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#six gravity imagines
pillow-anime-talk · 1 year
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music & vocaloids month ; thirtieth day.
synopsis: You thought you’d never get a ring with a gemstone, that’s why you stopped dreaming about getting engaged to your boyfriend a long time ago... What a surprise that it finally happened! 
# tags: scenario; current relationship; engagement!au; kisses; fluff; a bit of comedy; faint mention; sfw
includes: gender neutral reader ft. haru yayoi {tsukiuta}
author’s note: whaaat?! last day?! no way...
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That day, you and your boyfriend, Haru, drove his car to the mall to pick out some new things for your apartment. You’ve been living together for over two years and from time to time you did some major shopping to fill up the shortages in cabinets, dishes, kitchen accessories, bath towels, candles or plants. Thanks to the free Saturday, you could afford to walk between the shops and aisles for several hours, and you were really happy to spend time with your long-term partner.
“...Can I buy this?” You showed a cloud-soft, light beige blanket with little penguins on it and wicker hats on their heads. Haru looked at you with a raised eyebrow and amusement in his eyes. “Please... I’m begging you...”
“Do you really need this?”
“Honey, it’s got penguins on it... With yellow hats...” You looked at him with a sad face, hugging the blanket tighter to your shoulders, and he sighed amused. “Can I...?” You said much more cheerfully and he just nodded. “Yay!”
The tall man adjusted his glasses on his nose, and then he and you headed to the cash register to buy the aforementioned blanket.
{ ・゚✧ }
Loaded to the top of your head with bags full of smaller and larger trinkets to your house, you walked slowly towards the elevator that would take you to the underground parking lot. That’s where your car was parked, which would take you home (and maybe for a short while to KFC for your favorite shake or to McDonald’s for a big cup of ice cream with extra topping).
By the time you got to the silver elevator, Haru stopped halfway right next to a nice jewelry store. You also stopped a step in front of him and then giggled.
“But you recently bought yourself a watch, why did you stop?” You asked amused, adjusting the big black bag on your shoulder, and the man just grabbed your hand and led you inside the spacious room. One of the smartly dressed shop assistants greeted the two of you with her best smile, then introduced herself.
“Good afternoon! What can I help you, ma’am and sir?” She looked first at you and then at your boyfriend, and Haru only responded with a slight bow.
“Could you show my partner the prettiest engagement rings with a nice looking stone? To match their eyes.” He asked honestly and you looked at him surprised. First you frowned, then glanced at the employee, who only nodded in satisfaction, and then moved forward, saying something to your boyfriend. At the very end, you glanced at the blonde haired man again, and he just winked at you, amused by the situation.
You felt bags of groceries, clothes, and a blanket fall out of your hands one by one, and then you felt a strong grip on your waist as well.
“Honey, are you okay? Go with the lady and look around. Unless you don’t want to...”
Haru was amused, you almost fainted, and it’s all because of the ring you’ve been waiting for so long and thought you’d never get on your finger!
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previous day ; mayu ♡ next day ; thank you!
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fun-twisted-tales · 7 days
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Let’s settle this once and for all
What are the similarities between these two?
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I saw a post years ago that said they were (paraphrasing here) “the same character through a different lens” and didn’t elaborate.
For the life of me, I couldn’t figure it out. If anything, these two couldn’t be more different.
But that only fuels my curiosity. If you know anything about this, please tell me.
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You know
I was never a big Gravity Falls fan, I wasn't in the fandom or anything
I was a mere casual when I watched the show as a child and I only probably saw 40% of the show, very much not in episode order either
But
Since The Book Of Bill came out, my TikTok has been flooded with Gravity Falls content
And Bill Cipher is starting to grow on me :)
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viceroywrites · 1 month
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deja vu - part 1
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i decided to make a full-fledged multi-chapter fic out of this idea that i posted a few days ago with a cyoa ending potentially
thanks so much to everyone who showed so much love for it and hope you enjoy this series!
this is my first time writing for gravity falls so i hope to do it justice!
planning out your road trip through the pacific northwest, you find yourself inexplicably drawn to the town of gravity falls.
little did you know that this town held more memories than you could have possibly imagined.
too bad you didn't remember any of them.
stan x fem!reader/ford x fem!reader
tag list: @awitchersbard / @theilluminatidragonqueen / @jazzypop-op/ @maryclanders/ @chaimshelii /
@starship606/ @swimmingrascalbatdragon / @stanfordsbaby
He wasn’t in bed.
You woke up in the middle of the night to find the space beside you empty, the blankets cool to touch, indicating that a warm body had not even slipped into the sheets. Begrudgingly, you slip out of the warm comfort of your bed to search for your lover.
Your bare feet pad against the wood floorboards, creaking with each step you take. Your fingers balancing a candle that you used to illuminate the way, too lazy to try and turn on the lights. 
You descend down to the basement, pushing open the metal door that reveals an intricate lab full of oddities and gadgets with a triangle shaped portal looming just behind the glass window. You let out a yawn, approaching the figure that had his back turned towards you. His six-fingers spin the pen in his hand effortlessly as he rests his chin in the palm of his hand.
Your soft yet groggy voice calls out as you place your hand on his shoulder, “Ford, come to bed. Your research will be here in the morning.”
Stanford jumps at your sudden touch before relaxing when he hears the sound of your voice. He puts his pen down, placing his hand over yours with his thumb running soothingly over the back of your hand, “I’ll be there soon, just head back upstairs. I just need to finish this last equation that's been driving me mad the whole day.”
“Stanford…” You say with an edge to your voice, knowing that he could easily stay up the rest of the night working tirelessly on this portal that he had been working on for the past few months.
“Alright… I concede. You win this round, my dear.” Ford sighs, turning to face you finally with a tired smile. He gets up from his seat, pressing a soft kiss against the top of your head before following you up the stairs but not before looking back at the portal.
-
You had the dream again.
It always starts the same. Walking down a staircase, the floorboards creaked with each step you took. Your eyelids feel heavy almost as if you’re resisting the urge to fall asleep. Your feet carrying you down to a basement. The warm flames of the candle you hold illuminating the way.
Your fingertips push the cool metal frame of the door to reveal a figure sitting in front of a desk, facing away from you. Your hand reaches out to touch their shoulder and as they turn around to reveal their face to you, you awaken.
Your eyes open abruptly, staring at the dark ceiling as your alarm echoes through the empty room. Slowly sitting up in bed, you instinctively reach across to turn off your alarm and turn on your lamp before your hand reaches to open the drawer of your bedside table, feeling around for something. Your fingertips brush against leather and wrap around the item, pulling it out to reveal a journal.
These dreams happened almost every night over the years. It had gotten to a point where you started logging them, just trying to find any pattern or meaning behind them.
You turn to the page labeled ‘The Basement’ - adding another tally mark in the margins that you used to keep track of the frequency of each dream. You close your eyes, trying to conjure up any distinguishable features from this mystery person but nothing new arises. 
Sighing, you shut the leather-bound journal, putting it to the side.
Now was not the time to be worrying about your cryptic dreams, you were supposed to be getting ready for the trip you had been planning for the past few months. 
A road trip through the Pacific Northwest, starting in Northern California and making your way up to Seattle.
You hop out of bed to start getting ready for your journey ahead. After completing your morning routine and slipping on some comfortable clothing for the long drive, you make your way to the kitchen, grabbing the map that was stuck to the fridge with a magnet from your alma mater, Backupsmore. 
Having already packed your bags into the car the night before, your feet make a beeline out the door, wanting to hit the road before sunrise to give you enough time to hit the places you wanted to visit on the way up to your final destination for the day, Portland. 
Unraveling the map in your lap, your eyes scan over it, reviewing over the route you had planned out today. Your gaze lingered on one particular spot you had circled closer to Portland that was unlike any of the stops you had chosen.
Gravity Falls.
You couldn’t explain what drew you in to choose this town to stop in out of all the surrounding towns near Portland. You knew that you had an old friend, Fiddleford, who had moved out to this area to do research. You had even visited him once during his time out there. However, you hadn’t heard from Fiddleford in years, correspondence seemingly dropping off as he stopped answering your calls and your letters always ended up returning to you.
Trying to push aside thoughts of your lost connection, you put your car in reverse, pulling out of your parking spot and heading out onto the open road. The winding roads take you through the lush forests that enveloped the region. As each hour passed, you could see the sun slowly starting to make its way up the horizon and decided to stop to watch the sunrise at Redwood National Park. 
After the brief stop that you used to stretch your legs and grab a cup of coffee, you make your way back on the road. Your original plan was to stop at almost every National Park on the way up to Oregon but after hitting a pocket of traffic that put you behind a whole hour, you decide to skip a few stops and make your way directly to the town of Gravity Falls, figuring it would be your last stop with the remaining amount of daylight you had left.
Unfortunately, you had hit another bump in the road, pretty much derailing the first day of your methodically planned out trip.
Your car had suddenly stopped in the middle of the forest about five miles out from the town.
Cursing under your breath, you step out to assess the cause of your delay. Your hands pop open the hood of your car, breathing a slight sigh of relief when you don’t see any steam or smoke. Figuring that the most likely cause is the battery dying on you, you pull out your phone, trying to look up the nearest towing company to hopefully bring you into town to get it looked at.
As you’re waiting for the screen to load due to the poor signal out in this forested area, a gruff voice calls out, asking if you need a hand.
You look up to see a red convertible with the phrase ‘El Diablo’ etched on the side on the other side of the road. Its owner, a man with gray hair, glasses and a stubbled yet chiseled jawline, wearing a black tank, a shiny medallion that sat on his exposed graying chest hairs, and a brown leather jacket, stares back at you, one hand on the steering wheel while his arm dangles lazily outside of the rolled down window.
You pause, taken aback as something about his features seems… familiar. You quickly snap out of your stupor, realizing you’ve just been standing there in silence.
"Uhm… yeah if you have jumper cables, I just need to get my car running to get to the next town and hopefully get a replacement battery,” You reply, figuring this option would be way cheaper than hiring a whole tow truck.
"Of course, I have jumper cables, toots - look at my car, you think I haven't been stranded out here myself." The stranger chuckles, making an effortless U-Turn with one hand before pulling his car close to yours. Your cheeks warm at the nickname given to you by this man you met literally seconds ago, This guy’s a total silver fox.
You step to the side to give him access to hook up the jumper cables after he fishes them out of his own trunk. You both stand in silence while he attaches the cables to your car before his deep voice cuts through, "So uh, what brings you out here? You just driving through?"
You almost chuckle at his awkward attempt to make small talk, "Sort of. I'm doing a whole road trip through the Pacific Northwest. I was gonna check out this town ahead, Gravity Falls, before I make my way up to Portland."
The older man blinks, expecting you to just be passing through the town at this time of a day. Normally, tourists only stop into town in the early hours of the day on their own journeys up north. His lips spread into a grin, pulling out a business card from his leather jacket. "Well, if you're stopping by, you gotta check out the Mystery Shack! One stop shop for mysterious oddities!"
You take the business card with a giant question mark on the front. He retreats back to his car, turning on his engine before nodding over at you as a signal for you to start up your own engine. You slip back into the car, slipping the card into your pocket before turning on the ignition. You breathe a sigh of relief as your car stutters back to life. Glancing up, you see him grinning back at you before the two of you step out of your respective vehicles.
“Thanks again for your help… sorry, I didn’t catch your name. I’m Y/N.” You say, extending your hand out in gratitude. The silver fox’s large hand envelops yours, shaking your hand firmly, “Stan Pines, nice to meet ya. It’s no problem, wouldn’t want to leave a lady like yourself stranded in the middle of the woods.”
“Do you say that to all the ladies that end up stranded in the woods?” You can’t help but tease, earning a hearty chuckle from Stan. “Well, let’s just say that’s not a common occurrence out here. So you thinkin’ about stopping by the Mystery Shack?”
