“Eijiro, what- -”

“Just go!” He snaps. I bite my lip. I wanted to find out what was bugging him, but I guess there’s no time right now. “You gotta focus on yourself, okay?” I reluctantly turn around and begin climbing. I don’t make much progress. I have a lot whirling through my head right now. What was that about?! Did I piss him off somehow? Eijiro stays quiet, making sure he doesn’t use my footholds and I don’t keep them long enough for him to try. He took my help the wrong way and I now had to repair this rift in our friendship. I already missed our camaraderie. We’ve gotten so close since the entrance exam, and yet...I still didn’t actually know a lot about his life before UA, what’s driving him. I guess we’ve never gotten too personal in our talks.

I find myself wanting to know more, wanting to understand him better. I wanna know how to tell him I didn’t mean to make him feel bad. Soon enough, we’re on the track again and still Eijiro doesn’t talk to me. I must have really offended him somehow. “Eijiro, wait!” I call as he pulls ahead. “Please, talk to me!” He slows a little, but neither of us stops completely.

“Takara, we have to focus.” He says, voice solemn and serious. I flinch.

“Look, I’m sorry. Since I was little, I’ve always been trying to help out any and everyone I can. I’m sorry if I offended you or something. It’s just an instinct I have. I really wasn’t trying to degrade you or anything.” He sighs.

“I shouldn’t have reacted like that. It’s just--” The blonde-haired girl with glowing fingertips races by.

“Argue later! Focus on this race, idiots!” Eijiro and I exchange glances and blink in surprise. However, she was right. We take off sprinting again, and in a few minutes, I can see the next obstacle ahead.

“Whoa! A minefield!? Are you kidding me!?” I exclaim. Eijiro bites his lip. I turn to him, trying to repair whatever happened back in the canyon. Whatever happened, it was apparent that he didn’t want me to help him, so... “Eijiro, how about we just do our best with this on our own. I do have my vibration trick if I need it and you have your Hardening. Meet you on the other side, okay?” He blinks, then nods.

“Okay, sounds good, Takara.” I take off and Eijiro’s not far behind me. Together, we race across the field, dodging people and mines alike. I try the vibration trick and happen to do it right when someone steps on a mine. I reel backward at the intensity of the vibrations. “Whoa, you okay?!” Eijiro asks, steadying me.

“Yeah. Didn’t think that through. The vibrations when someone steps on a mine are unreal.” I grumble.

“If you’re good, let’s keep going.” I nod and begin running. I didn’t wanna push it, and I had to focus on getting through this course.

“Right!” All of a sudden, when we were about halfway through the field, there’s a huge explosion and out of it comes Izuku, flying on a piece of a robot, zooming across the field like a comet, face hardened in determination. “Whoa, Izuku!” I breathe in shock, slowing but not stopping. That kid is something else… “Damn…” I hardly hear Dad talking, honestly, but that’s mainly due to the ringing in my ears from that explosion, and partly because I was so thunderstruck that Izuku would do something like that.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, though. He’s a wicked talented strategist, able to concoct strategies with little to no apparent effort. Obviously, he’d stockpiled mines carefully, using the increased explosion to send him flying toward the finish line. I smirk proudly. He was amazing! Now if he can just get ahead and stay ahead of Todoroki, he’ll win the first round!

I then shake myself and move faster. I had to get going or I’d lose!

Reaching the other side, I notice Tetsutetsu coming in right behind Eijiro and all three of us sprint for the finish line, when all of a sudden Hanta came in front of me. I tried pushing harder, but he passed the line just ahead of me. I look beside me as I pass, and see Eijiro stepping over the line just before I did. I slow down to a walk, panting heavily. Oh, geez! It was a good thing I did those jogs, but holy shit that was hard!

“Takara Yamada of Class 1-A finishes followed closely by her classmate Eijiro Kirishima! Go, Takara, go!” I blush a little at Dad and try to catch my breath. I need food...I double over, still panting. “Takara?” Eijiro asks between his own pants. “Can we talk?” I blink, for some reason getting flustered.