You pause, stuffing your hands into your pockets as you thumb the edge of the business card Stan had given you. On one hand, you should probably be heading back on the road to make it to Portland and this Mystery Shack sounded like a tourist trap. On the other hand, the sun was starting to set and you weren’t keen on driving through the forest in the dark. Maybe it would be best if you stayed the night in this quaint town and start again the next morning. As you look up at Stan, you make your decision, deciding to appease the man who helped you so graciously.
You also had to admit you found him quite charming and curiosity got the better of you.
“Sure, lead the way.” You say with a casual shrug. Stan grins, “I’ll make sure you get a personal tour of the Mystery Shack. No need to worry about other tourists.” Your eyebrow raises in amusement before slipping into your car, “What, you know the owner?” You blink at the smirk that spreads across Stan’s lips, “Sweetheart, you’re looking at the former owner, Mr. Mystery himself.”
You bite back a giggle, “No wonder you were laying it on thick, just trying to get more tourists to visit, huh?” Stan rolls his eyes mirthfully “Hey, I was trying to lend a helping hand… though I have a good sales pitch, don’t I?” He grins, shooting finger guns towards you with a wink.
This’ll be interesting. You think to yourself as you follow behind Stan in your car, pulling into the empty lot of the Mystery Shack. You snort, seeing how the S dangles off the side spelling out Mystery Hack, before pointing it out to Stan as he exits his car. His features grimace as he grumbles out, “I noticed” before beckoning you to follow him, twirling his keys on his index finger.
Stan proceeded to give you a detailed tour of the Mystery Shack, spinning elaborate tales surrounding the variety of taxidermy animals that he had mismatched together. Despite the absurdity of it all, you can’t help but get sucked into his tales, seeing the clear passion and excitement he had for this place. You burst out into laughter at the sight of the Sascrotch to which Stan beamed at, “Good one, right? Probably one of the highlights of the Mystery Shack.”
You weaved your way through the shack, though there were certain sections of it that looked oddly familiar. Almost like you had walked down these hallways before. A wave of deja vu hit you as you walked through the doorway into the gift shop. “Usually this is the part where I try to sell people on an overpriced souvenir but I have a feeling that the whole schtick isn’t gonna work on you, is it?” Stan admits.
“Probably not but I’ll take a look around and see if there’s anything that catches my eye.” You chuckle, making your way around the space as your eyes scan the various trinkets. Your fingertips run across the mugs with question marks painted on them. You decide to use this opportunity to make small talk as you mill around the gift shop while Stan leans back against the counter, “So, you said you’re the former owner? Who owns it now?”
“One of my former employees, Soos. Kid’s been working for me since he was… well a kid. Only person with as much passion as me about this place.” Stan says, glancing over at the Employee of the Month picture that still hung behind the counter that showed a younger Soos. “What made you step down as owner?” You hum, thumbing through the t-shirt rack. 
Stan smiles fondly, “Me and my twin brother actually just got back from traveling, we’re only in town for the summer. It was always our dream to travel the world together by boat, and we finally got to make that happen.” You look up, smiling at how warmly he spoke of his brother. Stan catches you staring and crosses his arms defensively, “What?”
“Nothing,” You say, shaking your head before thumbing through the assortment of keychains and stickers that were displayed. “So twin brother, huh? What’s he like?”
“You’re sure asking a lot of questions… not sure if I should be flattered but it feels like I’m being interrogated by a government official.” Stan comments with a grin. You pause with dramatic effect before looking up and admitting, “Well technically, I do work for the government.”
Stan freezes, his stance becoming defensive as he looks you up and down, “Oh shit, really? Man, these cover-ups are getting better and better but I swear I haven’t broken any laws… recently at least.” Your warm laughter fills the room, finding the look on his face priceless, “Relax, I work for the National Parks.” Stan’s posture relaxes at the realization and he rolls his eyes, “Alright, you got me good. So what do you do? Are you like a park ranger or something?”
“No, I’m a geoscientist. I pretty much study rocks and fossils. Kinda boring day to day but sometimes I’ll come across a precious gemstone and keep it for myself… even though we’re not supposed to take anything off a dig site.” You admit sheepishly, rubbing the back of your neck. “Using the government’s resources to your own advantage? I like the way you think.” Stan chuckles.
You pick out a magnet to add to your fridge when you return as a reminder of your side quest at the Mystery Shack. Stan rings you up though you notice a significant markdown in the original price after he insists on giving you the employee discount. As you walk out of the gift shop outside, you round the corner back to your car. 
Little did you know that you would run into the man that you once loved as someone with a long tan trench coat was outside fiddling with a device with his back turned to you. Stan elbows you in the arm to catch your attention, "That's my poindexter brother that I mentioned, Ford. He's always working on some geeky invention."
"You know I can hear you, Stanley?" Ford sighs, turning around to face you two.
Time slows down as he meets your eyes, memories flooding back to him before landing on the last memory he had of you - your back turning away from him, your hand slipping through his fingers after he chose to continue with his research despite your pleas.
He freezes, seeing the woman that left him all those years ago, "Y/N?" He calls out to you.
You blink, staring back at this man that you had never met before calling out your name.
Stan is just as confused as you are, looking between the two of you. 
You tilt your head in confusion, “Uhm… sorry, have we met before? How do you know my name?”
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gay-dorito-dust · 2 months
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Remember how Ford made himself a target during weirdmageddon by admitting that he knew the equation to collapse the barrier on gravity falls to keep him distracted so he wouldn’t go after his family, even if that meant he’d go through a f*ck ton of torture?
I think he did the same thing back in the 80’s when he realized Bill was evil but didn’t go to you for help. Sure, maybe half of it was him not believing he had any right to reach out to you for help after he essentially ghosted you for months because of Bill’s influence, but the other half was definitely him wanting to keep you as far outside of Bill’s reach as possible.
If we’re being real, Bill likely threatened to possess his body and hurt or maybe even off you, so as much as it pained him to stay away, he believed you’d be safer if he did.
The sad thing is, you got hurt regardless.
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Dunno if this answers your ask or not, I’ll let you decide.
I imagine that Ford has like a two page spread dedicated to you in his journal, very much in the same way he had a page dedicated to heavily debating whether or not he should reach out to Stanley for help.
But instead of the page being full of cons why Ford shouldn’t contact you, it’s him admitting to his biggest and most stupidest regret he’s ever committed: pushing you away and how he truly believes that in order to keep you safe he had to cut connections with you and go non contact. His hand ached like hell from when Bill tried to punch and scratch the door to the portal but the ache in his heart was ever greater than that.
The page would be covered head to toe in drawings of you and your sweet smile, maybe even adding a picture of you both when you were younger. Bill might’ve been his muse for a while but you were his lifelong muse that he has tossed aside for something temporary.
You grew up with him and Stanley and knew him better then he knew himself in most cases and instead of repaying the favour, Ford fucked off to gravity Falls and dedicated himself entirely to his work, isolating himself from anyone and everyone and would often double down on this when confronted about it.
Though sooner or later the regret settles in his chest as he soon realises that he was on his own after Fiddleford left.
He had let bill consume him from the inside out and made him believe that no one outside of them both should matter or be worth a second thought; Even you, his once dearly beloved. The one who didn’t see his six fingers as an abnormality but a gift, a blessing even to his distinct uniqueness. You gave him your all and he gave you nothing in return. How selfish of him.
Ford wouldn’t be surprised if you had forgotten about him or had your heart sour at the thought of him and moved on after awhile. he couldn’t blame you, he never could as he felt it was a befitting punishment for never having bothered to reach out and respond whenever you asked him if he was okay, or taking care of himself. All you wanted was for him to be safe and enjoy Gravity Falls for what it was and not what he wanted it to be and Ford didn’t even do that.
Ford was certain you’d be ashamed of him and the things he’s done alongside Bill, or the things Bill did while possessing him. You’d probably wouldn’t recognise him anymore even if he did reach out to you.
He wanted to reach out to you, he really did but he didn’t feel as though the reception he would receive wouldn’t be a warm one. You wouldn’t smile at him lovingly or call his name with a fondness and hug him tightly, but instead look at him as though he was the cause of all your misery because in some aspect he was, and never had he regretted it more then he did now when his own loneliness became evident and hard to deny.
Bill would’ve made multiple threats to Ford that he’d kill you or torture you while possessing him so that it would look like he was the one hurting you if he ever thought about reaching out to you, and he’d make sure that it would haunt him for the rest of his life knowing that he couldn’t do anything to protect the one he loved the most. Bill would make a point with your theoretical death as to keep Ford in line.
Ford probably even have hallucinations of you dying or dead before he could even reach you and would believe that this was a sign to not get you involved in his mess. He has no right to reach for you after being silent for so long, which is why he decided to take the risk and reach out to Stanley instead, only with the promise that he didn’t tell you what was going on no matter how hard it maybe for him to not do so, as he knew Stanley has a weak spot for you -his honorary sibling or in law should Ford have actually married you- and it had been that way since you were kids.
However despite all the risks Ford has put himself through, you were still nursing a broken heart over his lack of communication ever since he moved to Gravity Falls. Maybe he had forgotten all about you during his stay, or finally felt relived that he was leaving town that he forgot you were the reason it was bearable? Whether the reason it didn’t stop your heart from hurting knowing that the perfect man you’ve known since childhood had left you in the past while he headed towards his future, alone.
You’d love him, you’d never stop loving Ford and you don’t think you ever could and what hurt the most was that he might’ve felt something, or nothing at all for you, but you’ll never get that answer from him directly so you decided the answer for yourself and have been living with a broken heart ever since.
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just-jordie-things · 1 year
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you know you got me in your pocket - okkotsu yuuta
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word count: 13k warnings: light swearing.  reader has a cursed technique that has to do with healing but i don’t explain it bc i’m lazy. summary: the path from friends to lovers may take time but it is a simple, true love they share more info: ultimate friends to lovers fic this IS the template a/n: loosely based on this fanart i found on pinterest and also the song always forever by cults bcuz i love that song its so friends to lovers coded ___
[ you and me, always, forever ]
Unlike most cases of friends who harbor crushes for each other but never seemed to figure it out, (y/n) had taken a liking to Yuuta the day they met.  She’d known right away that there was something about him that drew her to him like a magnet, something adorably mysterious, strangely alluring, and completely thrilling.
Seeing him on campus wasn’t a surprise.  Gojo had told her about his recruitment, and upon giving her further detail she’d lovingly told him it was more of a kidnapping.  He’d laughed.  And since then nothing had really changed.  She continued her studies with Shoko in the infirmary, only occasionally seeing the Six Eyes when he needed a new audience to bother, and in fact, she’d almost forgotten the news of a new student her age.
It’s not like there were many instances where she could be reminded.  She didn’t see the other students at Jujutsu Tech often, since they spent their time training to be sorcerers, while her cursed technique was more equipped for the behind the scenes of jujutsu society.  
So when she feels a heavy presence of cursed energy looming through the front gates, the hair on the back of her neck stands up, and she’s unusually drawn out of her studies to scan the area for the source of the prickle traveling down her spine.
If she didn’t know better, she might have just assumed it was just Gojo.  But it only takes a split second for her to identify this as someone else entirely.  She’s not sure if her shiver is due to fear or intrigue, but either way she just has to learn more, doesn’t she? 
And so you could imagine her surprise when she finally catches the sight of the sorcerer carrying all of this cursed energy, dragging along the main path on his way to the main building.  She can’t recall his name right away, but she assumes he’s the new kid that Gojo had told her about a week or so prior.
She’s far enough away that she doesn’t get a good look at him, but she can see enough from where she sits amongst the trees.  He’s not at all what she had been expecting.
He didn’t look like the piece of shit egotistical douchebag that she had assumed he’d be when Gojo had told her about him.
And if she couldn’t feel the cursed energy radiating off of him even from this far away, she might’ve thought he was a non-sorcerer altogether.
His shoulders sagged like gravity was heavier on him than most people.  He moved slowly.  His sneakers scraped along the pavement.  His hands were fiddling with each other anxiously, fingers catching and pulling and twisting over and over.
Perhaps she was letting her curiosity make her naive, but any fear she might have felt when he first entered the courtyard dissipated as she tracked his awkward movements towards the school.  Awkward.  It was the perfect way to describe her first impression of him.
He hadn’t seemed to notice her during her assessment of him.  And this was proven when their paths did properly cross.
It had happened late one evening, shortly after Yuuta’s initial admittance to Jujutsu Tech.  It only took one text from Shoko for her to be out of bed, in her uniform, and on her way to the infirmary.  Apparently, Yuuta was also racing around campus, for whatever reason, and that’s how he (almost literally) ran into her.
“Oh!” 
His greeting was just as awkward as her first impression of him.  She can’t help but laugh a little bit.  He’s clearly flustered, his eyes wide and his mouth not making any proper words, and the large knife in his hand looks severely out of place.
But he must see her look straight at it while he’s trying to figure out how to politely ask who the hell she was because he’s never seen her before- because suddenly he remembers how to speak.
“This isn’t mine!” 
He doesn’t mean to shriek, but he feels like he should explain why he’s running around at night with a knife.  It doesn’t dawn on him at all that she’s used to people casually carrying weapons around, and this little knife isn’t even close to being a concern for her.
Nonetheless, she goes along with it.  She should be rushing to the infirmary, but something keeps her put before him.
“Oh?” She tries not to laugh as she takes in his heavy wince.  “While I find your courage outstanding, I’m not sure this is the place you want to go stealing people’s knives,” She’s only teasing, but it does nothing to relieve the panic on his face.  “You know, cause people around here don’t need knives to kill you,” 
Yuuta swallows, and (y/n) finally gives him a break and shakes her head as she laughs to herself.
He expresses his anxiousness in small shuffles of his feet, and he tries to laugh along but the sound is strained and nervous.  If she knew him better and understood him, she likes to think she’d tell him to lighten up, but that feels like a bold step, so she tries to ease his anxiety with more subtlety.
“You didn’t spook me with that knife,” She clarifies.  “I’d be more scared of all that cursed energy you’ve got, if anything” 
“O-oh” 
“But I’m not,” She tells him, matter-of-factly.
He gives her a look like he’s not sure if he should believe her.  With the way the other students had reacted when they first met, he’s surprised she doesn’t have him in a chokehold right now.  Instead, she stands before him without a defensive stance, and she gives him a small smile.
“But… what are you doing out this late?” She can’t help but have curiosity about what he was doing there in the first place.  “Aren’t you all going out on an assignment first thing in the morning?”
Normally, she didn’t listen much when Gojo rambled on about his teachings.  However yesterday’s lessons with Shoko had been few and far between, so when her old friend stopped by for entertainment, she boredly listened along while he bragged about taking his class on a group outing.  She supposed that little piece of information became useful for small talk now.
“Yeah, well,” Yuuta sighed, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously.  “I was supposed to return this earlier, but I forgot, and now I…” 
His words trail off, along with his eyes as he turns to stare at the floor out of embarrassment.
“I got lost” 
“It’s Maki’s, isn’t it?” She asks knowingly, even though she’s not familiar with this knife.
Yuuta nods.
“I’ll show you the way” She says, gesturing for him to follow her, and walking off before he could really comprehend what she was offering.  His sneakers squeak on the linoleum floor as he rushes after her a few seconds delayed.
He takes a minute or two before he finds the courage to say something.
“Thank you,” He settles, peeking over at her from the corner of his eye.  “I’m Yuuta, by the way” 
She turns to give him a beam as she replies, “I know,”
It has a lump forming in his throat, his chest filling with something warm and akin to bashfulness.  He’d never seen her before, and he was certain he would have remembered if they’d met, especially since she was so pretty, but she appeared to be his age too, and he wondered why she hadn’t been around for any classes, or training sessions.
“I’m (y/n)” She introduces herself after a beat passes.  Yuuta wants to say something more, but he doesn’t know what to say, so he doesn’t say anything at all.
He fidgets with the knife as he follows her through the corridors.  It’s a large building, and the longer they walk, the more he’s grateful he hadn’t gotten more lost than he had.  It takes a few minutes until she finally stops at a door, and slides it open.  Yuuta recognized it as soon as it’s contents were revealed.
Every inch of the walls were filled with weapons.  Racks with blades and staffs of all shapes and sizes, shelves of an assortment of more alternative weapons, he’d been in here when Gojo had given him a speedy tour on his first day.  Although now that he’s not being rushed from room to room, his gaze travels around the small space, taking in every deadly tool here.
“You’ll get used to it” (y/n) speaks, and he’s drawn out of his reverie when she plucks the knife from his hands to put it back in it’s proper place.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to any of this” He mumbles back, eyes caught on a rather daunting gun propped up among other things.
Nunchucks and knives were one thing.  He was pretty sure that was an AK-47.  He’d only ever seen those in movies.
(y/n) chuckles softly, amused by how out of place he seemed.  For a guy with more cursed energy than he knew what to do with, she found it interesting how juvenile he came across.
Not that it was a bad thing.  It was sort of… refreshing, if she thought about it.
“You will,” She assured him kindly.  “It’ll feel weird for a while, but, yaknow.  Eventually everyone settles in, right?” 
He tears his eyes away from the machine gun to see that she’s giving him a small smile, and he doesn’t know her very well, or at all, but he can tell that she’s being genuine.
“I guess”
He doesn’t know what else to say.
“Well, I have to get going to a lesson,” She explains, jerking her thumb back towards the door.  “You good to get back to your dorm? I probably wouldn’t get in trouble if I explained I was just helping the new kid” 
Yuuta nods, the movement awkward, and shaky.
“Yeah, I’m good, I think” He doesn’t sound so sure, but (y/n) assumes the best way for him to learn his way around is to get lost just a little.
“Alright, I’ll see ya around then,” She gives him a wave as she ducks out of the small armory.  “Good luck with your assignment tomorrow!”
Her voice carries as she jogs through the corridors to quickly get to where Shoko was waiting, leaving Yuuta to linger, a bit dumbfounded and bewildered by the whole interaction.
He supposed he’d gotten her name, but he still had no clue who she was.  He’d have to make a better effort to reach out next time their paths crossed.  She was the first person here to give him a semi-warm welcome, after all.
When (y/n) arrived at the infirmary with a brighter-than-usual smile and the remnants of a blush on her cheeks, Shoko eyed her curiously, but didn’t outwardly call her out on the strange demeanor.
[ say you’ll stay, never be severed ]
The next time Yuuta does see (y/n), he’s sitting alone at a picnic table in the courtyard with only the company of his lunch bag.  He sees her walking out of the building with a bag on her shoulder.  She’s clearly on a mission, but he finds himself calling out to her and waving his hand anyways.
He assumes she’ll give him a polite nod and keep heading on her way, but she stops in her tracks to turn his way, waving back, before she’s actually walking over to him.
It’s embarrassing to admit, but Yuuta panics a bit.  He had yet to form any solid enough friendships with the other students in his year, hence the lunching alone out here, and he had a worry that soon she would also see him as a loner and an outsider, and she’d avoid him too.
But as she approaches the wooden table, she gives him a smile so friendly he could never believe it was forced.
“Hey,” Even her voice sounds kind.  “You eating alone?” 
“Uh-” Yuuta glances around as if looking for an excuse, but the bento box in front of him and lack of any other person around is evidence enough.  “Yeah” He replies sheepishly.
Here it comes, Yuuta braces himself, the beginning of her thinking he’s a loner.  He shouldn’t have even held onto that scrap of hope when she’d walked this way, but here he was, holding his breath.
“Want company?”
His head turns back to her, assessing if she really meant it, and seeing that small smile still curled on her lips, he gives her a short nod.
“Yeah,” He answers.  “Yeah, that’d be… nice” 
Her small smile turns into a grin as she sits on the bench across from him, setting her bag on the table.
“How are you settling in?” She asks him kindly, and he gives a weak shrug of his shoulders.
“I guess… as well as I can,” He says honestly, and she nods back in understanding.  He pushes past the urge to sit in silence where he knows he can’t say the wrong thing, and continue talking to her.  She’s nice, he tells himself.  She’s nice, and I want to make friends here.  I want to be happy here.  “I think everyone’s a little afraid of me, to be honest,” He admits.  “Or they’re annoyed with how behind all of them that I am” 
“Maki can be a little stand-offish,” (y/n) thinks aloud.  “And Inumaki is hard to get to know at first.  But he’s a really nice guy once you do get to know him.  Just don’t be nervous when he’s silent.  He’s a goofball,” 
Yuuta takes her advice to heart, hoping that she could give him all the keys to friendship he’d been lacking.  He nods earnestly.
“And so is Panda,” She continued.  “But it’s been awhile since there’s been someone new around here.  That doesn’t really happen for us” 
“Really?” He asks, and she nods.
“Yeah.  Most of these people have known each other since they were young.  Or at least are aware of each other’s clan politics” 
“I see” Yuuta mumbles, feeling yet again like an outsider.  (y/n) can tell this information doesn’t sit well with him.
“I think it’s nice,” She says boldly, and truthfully.  He stares at her like she just said something ridiculous.  “When the only people you get to see every day are people you’ve known your whole life, it can be sorta lonely,” She admits with a small chuckle.  “It’ll be nice to get to know someone new,” 
She leans over the table a bit, setting her elbows down so she can rest her head in her hands.
“If that’s not too forward” She says with a bashful smile.
Yuuta blinks once, twice, before shaking his head with certainty.
“It’s not” He says, fast.
“Good,” (y/n’s) beam brightens.  “Want to have lunch with me again tomorrow?” 
He nods again, his nerves starting to melt away, letting him smile back at her.
“Will you be in class tomorrow?” He asks hopefully.  Maybe now he’ll finally have someone he can sit with, even if he’s still too shy to strike up a conversation, at least he won’t feel so alone all the time.
“Oh,” (y/n’s) lips quickly fall to a frown.  “I’m actually not one of Gojo’s students,” She tells him, and it makes her sad to see him deflate so fast.  “I’m training in the infirmary, with Shoko.  Have you met her?” 
Yuuta shakes his head.
“I don’t think so” 
“Well I’ll introduce you sometime,” She tells him.  “But I don’t have a decent enough cursed technique to be a sorcerer, so I’m studying under her in order to go more into the… background things” She explains.
“I see,” Yuuta tries not to let his disappointment show, so as not to make her feel bad.  He focuses instead on getting to know her better.  “So you’re working in, like, the medical field then?”
(y/n) nods her head from side to side.
“Something like that,” She chuckles.  “It’s mostly watching Shoko use her technique to heal injuries after rougher assignments.  I don’t get to use mine too much, but I’m starting to learn how to heal myself, so that’s a start, I suppose” 
“That’s cool!” 
(y/n’s) eyes blink wide in surprise.
“You can heal yourself?”
“I mean, I healed a papercut once” She laughs bashfully.  In comparison to Shoko’s reverse cursed technique, doing a shoddy job at patching up a small slice on her finger seemed like a joke.  But Yuuta grins like he’s never heard anything more interesting.
“You’re lucky,” He tells her, and she raises a brow at him, wondering if this was all some elaborate prank where he’d wind up laughing in her face at how weak she was compared to everyone else, compared to him.  “That’s a really useful ability.  That’s not background at all.  It’s helpful” 
As she processes the kind words, (y/n) wonders if this is why she’d felt drawn to him when they met a few nights ago.  Underneath the shy exterior Yuuta displayed was nothing but kindness, and warmth.  She could feel it in her cheeks, and in her chest.  Her heart even stuttered a little.