“Y-yeah…” We walk to a more private corner. He shyly looks away, shuffling his feet. “Eijiro, I’m sorry.” I begin. I didn’t honestly know what I was apologizing for, but I knew I’d done something wrong, and I wanted to initiate this conversation with an apology. He finally looks at me. “No, don’t apologize. You didn’t know, but...it’s just...it’s hard enough for me to stand out as is, and...and you’re so selfless and awesome and you have such a flashy, amazing Quirk- -two of them, actually- -and...well, I don’t stand a chance in this competition if people keep holding my hand. I need to somehow make whatever tiny mark I can.” I blink, then go in for a tight hug. I feel myself tearing up. This poor boy!

“Eijiro, you’re amazing! Don’t you dare throw yourself down like that! I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. It’s an instinct I have, trying to help everyone I can. I promise that’s all it was. I just…” I bite my lip. I’d been about to say ‘love you so much’. What the hell?! I...I...he...he and I are just friends...right? “I just wanted to help.” I finish instead, praying my voice wasn’t as frazzled as my thoughts were.

The memories flash through my head of all the times I have been so thankful to have him by my side, especially in the USJ attack. He selflessly stayed with me, carrying me to safety and staying with me for a while at the hospital, and then during my recovery. It was...it was something no one else had done for me except Mom and Dad, and I guess at some point during all that time...I started developing a crush on him without even realizing...but he wouldn’t feel the same way, I don’t think, so I have to keep it to myself until I get to know him more and can either get over my crush or be assured he feels the same way.

Eijiro pulls me closer and tightens his arms around me almost protectively. “Takara, I...you’re amazing and I am so glad to have you as a friend. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I was just being stupid. Are...are we good?” I chuckle and nod, cheeks warm in a blush.

“Don’t call yourself stupid again and yeah, we’re good.” I tighten my arms automatically, blushing madly at his words and care. I then reluctantly let him go and motion toward the crowd. “Shall we?” He nods and I swear there’s a blush on his cheeks, too. Oba Nemuri cracks her whip and I force myself to keep my eyes off Eijiro, standing beside me. Despite my revelation, we were still only friends. I couldn’t lose my cool so easily.

To further distract myself, I look up and see Izuku’s name in the rankings as number 1! That’s awesome!

“The first game for the first years is finally over.” Oba announces, “And what a game it was! Now, let’s take a quick look at the standings, shall we?” As the hologram appears, I gulp and look at our rankings. I scan for my name, and sure enough, there it is, right on top of Eijiro! Turns out, we ranked ninth! We tied! Hanta was right above us, and Tetsutetsu was right below us. I smile. Okay, this was great! I did better than I thought! Awesome! “Only the top 42 will advance to the next round, but don’t be too let down if you didn’t make the cut. We’ve prepared other opportunities for you to shine.” Oba licks her lips. I frown. Was that really necessary? “Now, the real fun is about to begin; the chance to fully move into the limelight!” I gulp. Crud! What was next?! “Give it your best!” Another crack of the whip and the screen was again that spinning lottery-esque thing. I feel my stomach squirm into knots the longer this goes on. “Let’s see what we have in store for you next!” She cheers. I feel Eijiro brush my hand and see him smiling encouragingly at me. I smile back, trying to swallow my anxiety. The first game was so tough! How was I supposed to keep advancing when they throw- -no! I can only do my best! It doesn’t matter what the games are as long as I have fun and give it my all, right?! “Will your wildest fantasies come to life?” Oba presses as the spinning title continues. I flush. What?! “What could it be? The waiting is torture!” She’s practically whining now, and I am more uncomfortable. “Prepare yourselves...” Thank God! We’d finally find out what’s next! “for this!” The title stops spinning, and I cringe. Shit! A cavalry battle?! I’ve hardly ever played that game!

“I’m terrible at those…” Denki grumbles beside me.

“And I’ve only played in, like, two, maybe...and I was a lot younger. Shit!” Tsu tilts her head a little.

“Plus, it’s not an individual event. I wonder how they’ll split us up?”

“Allow me to explain.” Midnight continues, and the screen shows a picture of Dad, Toshin-Oji, 13, and Snipe (though he was hidden in the background mostly), all forming a cavalry battle team with Toshin-Oji as the rider up top. “The participants will form teams of two to four people each as they see fit. In theory, it’s basically the same as a regular playground game, but there is one difference.” I raise a brow. Oh, man… “Each player has been assigned a point value based on their results from the obstacle course.”