“I mean, I barely have a handle on it,” She admits.  “I don’t think I’ve been all that helpful to anyone” 
“But you’re learning, right?” Yuuta shrugs a shoulder in understanding.  “I guess that’s sorta how I feel, too,” He realized, dropping his gaze to his forgotten lunch as he thought about it.  “I just want to be…”
He trails off, but (y/n) waits with eager anticipation for him to continue his thought.
“Useful”
His voice is quiet, and his expression is unsure as he looks back up at her.  Suddenly feeling like that was far too pathetic of a thing to say to someone that he’d like to become friends with.  But before he can backtrack and supply a better word, like strong or courageous, she’s grinning.
Her face nearly splits in two as her beam stretches from ear to ear, all teeth and twinkling eyes to match.  A small laugh escapes her before she starts to nod passionately.
“That’s exactly how it feels,” She agrees, filling him with relief so strong it’s visible in the way his shoulders relax.  (y/n) notices, but doesn’t say anything.  Something warm and fuzzy nestles in her chest, and she has a good feeling about this new friendship blossoming.
Truth was, (y/n) got along fine with the other students here, but they’d only cross paths on occasion and she couldn’t say that she was necessarily close to any of them, simply on good terms enough to catch up in brief passing with one another.  The disconnect between her studies and the rest of the sorcerers-in-training around here was a trench of a gap, and if she was honest with herself, it could prove to be a little lonely.
Shoko was a great teacher, she was kind and involved, but she was still a teacher.  Gojo was… about the same, with just a bit more peskiness to him when it came to involving himself.  But it was all in good nature, he knew that she was a bit isolated here.
But then Yuuta came along.  And even just this short interaction had her glowing with excitement at finally forming a connection with someone.  He probably thought she was just being pleasant since he was the new kid and he’d been eating lunch alone, but it couldn’t be further from the truth.  She had a genuine interest in him that had started innocently enough, but she had a feeling it would only blossom into something more.
“I think that we’re going to be-” 
She’s about to voice this thought, about to tell him that she knows in her heart that they’ll make excellent friends, but her timing was just a tad too slow, and she was interrupted by her phone ringing.
With the intention of silencing it and ignoring the call for now, she gives him an apologetic look before pulling it out of her pocket, only to huff when she realizes it’s not a call she can just silence.
“Sorry,” She frowns.  “It’s Shoko, I should take this, she’s probably got something for me back at the lab” 
“It’s alright,” Yuuta smiles as he shakes his head in understanding.  “I get it” 
“Thanks,” (y/n) grabs her bag as she jumps up from the table, disappointed to cut their time short, but excited to see what Shoko would have in store for her today.  Before she can race off, she pauses, one hand gripping the strap of her bag and the other occupied with the phone that’s still ringing.  “Lunch tomorrow though, right?” She double checks.
The pink that dusts Yuuta’s cheeks is undeniable, and it makes a smile bloom on her face, too.
“Right” He says with a shy nod while he rubs his clammy hands over his knees.
“Alright,” (y/n) nods back, and she’d like to think she’s smooth, but she’s blushing just the same.  “I’ll see you tomorrow then, Okkotsu” 
She takes off before she can see his face turn from pink to red, his enthusiasm for having plans with a friend- a cute friend- shining in the heat of his cheeks.  
He spends the rest of his lunch period trying to think of things to talk to her about tomorrow, questions to ask, stories to share.  He racked his brain for fifteen minutes before going to class, where he then gets a little lost in space as he wonders about it some more.
[ you know you got me in your pocket, you don’t just have to wait around ]
When (y/n) feels that lingering fuzziness in her chest turn into something more, it was shortly after she’d spent the better half of an hour telling Shoko that her friendship with Okkotsu Yuuta was just that.  Friendship.
“If you say so,” The woman shrugged a shoulder as she pulled the gloves off of her hands, getting ready to wrap up the day.  “Just sayin’.  You talk about him a lot” 
(y/n) gave her a look, blindly tossing her own latex gloves into the trash.
“He’s my friend, I like talking about him,” She explains with nonchalance, even though her heart stuttered in her chest a little bit, as it did every time she mentioned him.  “And I’m also a boring person.  There’s not much to talk about”
“That’s not true, but whatever” Shoko brushes off the lame excuse, and (y/n) rejoices inwardly that the topic can be dropped before Yuuta actually shows up in a few minutes.  
Like most days, they had plans to meet up for lunch, except today they’ll be spending it with the rest of the first years.  After a couple of months, Yuuta finally felt like he belonged here, and had made decent friendships with his peers.  This morning he had texted her to ask if it was alright if they joined them.
[yuuta] : panda offered us seats at the lunch table with inumaki and maki too. do you want to have lunch with them? 
[yuuta] : ok if not!! just wanted to extend the invitation !!
It had made (y/n) smile when that second text popped up so quickly on her phone after she’d opened the first right away.  She could practically see him back pedaling just in case she wasn’t comfortable with a larger group for lunch.  Of course she was, she’d typed back an agreement with a little smiley face within a few seconds of reading the texts, but it was sweet that he’d stick to their usual plan of just the two of them.
Don’t get her wrong, (y/n) had grown to really cherish the time the two of them spent together.  She got to know Yuuta very well during their lunch breaks, and during a few hangouts after lessons and training, too.  She was happy to see how much he opened up once you got to know him, and she loved learning more about him every day.  He was kind, and funny in that nervous sort of way, and he picked up on things quickly.  
The couple of times (y/n) had spent her breaks from the infirmary on the bleachers to watch him train with the other first years, she’d seen a drastic change in his abilities with each session.  It wasn’t often that she was able to slip away long enough to get all the way to the bleachers, watch for a bit while having a snack or catching up on some reading, and then get back to the infirmary before Shoko called her out on trying to ditch her lessons.  Still, she was always impressed with how fast of a learner Yuuta was.  Whether it was with cursed energy or with a bamboo staff to practice wielding a proper katana, he seemed to be comfortable with learning how to fight.
In fact the last time she’d watched him, he looked so natural she could have assumed he’d grown up in jujutsu society just like the rest of them.
When he does make an appearance at the infirmary, Shoko notices him outside the door first.  With a smirk, she nods her head to get (y/n’s) attention.
“Your friend is here,” She says with a teasing lilt in her voice, despite her face remaining as stoic as usual.  
(y/n) gives her a look before turning around to see him waiting politely outside.  When their eyes catch, she gives him a smile and waves at him to come in.
“Picking you up for lunch, hm?” Shoko hums.  “What a little gentleman”
(y/n) shoots her another look, this time as if to say be nice when Yuuta walks in.  He’s still wearing his sheath, but the awkward smile and nervous fiddling of his hands makes a sword on his back look out of place.  For some reason, (y/n) has always found his simple juxtapositions adorable.
Despite having met Shoko before, a few times, actually, Yuuta always gets anxious around her.  It was probably her quietly peculiar aura, something (y/n) had grown used to after so much time spent with her, but in comparison to Yuuta’s teacher who’d never learned to revel in peaceful silence, it could be intimidating.
He gave her a small wave and nod in greeting.  Shoko smirked back at him before turning to (y/n).
“You two get back before too long, alright? No funny business” 
Yuuta visibly paled, his mouth opening to make an explanation that wasn’t coming to mind and left him standing there gaping.  (y/n) rolled her eyes as she grabbed her bag, hoisting the strap over her shoulder as she waved Shoko off.
“Bye Shoko” She said with a half-playful glare, before grabbing Yuuta by the sleeve and dragging him right back out the door before he even got the chance to say hello.
It’s not until they’re out in the hall that he finds his voice.
He tugs at his collar to relieve some of the heat from his neck.
“How were lessons today?” He settles for the safe topic of conversation.  Predictably, (y/n) lets out a small laugh.  She always seemed amused when he was uncomfortable.  He had yet to understand why.
“Good,” She’s kind to him today, not teasing him for his flustering.  At least not beyond that little smirk that makes her eyes glint when she looks at him.  “You?”
He nods his head from side to side.
“Maki kicked my ass,” He said sheepishly.  “But I did get a hit today” He said in a quieter voice, but there was still a hint of pride in his voice.  (y/n) beamed at him.  She understood this was a meaningful accomplishment.
“That’s awesome!” She cheered for him.  “You’ll knock her down next time for sure,” 
He thinks she could be messing with him, but when he looks over at her, her beam is nothing but genuine.  He laughs quietly, not as sure as she was, but appreciative of the sentiment nonetheless.
“Just make sure to invite me next time you spar,” (y/n) continues.  “I want to be there for the big day” 
Sometimes, she has a way of speaking that makes Yuuta wonder why she doesn’t really hang out with anyone but him.  She wasn’t exactly a soft person, he supposed it was this line of work they shared, but there was something inherently friendly about her.  He’d noticed it the first time they’d met, of course, and ever since he couldn’t ignore it if he tried.  For whatever reason, she seemed not only to care about him, but she actually believed in him, too.  More and more, Yuuta began to wonder why.
Inumaki, Panda, and Maki are already at a table with their lunches before them when Yuuta and (y/n) arrive.  Panda notices them first, grinning and waving a paw for them to join.
“(y/n)! Long time no see!” His voice holds pure joy upon her arrival, “How’s the infirmary?” 
“Oh, you know,” (y/n) smiles as she shrugs her shoulders.  “Blood.  Bones.  Repeat.  I can’t complain” 
Panda and Toge are sitting on one side of the table, Maki on the other, and (y/n) happily sits beside her.  Yuuta follows shortly.
“Yuuta told me next time, he’s going to knock your ass out,” She says boldly.  Maki raises a brow, her chopsticks stilling over her dish.  “You’ll let me come watch, yeah?” 
Maki’s eyes shift to Yuuta, a glare behind them that has him straightening in his seat.  Maki smirks at his discomfort, and when she turns back to (y/n), she grins ear to ear.
“I do love an audience,” She agrees, her smirk stretching into a grin at the idea.  She looks back to Yuuta, who’s focused intently on his rice.  “You two have been gettin’ real chummy, huh?”
(y/n) simpered at the comment.  Yuuta tucked his chin against his collar in hopes that they wouldn’t notice the way his face bloomed with heat.
“Tuna, tuna” Inuamki giggles as his elbow bumps into Panda’s arm, and he too begins to chuckle as they watch the pair’s reactions to Maki’s simple observation.
“(y/n’s)- uh- she’s-” 
“Yuuta’s a great friend” (y/n) speaks before Yuuta’s stammering can be laughed at any further.
“Must be, to make you finally come hang out with us” Panda says as he tries to quell his amused chuckling.
“Ikura” Toge mutters.
“Yeah,” Panda nods in agreement with the cursed speech user.  “We didn’t think you liked us anymore” 
Yuuta peeks over at (y/n) in his peripheral vision, but she plasters on a smile and shakes her head to disagree.
“Been busy” She says simply.  There is no follow up, no explanation or excuse.  She pops a grape into her mouth and leaves it at that.
Their lunch continues on as expected.  Catching up, teasing, swapping food.  Thirty minutes seem to pass faster than ever.  And despite enjoying himself amongst his friends, Yuuta can’t help but hyperfixate on that small, odd interaction.
It appeared as though (y/n) and the other first years had gotten along just fine.  Even mirroring old friends.  But he couldn’t help but feel like something was off, that things hadn’t always been this way, that there was a rift he hadn’t been present for.  He knows better than to question it straight away, so he matches energy and remains friendly the rest of the break.
But after telling his classmates he’ll meet up with them shortly, he lingers at the table while (y/n) packs up her things.
“That was nice” His voice feels stiff.  He clears his throat.
(y/n) looks up at him as she pulls the strap of her bag over her shoulder, a soft smile curling on her lips.
“It was” She affirms.
Yuuta shifts his weight from foot to foot as he tries to find the right thing to say next.  (y/n) watches this, and waits, patiently, for him to continue.