“So that means each team will have a different point value, based on which students are on it.” Ochaco muses. I nod.

“Uh-huh!” Mina concurs, then Oba gets irritated, cracking her whip.

“Maybe you should shut up and let me explain things to you!” She growls. Then calms pretty quickly. “Now then, the point values go up by increments of five, starting from the bottom. For example, 42nd place is worth five points, and 41st is worth ten. And, the point value assigned to the first place contestant is...ten million!” I blink. Holy shit! Izuku’s gonna have a hard time, even just picking a team! Everyone will be after him! Guess that’s what it means to be first in the world of pro heroes; everyone’s after you, jealous of your standing and hungry for fame and recognition. “That’s right…” Midnight continues, “it’s survival of the fittest with a chance for those at the bottom to overthrow the top! First years, these are the rules you’ll abide by! The game itself will last fifteen minutes, individual point values will be added together to reach your team total. Everyone will know how much you’re worth thanks to your headbands. Swipe as many headbands as you can to raise your team’s score.” The screen showed that the headbands were secured with velcro so they’d be easily taken. “Stolen headbands must be worn from the neck up, so the more you steal, the harder it will be to manage them. And another thing; even if your headband is stolen or your team falls down, you can keep playing till time’s up!”

“It’s anyone’s game, then.” Momo murmurs, holding her chin in thought.

“Yeah, and since there are forty-two contestants, there’ll be ten or twelve teams fighting on the field the entire time,” Rikido adds. I nod.

“Yeah, and you have to consider Quirks and how you work well with. It’s really a simulation of agency team-ups and the competition of being pros at the same time.” Denki groans.

“Why does this have to be so hard!?” He groans.

“So if you lose your headband at the beginning, you have more time to make up a plan.” Mina muses. Tsu, next to her, frowns.

“I don’t know, Mina. Maybe we should wait and see how the teams turn out before we start strategizing.” She replies.

“This is going to be rough.” Midnight warns, “You may use your Quirks as much as you like! But. There are still rules: make a team fall on purpose, I’ll slap you with a red card; you’ll be disqualified!” A timer shows up for fifteen minutes. “Now, you’ve got fifteen minutes to build your team! I recommend you get started!” I bite my lip. Eijiro and I each had 165 points since we tied. Unfortunately, hardly anyone beyond our class really knew us and how our Quirks work, so unless I can somehow convince people to team up with me, I’ll have to see who wants me on their team. I should be a horse because my Earth Quirk would make sure that my team wouldn’t be surprised. That and my Water Quirk could defend and attack, so maybe I won’t have trouble getting on or forming my own team.

Eijiro grabs my arm. “C’mon! Let’s go find a team!” I grin.

“Yeah!” He starts leading me to Todoroki, but Shoto’s already talking to Momo, Denki, and Tenya. “Aw, man. Trust Shoto have been already thought up who he wanted and recruited them before anyone else could.” I groan. Eijiro sighs.

“I know, right?! Man, that sucks. Do you wanna form our own team or try for someone else’s team?” I frown.

“Not sure...I’d like to be on the same team as you, but...on the other hand, you yourself said I gotta ‘focus on yourself’, right? Maybe we should just see how things turn out?” I was unsure around him now, what with his strange reaction during the obstacle race, and my revelation. I wasn’t sure how to handle that train of thought, so I set it aside for now. Eijiro’s hand stays on my arm, and he goes over toward Bakugo.

“Screw that! Let’s keep trying together, but if we can’t get on the same team, fine!” I blush. He was suddenly wanting to stay with me? He’d said we needed to focus more on ourselves, but now he was switching tactics? What was going through his head?! Regardless, it was sweet he was trying to make sure we could get on the same team. I suddenly realize where he’s leading us and almost scoff. Katsuki wouldn’t want me on his team. I’m ‘the teachers’ brat’ to him. But I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try...maybe?

Unfortunately, a lot of our class have the same idea. Now that Shoto’s picked his team, they wanted to team up with the next best option. I wonder if he’ll pick anyone…

“Wait, remind me your Quirks are again?! And your names!” Katsuki snaps, looking hella confused. I feel my eye twitch in irritation as we approach. Good God Katsuki is self-centered! He can’t remember anyone’s names or Quirks! Eijiro waves to get Katsuki’s attention.