“I mean I… I like having lunch just… us,” He says, slowly, afraid of sounding too forward and insinuating something that could be off putting to her.  “But I’m glad you wanted to hang out with…” 
He struggled to find the right thing to say.  (y/n) tilted her head at him curiously, before providing the words for him.
“Your friends?” She suggests with a small smile.
Yuuta blinks, color spreading over his cheeks before his smile mirrors hers, and then he nods.
“Yeah,” He concurred.  
It must have been a rush of courage that compelled him to say what he did next, because as soon as he said it out loud, blood rushed up his neck and into his cheeks.
“You’re a great friend, too, by the way.  I’m glad you were here.  Or, well, are here”
She laughs, not because what he was was funny, but because she was overcome by delight by his words that she simply couldn’t contain it.  Her fingers curl tightly around her bag, her heart flutters with something sickeningly sweet in her chest.
This was that something more.  This wasn’t just silly eagerness towards a new friend.  This much more.  It was heavy.  It filled her heart until it burst and flooded her body with warmth, traveling down her spine in ticklish sparks, and ending in the tips of her fingers and toes.  It almost felt like cursed energy, the way it buzzed through her excitedly, on it’s own accord, but she knew better.
This was infatuation.  She was infatuated with Yuuta.  She had feelings for Yuuta.
“I’m glad you’re here, too, Yuuta,” She speaks with every genuine bone in her body, now reinforced with that tingling feeling that has her soft smile turning into a full blown grin.  “Really glad” She repeats softly.
He should feel embarrassed because he knows he’s blushing and he’s having a hard time holding eye contact with her, but for some reason, he doesn’t feel embarrassed at all.  Instead he smiles, bright and beautiful.
“I- I have to-” 
“You have class,” (y/n) laughs bashfully, turning away in an attempt to calm her warm cheeks and dopey grin.  “You should go before you’re late- I- I should go before I’m late” She stammers over her words, which is unlike her and more like him.
“Right, yeah,” He nods in a jerky motion as he starts to turn to leave, realizing he was going to have to run now if he wanted to make it on time.  “But I’ll- I’ll see you after? Maybe? Or do you have plans already we can just wait till tomor-” 
“After lessons works” (y/n) agrees.
“Okay- okay, yeah,” He’s still beaming, giddy with excitement now.  “After lessons” He repeats.
(y/n) giggles as she begins to make her way back towards the infirmary, in the opposite direction as him.  She gives him a small wave as she takes off, and Yuuta’s stunned in place for a moment before realizing that his tardiness was going to get him into trouble.
When (y/n) bursts through the infirmary doors with a string of excuses and pink cheeks, Shoko doesn’t say a word.  Not that she has to, her face says it all.
Yuuta is not spared in the same way.  When Gojo asks where he’s been, Panda is happy to supply what- or who- had kept him occupied.  He was teased relentlessly for the following fifteen minutes, but it didn’t bother him too much.  Sure, he was a little awkward at handling it and brushing off their assumptions.  He just hoped his classmates wouldn’t meddle and tell her about it later.
[ just come here and we can settle down ]
If Yuuta ever underestimated anything in his life, it was Gojo Satoru’s joy in meddling.
It’s a few weeks after the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons.  Jujutsu High is still under reconstruction, but it’s getting somewhere.  The gardens are being replanted, the courtyard isn’t just a pile of rubbish anymore, and slowly but surely, everyone is healing.
Especially thanks to (y/n), who had mastered her cursed technique.  Just in time too, as there were a lot of people that needed help.
Maki was finally recovering after pushing herself through physical therapy at a rate faster than (y/n) had ever seen in anyone before.  She was more amazed than surprised.  She would never underestimate that young woman’s abilities.
Toge was just starting to use his voice again, despite all of his friends telling him to just keep his mouth shut even if he was speaking in onigiri ingredients.  His sore throat still made his words sound choked and raspy, but he communicated with his friends nonetheless.
There were many other sorcerers that had gotten hurt that night, but just as her friends had, they were recovering, physically and mentally, from that horrible night.
Today the sun was shining.  It was still a chilly January day, but something about the clear skies drew (y/n) to linger on the steps of the main building.  She studied them beneath her boots.  Now that they were clear of snow, it looked as though a different color of stone was selected for their redesign.  Not too different, it was still a light brown, almost like sand, but different enough that the longer she stared at them, the more she could pick out the other differences between these and the old ones.  
“Ditching lessons?” 
Her eyes drag slowly away from the stone steps to see Gojo Satoru scaling them towards her.  His long legs had him next to her in a matter of seconds.  Truthfully, Shoko had said she needed a longer smoke break than usual today- which was only unusual because ever since christmas, she’d been taking longer smoke breaks, she’d only just mentioned it today.
“Not really.  Maybe” (y/n) replied indecisively.
“I’m still a teacher you know,” Gojo laughs at her honesty.  “I could get you in trouble~” 
The grin on his face tells her that there was absolutely no bite to his bark.  He just liked to pretend to be an adult sometimes.  (y/n) gives him a half hearted smile in amusement.  His grin weakens at the way hers drops as soon as she stares down at the stairs again.
He already knows what’s on her mind.  He was a better teacher than even he gave himself credit for.
“So he told you about Africa, huh?” 
Her head shoots back up, brows furrowed in a sad expression as she frowns at him.  
Yeah, he told me about Africa, she thinks, bitterly, even the thought making her mouth go sour.  She gnaws at the inside of her cheek roughly.
“I know you’re close.  I’m sorry that it’s happening,” Gojo sighs.  He stuffs his hands into his pockets.  “Kid’s got real potential.  He might even be stronger than me,” 
Just like his grin, his smirk speaks volumes.  (y/n’s) not sure if he really believes that, but she can tell he believes in Yuuta.
“Special Grade Sorcerers aren’t what they used to be, huh?” He asks, and she’s not sure if it’s rhetorical, so she just shrugs her shoulders, and directs her gaze downwards again.
Her throat burns.  Was that tears? 
“It won’t just be Africa,” Gojo says, slowly, like he’s trying to be careful.  She’s never known him to tread lightly.  He must really worry about her feelings.  She wonders why.  “Once he’s mastered his techniques, the geezers are gonna throw him at every curse they can sniff out” 
“I know” 
Her voice is small, but it holds enough certainty for Gojo to understand that she doesn’t need to be told what Yuuta’s future has in store.
“So,” Gojo takes a different tone as he kicks the toe of his shoe into a step.  “You’re not bothered that he’s a young widow, hm?” 
(y/n’s) face contorts into something strange and confused as she looks at him again.  She could almost laugh, if she wasn’t so disturbed by her teacher prying into her personal life.  She could tell him to buzz off, but it’d make no difference.  He’d probably just pester Shoko for the details and that would be even more embarrassing.
“I don’t even know what to-” 
“He cares about you a lot too,” Gojo says before she can finish.  (y/n’s) features relax as her eyes widen a little.  He looks out into the courtyard as if something interesting was happening over there.  “But Africa will be good for him.  And he’ll be back soon enough.  I’ll try ‘n pull some strings to have him visit, or something” 
Her impulse to say something snarky and get him to move on from the topic disappears.  Instead, she gives him a small nod, before tucking her cold fingers into the pockets of her coat.
“That would be nice,” She tells him, quietly, but surely.  “Thank you” 
Gojo grins from ear to ear as he turns back to his.  She has a feeling that under the white bandages, he’s winking dramatically.
He leaves without another word, leaving (y/n) a little bewildered by the sudden exit.  But then she sees another figure ascending the steps, and suddenly the cold isn’t the only thing making her cheeks pink.
Yuuta gives her the same smile he always does when he crosses her path.  Whether in passing or when he’s meeting up with her to hang out, his lips curl into the warmest smile she’s ever seen.  Even as clouds creep across the sky and snow begins to fall, she starts to feel toasty in her hat and coat.
She lies and tells him she has a few minutes to spare even though she’s been gone from the infirmary for a good twenty minutes now.  As they take a short walk around campus, her mood lightens up.  
They don’t talk about Africa.  Only good things.  A funny meme she’d seen, how Toge will be by the infirmary later because he refuses to keep his mouth shut to heal properly.  Maybe that wasn’t so much of a good thing, but Yuuta is laughing as he tells her about the pile of bloodied tissues accumulated at Toge’s desk.  Despite the twinge of guilt for laughing at their friend’s discomfort, she can’t help it.  Yuuta’s happiness is infectious.
This must be what swooning feels like, she thinks as she stares up at him while he tells her about his day.  It’s a silly story, maybe even kind of boring, but she hangs onto every word with eager anticipation at what he would share next.  He could read her the goddamn newspaper and she’d sit there with her head in her hands and give him her undivided attention.  Yeah, this is probably swooning.
“When do you have to be back?” Yuuta cuts off his rambling about training when he realizes they’ve been walking for some time now.
“Oh,” (y/n) shrugs sheepishly.  “Probably ten minutes ago” 
His eyes widen and he stops in his tracks, and before he even speaks she knows he’s about to apologize for taking up her time, so with a small laugh she shakes her head at him before he says a thing.
“Don’t worry about it,” She says, urging him to keep walking with her.  “Shoko needed some extra time today.  I don’t mind if I’m a little late” 
“You’re sure?” He double checks, because he doesn’t like being responsible for getting her behind schedule.  Nonetheless, he catches up to her as she keeps walking along the path.
Little does he know, if he asked her to ditch the rest of the day with him, she would take him by the hand and sprint off campus.
“Positive” (y/n) replies.
They continue to walk in the snow and talk about anything but Africa.  An unspoken agreement that it could wait.
[ oh darling, it’s alarming, to think of us apart ]
Eventually, they have to talk about Africa.
It comes up the morning Yuuta leaves. 
It’s early enough in the morning that it’s still dark.  Panda had helped him load his bags into Ijichi’s car, before giving him a quick goodbye so he could go back to bed.  Maki and Toge lingered a little longer, even in their pajamas.  But at some point Maki cursed about how early it was, gave her new friend a friendly- but not light- punch to the shoulder, and returned inside.
Toge and (y/n) were equally quiet, although for their different reasons.  Eventually Yuuta couldn’t fill the silence anymore, and they were out of time to stall.
To his surprise, Toge gave him a quick hug.  Just enough to give him a kind pat on the back and an eager ‘salmon!’ certainly wishing him luck on his big assignment.  Yuuta thanked him with a grin, proud to understand what he really meant.
Then he turned to (y/n), who’d barely moved an inch since sleepily walking out here.  He’d insisted to everyone last night that they could say their goodbyes then, but she’d stood her ground that she’d see him off today.  The others agreed.
Her arms were wrapped firmly around herself, and the smile on her face was sad when his eyes met hers.  Even when she tried to brighten up, to properly display her pride in him, she just couldn’t quite do it.
Toge watched as they stared at each other for a moment, neither one of them finding anything to say.  For a minute he thought it might be awkward, and he figured he should probably leave now.  
It only took Yuuta one step forward, his arms barely outstretched, before (y/n’s) finding the energy to leap towards him, crashing into him.  Her arms are thrown around his neck as she hugs him tightly.  As she tucks her chin against his shoulder she’s willing herself not to cry, because she knows it would make him feel bad, and that wouldn’t be fair.  Yuuta’s surprise has him hesitating for a second before he’s hugging her back, hoping to hold on just as securely as she’d latched onto him.
“Text a lot,” When she’s certain her voice won’t crack, (y/n) finally speaks.  “And call, too” 
Yuuta chuckles.  His eyes close as he rests his cheek against her head.  She’s never hugged him before, but he’s decided from this one that she’s the best hugger in the world.
“The time difference is-” 
“I don’t care” She mutters, and it’s punctuated with her arms squeezing around him a little tighter.
He returns the affection.
“Okay” He murmurs.
When they have to part, she lets out a shaky breath, and plasters on the widest smile she can.  She hopes he can see the tears in her eyes.  He does.
He gives her and Toge a wave before finally opening the door to the backseat.  He doesn’t say goodbye.  Instead he settles for, “See you later” 
(y/n) manages a little wave back.  It’s not until the car pulls away and is out of sight before a tear falls.  She’s quick to wipe it away.
Her and the cursed speech user walk back towards the main building together.  He gives her a sympathetic look.  She gives him a weak smile.
“Yeah, I know,” She sighs, drying her eyes once more and taking a deep breath in the hopes of not crying again.
He smiles back, but unlike hers, it’s bright, and cheeky.  He draws a heart in the air with his fingers.  She wants to roll her eyes, but she lets out a watery laugh at the action, and she knows her face is heating up with evidence of the truth.
“Something like that” She mumbles.  They don’t say anything else before parting ways to go back to their rooms.
By the time she collapses back in bed, she’s too awake to think about sleeping a little longer before her lesson with Shoko.  Pulling out her phone for a source of entertainment, she finds she already has a notification at this ungodly hour.
[yuuta] : try not to miss me too much :) i’ll be back before you know it
Tucking the blankets up to her chin, (y/n) settles into bed with a small smile.  Yuuta wasn’t often cheeky.  And when he was, it was always followed by a nervous laugh and bright pink cheeks.  Behind the shield of his phone he clearly has a leap in confidence.  She even laughs a little as she types back her response.
[ you and me, always, forever ]
Yuuta had some mixed feelings about going to Africa.
On the one hand, he was ecstatic.  He had finally climbed the ranks in this new life that he thinks could make everything make sense.  He felt a new sense of responsibility along with his new sense of self, and he knows that this debut of his in Africa was the next big step forwards.  He’d prove himself, he’d push himself, and he’d come home stronger than before.  He’d make his friends, and his teachers, proud of taking a chance on him.
On the other hand, his new purpose, this new sense of self that he was still discovering, felt so much more worth exploring when she was there too.  Yuuta wasn’t as naive as some may make him out to be.  He knew what love felt like.  He recognized that the ticklish feeling in his chest when she laughed, he was familiar with the buzz in his fingertips when she walked too close and her hand brushed over his.  He knows when he’s lying awake at night and she’s the one who crosses his mind that it’s no coincidence.
Yuuta knows that his heart holds much more than platonic regards for one (y/n) (y/l/n).  He knows that he adores her.  He knows that his heart longs for her in a way that couldn’t possibly be platonic.  The fact that they’ll have to be apart for some time makes him sad.  It makes him lonely.
Even now, after seeing her twenty minutes ago when they said their goodbyes, he already missed her.  He couldn’t help but text her right away, the desperation for keeping in contact pumping through him like ice, making him feel wide awake even at five in the morning.  The thought of losing touch over the next few months of him being away makes him sweat.  
He’d have to make sure to keep in touch, he makes a mental plan to always text her first thing in the morning, and last thing before he goes to sleep.  That way, even if he got busy throughout his day, he’d always have the time for her.  He wanted her to know that he’d always make the time for her.
Yuuta’s heart is racing, the adrenaline a toxic mix of excitement and anxiety.  Had he eaten a proper meal this morning he might’ve thrown up.
Just as he’s contemplating rolling down the window for some fresh air, his phone pings.
[(y/n/n)]: i take it you miss me already, yuuta?
It’s a silly little emoji, but he swears she’s sent him her heart in digital form and it leaps right from the screen and into his open palms.  He's smiling at the screen and responding with a reaction image he’d snagged from Toge just a few days ago.
[ you and me, always, forever ]
Gojo follows through on his promise.  Yuuta comes back to Jujutsu Tech for a small break after two months in Africa.
He gets to campus earlier than expected, surprising his classmates in the middle of a lesson.  Luckily today the lesson was rating the different flavors of kikufuku from a new shop Gojo had found, so he hadn’t interrupted anything too pressing.
It’s shortly after his early arrival that he asks the question that his friends think they should have placed money on him asking.  Maki mutters something to Toge about how she would’ve won had they done so.
“Where’s (y/n)?” 
While he stares at them with a dumbfounded expression, his friends laugh.  Loud cackling that’s intended to make him feel embarrassed, but he’s more confused than anything.  Even Gojo joins in once he’s not distracted by his leftover treats and Panda merrily tells their teacher that Yuuta’s already sick of them.
“That’s not it!” The poor boy puts his hands up in mock defense as he jumps to explain himself.  “I just want to tell her I’m back-” 
“She’s in the infirmary, genius” Maki crosses her arms, but her displeased attitude crumbles when a smirk tugs on her lips.  Yuuta forces a smile, but it’s awkward.  His nervous energy begins to shine through his excitement about returning home.
It’s not long after this that he’s delivering a string of excuses before darting out of the classroom and running to the infirmary.  Was it a little embarrassing to race towards her like this? Yeah, but there was barely anyone on campus right now anyways, so no one had to know just how eager he was to see her again.
Even though every bone in his body was practically vibrating by the time he made it there.
He peers through the small windows on the heavy doors outside the hospital classroom, making sure it was safe to enter before he barged in.  As soon as he looks inside he sees Shoko leaning against the cabinets.  (y/n) was standing in front of her, her back to the door, but she was easily recognizable to him.  Before he can knock to make himself known, Shoko catches him in her line of sight, and gives him an uncharacteristically wide grin.
In fact it’s so unusual on her face, that (y/n) perks up in the midst of whatever conversation they were having, curious to see what could've caught her interest so much.
Okkotsu Yuuta was not at all what she might have expected.
He gets to watch her light up in real time.  He hears her excitedly squealing from the other side of the door.  And somehow, even though it’s been a whole two months since he’s seen her, the ten seconds it takes for her to fly through the doors and into his arms seems to take too long.
She crashes into him so hard he stumbles to balance his footing.  She’s laughing and bouncing and rambling on, ‘I’m so happy you’re here! You’re early! I would’ve helped you with your things! Have you settled in? Have you eaten? Should we go get some food? I’ll order food! And we can stay in!’ She’s talking so fast that he catches about half of what she’s saying.  He only chuckles, not having the heart to tell her he can barely understand her.
Her arms squeeze tight around his neck before she finally lets him go.  With twinkling eyes and a smile so wide it must be sore on her cheeks, Yuuta’s slowly melting heart completely dissolves.
“Your hair’s different” She tilts her head at him while she admires the way his slightly longer hair is styled around his face.  She lets her curiosity get the best of her, reaching a hand out to gently push a strand away from his forehead.  
Yuuta hadn’t really given any thought to his hair.  He can’t remember when exactly it had gotten too long, when he’d parted it differently so it wasn’t a hindrance, but now he’s second guessing the change in style as if that change had been a conscious choice.
“Bad different?” 
There’s a small giggle in the back of her throat that she can’t help when his brows furrow at her.  He’s so cute, she thinks her heart could melt right here.
She shakes her head at him in a small motion.
“No,” She assured him.  “Good different” 
A small smile tugs at the corners of his lips, a proud little smile, like he’d gotten her to admit her deepest, most well kept secret.
“Good different?” He repeats, his voice dripping with mirth.
She rolls her eyes and crinkles her nose, but there’s no hiding the warmth in her cheeks and the way her dimples show when she smiles, even when she ducks her head from him.
“Shut up, Yuuta,” She pushes his shoulder but just as quickly grabs him by the elbow.  “Now come on! The day’s almost over already and we have so much we need to catch up on!” 
She forgets her bag in the infirmary as they wander campus together for a while, making pitstops to get him unpacked for his short visit and to snack up before they make their simple plans for the evening.  Conversation never ceases, even when she’s trying to place a takeout order over the phone, she finds herself remembering various little stories and jokes that she’d tucked away in her memory to share with him.  
There’s been a change in him.  It wasn’t just the training that treated him well with lean muscle, it wasn’t just the haircut, or the way he’d learned to wield his katana like it was an extension of him.  It was confidence.  It was happiness.  He didn’t stutter over his words nearly as often.  When he spoke he was sure of the things he said.  He would still blush when she got close enough or whispered something exceptionally sweet to him, but he was better at holding eye contact, and grew quite comfortable with reciprocating the small affections.  Maybe that was just it, he was finally comfortable here, and with himself.
Time flies faster than it had when they were apart.  The afternoon turns to evening which turns to the middle of the night.  They’re still sitting on the common room couch, side by side, lost in their own little world as a forgotten movie plays in the background.  Some of it had been watched when they’d eaten, but the takeout boxes on the coffee table are empty now.  Yuuta’s yawning and (y/n’s) eyelids are heavy as she tries to keep her attention on him while he tells a story, his voice getting lower and his words coming out slower the later it gets.  It’s not until he’s slumping into the uncomfortable cushions of the old couch that they even think to check the time.
When they do decide they’ve been up for too long, they make their way sneakily back to their rooms, hoping to remain as silent as possible.  But anyone who was up at this hour would hear their hushed laughter and aggressive shushing.  Yuuta bids her goodnight with the promise of taking everyone out for breakfast in the morning, but before he drops her off at her door, they share one more embrace.
She means to keep it quick, she really does.  She knows he’s tired, and maybe a little annoyed with all of the affection today, but she was so happy to have him back that she couldn’t help but want to keep him close forever.
Yuuta doesn’t seem annoyed in the slightest.  He hugs her back tightly, and makes no move to let her go anytime soon, so she doesn’t, either.  They stand that way at her door for an unknown amount of time, each waiting for the other to pull away first.
It takes some time, but eventually she shuffles out of his hold and gives him a bashful little smile followed by, “I’m really glad you’re home, Yuuta” 
The tension lays itself on thick, making sure to smother Yuuta until the back of his neck feels hot and his heart beats so hard in his chest he’s certain she’s going to notice and tease him for it.
“Me too” He manages to murmur back.  
He’s lucky he’s able to return her sweet ‘goodnight!’ too, because his throat is tightening on itself and he thinks he could start choking just standing there.
When he drags himself back to his own room and his heart calms down- just a little bit- Yuuta decides he’s going to have to do something about that tension before it kills him.
[ you and me, always, forever ]
“This is getting ridiculous,” Maki declares before kicking open the classroom door.  Her two friends follow in behind her.  “It’s actually going to make me sick.  I think we should just say something already” 
“Don’t kick doors down Maki” Panda sighs, but his warning goes ignored.
“Salmon,” Toge shrugs his shoulders, raising his hands to be palms up, as though indicating what else is there to do?
“Well for starters, we get the idiots to talk to each other,” Maki states, picking up the notebook off her usual desk.  
It was the whole reason they came back to class so late in the day, seeing as this particular notebook had the notes from their lesson earlier.  It was important she made the trip back for it before they started their study session.  She did take the better notes of the three of them.
“Apparently all their time together isn’t getting anywhere,” She huffs.  “I swear, all he does is talk about her.  He’s bound to have something good enough to confess already, right?” 
Toge giggles into his collar.
“Ease up a bit, they’ll come around to it when they’re ready, won’t they?” Panda tries to be the voice of reason.  
There’s a pause for silence.  And then Toge and Maki are cackling so hard they have to hold their stomachs to relieve the twisting knots of their muscles.
“It’s been months!” Maki hollers through her mania.
“Salmon!” 
“I mean, how much more of this can you guys take?” She doesn’t give them the time to answer her question.  “I can’t stand listening to him ramble on and on about her.  Did you know the one phone call I got, he talked about her the whole time?” 
“You’ve mentioned” Panda mumbles, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.
“Tuna tuna” Toge agreed, before making a crude motion with his hands that had Maki bursting into laughter again.
Maki rolls her eyes, before grabbing her missing notebook from her desk and stuffing it into her backpack.  She’d been holding back on intervening on these two for months now.  At first, she didn’t care enough.  If (y/n) and Yuuta wanted to dance around each other like children with crushes then that was their business.  But now the romantic tension was so thick it choked her up to be in a room with them.  The lingering stares, the flirty giggles, the blushing- gah- she couldn’t stand it.