“Bakugo! Takara and I were gonna try Todoroki, but he already picked a group! You should team up with us!” Katsuki just scoffs.

“Oh, great. Shitty Hair and the Teachers’ Brat.” He grumbles. My eye twitch returns.

“Loose Cannon.” I retort, sticking my tongue at him. Eijiro seems irritated, too, as Katsuki glares at me.

“My name is Kirishima! You know Takara...and my hair’s not that different from yours!” Eijiro barks, gesturing between their hair to prove his point. He then remembers that we were trying to team up with Katsuki. “C’mon, man. You wanna be the rider, right? Takara’s earth Quirk can make sure no one gets the drop on us, and you need a front rider who won’t be hurt by your blasts.” He Hardens his forearm and fist. “That’d be me.” He says, a tad unnecessarily. Katuski scoffs.

“I won’t team up with that damn brat; she’d not what I’m looking for, but I do need someone with guts.” I try not to take that personally and roll my eyes. I saw this coming. I subtly move back a little. Out of the corner of my eye, I see that blonde girl and that dark purple haired boy. They seem alone, wandering from group to group looking for stragglers. Perfect! I wanted to talk to them! They seem like a solid pair!

“Hey, Eijiro?” He turns.

“Yeah?” I hold out my hand.

“No hard feeling, no matter what, right?” He nods.

“Yeah. Sorry he’s being stubborn.” I shrug as we shake hands.

“No sweat. I see a few people I’m gonna try to recruit. See you in the final game!” I wave as I walk off. I may like him as more than a friend, but I can’t just let him consume my thoughts and distract me.

“You know, you’re really missing out with Takara, but...my Quirk was made for this!” I blush a little at the way Eijiro talked about me and force myself to keep walking. The duo I wanted to talk to were just ahead. I notice they’re talking to a girl that reminds me a lot of Asami if she were younger. Perfect! Four’s the limit!

“Pardon me, but can I join?” I ask, smiling at the three of them. “I don’t have a team yet and there’s only, like, ten minutes left.” The blonde girl turns to me.

“Oh, wait. You’re the girl that stopped to talk to that boy, right? If you’re gonna do that crap again, we don’t need you.” I feel a sting of hurt at that, but brush it off.

“That was...complicated, but he’s on a different team, so I won’t be distracted this time.”

“Hiyoko-nee, c’mon. She wants to join and we’d have four people.” The purple-haired boy adds, turning to me and extending a hand.

“I’m Ryuji Teichida, and this is my older sister, Hiyoko.” The wolf girl extends a hand.

“And I’m Chiharu Hamato.” Instantly, I grin. Hell yeah! Asami’s little sister!

“Asami’s sister?” I ask. Chiharu nods.

“Yup! She says hi, by the way.” I laugh.

“Thanks. So, how ‘bout it? We good to form a team?” Chiharu nods.

“Yeah! But...whose the rider?” Ryuji scratches the back of his neck.

“Well, Hiyoko is the lightest...and she can stun the people that get close with her Quirk. Maybe she should be the rider?” Hiyoko twitches in irritation.

“Seriously?!” She growls. “You don’t know their weights! They could be lighter than me, you ass!” Ryuji laughs, holding his hands up.

“Sorry, but I do know your weight, and it makes sense if you’re the rider. C’mon, sis. Don’t be mad.”

“Half sister and I’m just irritated. Whatever you all want to do is fine, though, I guess.” Ryuji nods.

“Okay. Thanks, sis. We’ll be a team with you as the rider.” He smiles at her and puts a hand on her shoulder. She grits her teeth and scowls at him, but somehow I doubt she’s as upset as she looks.

“Let’s get this over with,” Hiyoko grumbles.

I nod. “Let’s all do our best!” Chiharu nods.

“Yeah!

#Fanfiction #MHA #BNHA #OC #Original Character #Original Female character #OC Insertion Series #Eijiro Kirishima #Eijiro Kirishima/OC #Takara Yamada (OC)#Eijiro Kirishima X Takara Yamada

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