Don’t get her wrong, she didn’t hate love, and she didn’t hate either of them for being in love.  She hated wimps.  And these two were being the wimpiest people she’s ever seen for not fessing up already.
Also, wasn’t she just being a good friend for getting two dumbasses in love to admit they’re in love with each other? She did want them to be together after all, they were good for each other.
“I think it’s sweet that he loves her so much!” Panda argues.  “I don’t mind listening to it.  (y/n’s) really nice.  They deserve each other” 
“Oh, yeah, they deserve each other,” Maki agrees but her tone drips with something hostile.  “No shit, do you not see how much she stares at him?” 
Toge’s snickering gets louder.  It wasn’t often there was gossip among the small group, there wasn’t exactly time for it.  But this was rather entertaining, and watching two of his friends trip over themselves with how hard they’d been crushing on each other had been the cherry on top.
“Well, yeah,” Panda finally lets out a small laugh.  “Actually, the other day I was talking to her, and I don’t think she heard a word I said,” He chuckles as he recalls the way her eyes glazed over and a dopey little smile took over her face.  “I don’t know how he hasn’t noticed it” 
“Salmon” Toge scoffs.
“Yeah, he’s more oblivious than she is” Maki agrees.
“But I don’t think we should do anything about it” Panda tries to reason.
“They’re never going to make a move if we don’t say something,” Maki huffs.  “Can’t they just get it over with already? How hard is a confession anyways?” 
“Like you’ve ever confessed to anyone” Panda throws back at her with a proud grin.
Toge makes a sound of delight to see the gossiping turning into something much more interesting.
Maki glares at the both of them before snarling.
“That’s it!” She declares, throwing her bag over her shoulder.  “I’m going to go tell them right now.  Whoever I find first is going to hear great news today!” 
“Maki don’t!” Panda hollers, marching after her out the door.  “It’s not our place! That’s an invasion of privacy!” 
Toge’s enthusiastic babbling of rice ball ingredients follows them out into the hall, eager to see where this was going to go.
The classroom door slides shut behind him, and the sounds of their heavy, quick footsteps drones on until they’re too far to be heard.  It’s not until the room is completely silent that a small exhale of relief is heard, under the large desk that Gojo pretended to use during his lessons.
“I think we’re in the clear” Yuuta whispers, once he’s absolutely certain that no one is left in the room.
He drops his hand from over (y/n’s) mouth, where she’s been gnawing on her bottom lip for the last six minutes in fear that their classmates were going to notice them hiding under there.
“Really?” She asks in a teasing tone of voice.  “Because it sounds like they’re looking for us” 
Yuuta huffs in defeat, a look on his face that completely contrasts her own.  (y/n’s) brightened, grinning from ear to ear and giggling under her breath.  
They’re squished into the small space so when she giggles he can feel her breath fanning over his neck, and even though he wants to grab her by the shoulders and make her come back to reality- which is that their friends are on a rampage right now to get them to confess to each other, something they’d just done minutes before they’d stormed into this very classroom- but he can’t.  He takes one look at her, with her starry eyes and cute smile and he accepts whatever fate has in store for him.
(y/n) had surprised him here, happily announcing she wrapped up her lessons early so that they could spend the afternoon together.  He only had a few days left until he’d be shipped off to Africa again, so she’d worked diligently today to be sure she could give him every spare minute of her free time.  Somehow they’d wound up in the classroom alone.  
One minute Yuuta’s going on about how excited he was to hang out with her and the next thing he knows he’s accidentally letting it slip that he’d like to have her all to himself all the time.  He realized instantly that he’d said something a little too romantically charged because suddenly she’s staring up at him with those damn wide eyes and a smile full of secrets.
He must’ve said something right though, because one thing led to another and she had an iron grip on his collar while her strawberry gloss smeared all over his mouth.
(y/n) smirks now as she reaches her thumb up to his lips now, wiping away a subtle speck of pink glitter that had been left behind there.  Her face heats up as she recalls how carried away she’d gotten just minutes ago.  Until their friends showed up and nearly caught them in the act.  
Had Maki kicked down that door just a minute earlier, they surely would’ve been caught in their scrambling.  More specifically, they would’ve caught the awkward way Yuuta had lifted (y/n) off the desk he’d just set her on, only to hustle them both under the desk, the only half-decent hiding place in this whole room.
“You’re kidding,” She’d mumbled when he drew his knees to his chest and beckoned her to duck under with him.  She crowds into the space, but not without scolding him.  “They’re definitely going to-” He covers her mouth with his large palm, effectively quieting her, just as the door slams open.
Now she knows they should be scrambling out of here, before they were eventually caught- again- but she stays put in the tiny space where their legs are sore and cramped together.
“So you talk about me to all your friends, hm?” She muses, leaning in impossibly closer to give him her best shit eating grin.  It easily has Yuuta blushing from his neck to his ears as he turns his head to relieve himself from the heavy eye contact.
“Yeah yeah,” He mumbles, tugging at his collar in an attempt to soothe the heat.  Just as the embarrassment settles in, he whips his head back to meet her stare with a wild look in his eye that actually catches her off guard.  “But you’ve been staring at me!” He says.
She opens her mouth to defend herself, but the proof had been hollering in this very room just moments ago during Maki’s fit.  Panda had happily supplied the damn evidence.
So she shuts her mouth, and now Yuuta’s beaming at her with victorious pride.  
“So it’s true!?” He asks excitedly.
“You already know that, jerk,” She rolls her eyes at him, but it’s filled with affection.  “You’re the one who’s in love with me!” She says with a jab to his chest.
Yuuta catches her hand with his before she can pull it away, making her pleased little grin fall to something softer.  He’s able to watch in real time as her eyelashes flutter when her glance darts down to his lips, and when she looks up at him again, it’s with color in her cheeks and a sweetness in her gaze that has him turning to putty.
What was meant to be a half-hearted jest based on something Panda had said that she wasn’t exactly meant to hear now hangs in the air between them so heavy it feels like gravity grows in strength.  Her heart is pounding in her chest.  Her hand feels hot in his.  And now she sits with baited breath and wide eyes as she waits for him to say something.
Yuuta’s smiling, his free hand coming up to the nape of her neck, sweeping her hair away before pulling her closer.  She tilts her head towards him, but he stops just before their lips could graze over one another.
“You love me too?” He whispers.
He phrases it like a question, but he already knows it to be true.  He just wants to hear her say it.
Her lips quirk into a sweet smile as her eyes flicker between his, lashes heavy, pupils blown wide in her irises.  She’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, and the thought of getting to love her and be loved by her has his heart racing so fast he’s almost forgetting that he’s asked her a question because all he wants is to kiss her.
“Of course I do,” She murmurs, her soft lips ghosting over his, eager to feel them against hers again.  “Think I’ve always loved you, Yuuta,” She adds in a quieter voice.  A carefully protected deep adoration in her heart, now bestowed upon his.  “Think it’s always been you and me” She hums softly, taken away by the warmth in her chest and the butterflies in her tummy.
She could sit here and whisper sweet things to him for hours, maybe even forever.
His thumb strokes under her jaw in a gentle motion, caressing the junction at her jawline and neck.  He looks radiant, smiling down at her like nothing’s ever made him so happy.  This spurs her into wanting to say more sweet things, but before she gets the chance, he’s slanting his lips over hers.
She melts into him in every sense of the word.  Her free hand reaches for his shoulder, before sliding around his neck so she could lean into him further.  The small space they’re still hiding in only shrinks as she tries to get closer to him.  Both pairs of their legs are too long to keep bent under the desk, so she sticks one leg out, accidentally kicking the chair in front of them but she pays it no mind.  She just focuses on getting closer to him, hooking her other leg underneath herself to give her better leverage and a tiny bit more space to scoot closer.
Her hands are on his collar again as soon as he grabs her by the hips.  He gives them a gentle squeeze and she giggles softly into his mouth, breaking their kiss for only a moment.  They share wide smiles and lovesick eyes before leaning into each other again and sealing their lips in a heated and much more passionate kiss.
They don’t think at all about the noise of the chair clattering across the floor or the distinct sound of their giggling as they get swept away with one another.  In fact they completely forget that they’re only in this position because they’d been trying to keep hidden.  Both too consumed with memorizing the feeling of each other’s lips.  
It’s a sweet moment, really, the first time young lovers get to explore the way the other kisses.  Gently, with timid, inexperienced brushes.  Or hungrily, with eager, heated desire.  Taking their time was a luxury they’d thought they could finally afford.
But this time when the door opens it’s with stealth.  It slides in silence, and the steps that creep in are also with slow precision, so as not to make even a creak in the floorboards.
All that can be seen by the three intruders are the three legs jutting out from under the desk.  A familiar pair of Converse and one familiar Mary Jane with a heart shaped buckle kicking gently about on the floorboards, rocking with delight.
The hushed sound of lips smacking only ceased when there was a giggle, one of them or both of them, murmuring between kisses and giggles like a pair of school children.
There’s a few things that are audible, murmurs of ‘I love you so much’ or ‘you’re so pretty’ repeated between them like mantras.  This continues for a minute until one of the three takes a heavier step than he means to with his paw, and the room goes completely silent- save for the lewd ‘smack!’ of a pair of lips seizing upon hearing the tell-tale sign of a lurker.
Maki and Toge glare back at Panda, who sheepishly grins and shrugs his shoulders.
(y/n) and Yuuta stare at each other in horrified shock.  They don’t get the chance to come up with a plan of attack before someone is on top of the desk with a squeak of sneakers.  And then Toge is bending over the surface, staring wide eyes at the two in a rather compromising position- (y/n’s) leg is thrown over Yuuta’s lap and being kept there by a firm hand, her hands are still balled up in his unbuttoned collar, their lips are thoroughly swollen she’s effectively transferred most of her lip gloss onto his mouth, and chin and neck- there’s nothing innocent about them.  Toge stares between them both before he lets out a whistle, giggling as he hops off the desk again.
Yuuta winces as he quickly releases his grip on (y/n’s) leg so they can both scramble out from under the desk and up to their feet.  It’s ungraceful, uncoordinated as they awkwardly untangle to clamber upwards.  Yuuta hits his head on the hard oak loud enough that they both wince, (y/n) quickly inspecting the instant bump that forms at the occiput of his skull.
“No way!” Maki breaks the tension first, her jaw hanging open as she grins in amusement at having caught the two of them here.  “You were hiding out in here the whole time!?”
“Tuna!” Toge shoves his finger in their direction in accusation.
“Kissing!” Panda gasps, his paws over his face.
“Why didn’t you just say something,” Maki huffed.  “Walked around for ten minutes for no reason.  Waste of my time” She grumbles as she crosses her arms.
“Uh, sorry” (y/n) said sheepishly.
“Yeah, sorry,” Yuuta pipes up.  “It was just… uh… awkward” 
“You’re awkward!” Maki barks back with a dismissive wave of her hand.  “Jeez, glad you got it over with finally” She bids them her blessing with rough words before spinning around and leaving the room without saying anything else.
Panda gives them a bright smile and nod of his head, his own friendly way of telling them he was happy for them.
“Hope you’re happy” He tells them out of the kindness of his soul before excusing himself as well.
“Salmon!” Toge agrees with a grin and friendly wave before also leaving.
All the lurking around they’d done, only to give them space as soon as they caught what they needed to.
The remaining pair turned to each other, gaping mouths turning into shy smiles as they slowly burst into laughter together.  What was supposed to be a slow introduction of new feelings to explore had now been on display to pretty much everyone they knew.  Shyness began to wash away as there was no more use for it.  Yuuta reaches for his hand and (y/n’s) fingers intertwined with his as though they’d familiarized themselves there before.  She smiles as he uses her hand to pull her closer to him, until the toes of her shoes barely bump into his.
They don’t say anything, they don’t need to.  (y/n) knows what he means when he cradles her face in his palm and smiles down at her.  He knows what she means when her nose crinkles and her free hand reaches to hold onto his collar once more.  Their ‘i love yous’ had almost always been silent, and they would forever understand it in its unspoken form.
__
this is for @staygoldsquatchling02​ for being excited about my rotting brain full of yuuta fluff a/n: y’all i got soo carried away with this-
xoxo ~ jordie
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loveindefinitely · 8 months
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༊*·˚ FOREVER WINTER (IF YOU GO) — task force 141 x reader
07 — DISTANT MEMORY I USED TO KNOW
featuring. simon 'ghost' riley + johnny 'soap' mactavish + kyle 'gaz' garrick + john 'bravo six' price + (non-endgame phillip graves)
warnings. nsfw, fem!reader, fmmmm, enemies to lovers, slow burn, polyamory, ghostsoap, pricegaz, alerudy, heavy angst, requited unrequited love, graphic violence
series masterlist. read on ao3. read on wattpad. fanfic playlist.
<- previous part | next part ->
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Quickly switching to the main channel once more, you go to report the status of your target, when black consumes your vision.
Pain sparks in the back of your head, your head unnaturally twisting to the side as you fall to your knees, forehead colliding with the harsh concrete as all of the oxygen within your lungs leaves you in one thick swoop.
“Sweetheart?! Sweetheart, what’s your status?!” You can hear Price barking out through the comms, but all you can see, hear, feel, is the sparks in the darkness behind your eyes, the cool, rocky surface of the ground on which you lay. That, and the all-consuming ache your body’s become.
Your hand claws at the floor, an attempt to right yourself, but the very new feeling of a boot’s sole presses against your skull, crushing your cheek between it and the rocks.
“Now it’s clear why you got Colonel,” a nasty, nasally voice spits out from above you. Above? Beneath? You can’t tell, not with the world spinning, not with everything within you falling apart at the seams. “Thanks for confirming what we all knew.”
Even with your centre of gravity out of whack, your words never seem to fail you. “That your,” you suppress the urge to vomit everywhere from the onslaught of nausea, “Commander’s a bad lay?”
The man’s – a Shadow’s – boot presses further against your skull, and you can’t stop the pained groan that falls from your bloodied lips. When you cough, you can hear the red liquid splatter across the floor. He laughs, coldly, unamused.
“No. That you’re a filthy whore who slept her way to the top,” he seethes, and your chest heaves with every intake of breath.
“Real. Fucking. Original,” you manage to grit out, through every flash of pain in your head. Your stubbornness was going to get you killed. Right now, even, maybe.
…Hopefully not.
Struggling to open one eye, you manage to allow yourself a small sliver of vision. You know where your small, hand-held pistol sits, hidden beneath your vest. If you can distract him well enough, all you’d need is one shot.
He grinds the heel of his boot into the nape of your neck, and you find yourself hacking up even more blood. Not a good sign.
“How does a combat medic even make it to Colonel?” He continues, sneering, ignoring your grunts of pain and frequent squirming. “Was your pussy that good?”
“Jealous, Corporal? Wanted his small prick up your ass instead?” You goad, every word a struggle to get out, but worth it nonetheless. He doubles down, looking up to the roof to calm himself down with shaky breaths.
The short, two second window allows for you to slip a trembling hand into your vest, grab a hold of the small pistol, raise it, and pull the trigger.
Your eyes flutter shut once more as the revolting feeling of a corpse on top of you has you freezing up. You can’t even check for more threats, not with every nerve ending in your body feeling as though they’ve been frayed, the truest form of torture you’ve ever experienced.
It’s then that you fall into a state of limbo. A grey area, an unknown, a state of something that can only be described as a loss of self. The crash you’d been anticipating. A pain-induced one, maybe?
“Love! Love, shit, fuck, hey, hold on!” 
In the floaty, intangible abyss you find yourself floating in, you’re unsure if the words are even spoken in reality. If they’re just a figment of your imagination, a taunt, a way for the gods to mock you before you fall into their clutches. 
Graves escaped, the thought comes to you through your haze, as what feels like phantom hands clutch the nape of your neck and your hip, an alarm bell ringing through the blankness of it all. He’s free. He survived. 
You will never belong again.
“Ghost Team, I have Sweetheart, she’s in pretty bad shape,” the words are more certain, this time, your consciousness slowly coming to. You think someone’s carrying you against their chest, a potent smell of cinnamon and gunpowder surrounding you that has you instinctively curling in closer to the source. “We need exfil, now!”
You think you let out a small whimper from the confusion, the agony of it all, because the person holding you shushes you with a soft sound and tightens their grip around the back of your head, squeezing your outer thigh. A princess carry, then.
Attempting to open your eyes, the instant light that floods them has you burying your head into a chest, the fabric blocking your vision. It, too, has that distinct, comforting smell.
“It’s okay, Sweetheart, I got ya.”
…Gaz.
Gaz is the one holding you, the one carrying you to exfil, the one who, embarrassingly, saved you. Out of the four of them, you suppose you were grateful it was him that had seen you passed out. A body on top of you.
Oh. God.
“What,” you croak, your voice broken and throat sore, “What. I – are we safe?”
“You’re safe with me, love. Won’t let anything bad happen to ya. You probably have a concussion so imma need you to stay awake for me, yeah?”
But sleep. It sounded so nice. You haven't slept since. Since you met them all. Since everything, since your life got ruined.
Whatever he says next goes unheard. Whatever pleas are made.
You let slumber take you in its icy grip.
*
“It’s a myth, ya knob. Only gotta wake ‘em up every few hours.”
“Brushed up on ya first aid knowledge to impress her? Real smooth, Soap.”
“The two of you – quit it. She’s wakin’ up.”
“Great.”
“You shut your mouth too, Simon.”
With a small groan, you try your best to gauge your surroundings. You’re moving, that much you’re sure of – by the thrum of the engine in your core and the distant whirring, you’re in a helicopter.
You think your head’s resting in someone’s lap – a hand in your hair, stroking against your scalp, soft and sweet.
Eyes fluttering open, you quickly adjust to the neon lights of the roof, finding yourself face to face with Gaz. So, you figure, you’re in his lap, his hand in your hair. He’s good, you think distantly, a proper damn masseuse.
His brows are furrowed, bottom lip forming a small pout as he glares at who you gather is Soap to your left. 
When he looks down, however, a grin quickly replaces the expression and the hand in your hair starts rubbing smooth circles into the base of your skull. If this is what Heaven is, you suddenly understand man’s desire to reach it.
“There we are,” he smiles, voice lower and smoother. “Sleepy head.”
You shoot him the world’s weakest glare. He, dutifully, doesn’t comment on its lacklustre effect. “I promise. I don’t usually have to get saved,” you petulantly point out, but the edge is dulled as Gaz continues to play with your hair. And that intoxicating cinnamon seems to have you on a leash.
“Didn’t think you did,” he reassures, and you accept the confirmation with a steady breath.
You try and pull yourself up, using your hands to do so, when a soaring pain through your left shoulder has your breath hitching and your head falling back into Gaz’s lap. It’s only then that you realise that someone’s got your bent legs in theirs, too, and when you try and get a look, you see it’s Price.
“Try not to use that arm,” Price jerks his chin to your aching arm. “You got grazed.”
It hits you, all at once, what has just transpired. What you failed to do. 
“He escaped,” you croak, looking up to the ceiling even when it starts spinning. “I tried to take him down. I did. But. He escaped, I’m…” you swallow, a heavy thing, “Sorry.”
“Hey, no, lass,” Soap chimes in, and with a secure hand at your non-wounded shoulder, Gaz helps you sit up, head resting against his shoulder, “Dinnae ken why yer sorry. It was one against ten.”
Your head pounds, a relentless rhythm, and when you look down, it’s to find Price’s hand fall onto your thigh and give a comforting pat. When you turn to him, he gives you a small smile. “You did good. We have to finish up another loose end, but we’ll take you to the nurse on base –”
“I want to go,” you interrupt, sitting up straighter with a small wince. It’s a small helicopter, obviously meant just for the 141, with bolted metal as far as the eye can see. “I can’t. I have to be useful.”
“No.”
The final member, the worst one, the man seemingly out to get you.
Ghost.
“What do you mean, no?” You quip, shooting daggers at the man who sits beside Soap on the other side of the chopper. 
“Did the concussion give you hearing loss?” He asks, cold, and you feel as though you’re buzzing with energy, “Or do you just hate hearing the word no? We don’t need you on this mission.”
“Didn’t realise you were taking over the duties as Captain,” you grit, your headache increasing tenfold, even with Gaz’s hand at the base of your nape a soothing presence, “How does Price feel about his Lieutenant’s new role?”
Both you, and Ghost, shoot a look to Price. He unknowingly tightens his grip around your thigh.
“We can discuss this on base,” he commands, allowing no room for argument. “We head for Chicago in two hours.”
Your brows furrow. “Chicago? Why?”
Soap’s smirk is dirty, excited as he simply says, “We talked to a… friend. She gave us the information we needed.”
“Information for what?” You ask, narrowing your eyes, leaning further against Gaz as more pain shoots through your body. He doesn’t say a word about it.
“Graves didn’t tell you…?” Gaz asks, looking down to you with barely concealed shock. 
You look around at the four men. “What? What’s going on?”
“The last missile,” Price folds his hands together, leaning forward to meet your eyes with serious blue. “We’re heading to Chicago to dismantle the last missile.”
*
“There we go, doll. Right as rain.”
The woman gives you a kind smile, securing the bandage around your arm, the disinfectant and tape underneath it along with the shot of morphine she’d given you easing the pain. She pulls off her latex gloves, a ring adorning her wedding finger.
“Thank you…” You trail off, not seeing a name badge on the nurse.
She places her hand on your good shoulder and gives you a soft squeeze, her smile warming. “Sarah. My name’s Sarah. I’d say that I’ll see you around, but… I hope not.”
You let out a laugh, and she lets out her own chuckle.
Sarah’s gorgeous, with dark features, black hair cut short to her head, graceful in her movements. A gold necklace rests on her collarbone, the pendant in the shape of a K.
The 141’s base is, well, almost exactly how you’d imagined it. Busy, well-stocked, off the grid.
Gaz and Soap had been lenient to leave you in the Med Bay by yourself, but Price and Ghost had made them haul ass to the conference room. You were all running on a very tight ship, time seeming to fall through your grasps with every breath you took.
“Thank you, again, Sar–”
“Colonel?” Turning where you sit on the white, hospital-issued bed, your confusion doubles when you see a woman you don’t recall having met before. She seems kind, motherly, almost, but steely in a way that only came with being in Special Ops.
“Hello to you too,” Sarah rolls her eyes, and you watch as the stranger looks to the nurse, her expression immediately easing into something loving.
“Hey, love,” the blonde woman says, pressing her lips to Sarah’s cheek, before pulling back and watching you.
“Who are you…?” You ask, feeling bad for ruining what seems to be the couple’s greeting. But also. You just got here, and couldn’t be expected to understand everyone and everything on base.
Inclining her head in a small apology, the woman extends her hand to you, which you take with a firm grip.
“Kate Laswell, Station Chief,” she greets, and recognition sparks in the back of your mind. This was the woman that had found out about Shepherd and Graves’ off the books treason. It feels as though a rock has gotten stuck in your throat as you pull away, not breaking eye contact. “You want to come on this mission? You’ll be with me.”
You immediately look to Sarah, expecting her to object, as a normal nurse probably would.
Instead, she just gives you a cryptic, knowing look. “I know how you soldiers work. If I tell you to rest, it’ll just give you more of an incentive to get yourself shot again.”
Your smile is the brightest it’s been in years.
“What’s our role?” You ask, standing up from the bed with the smallest of winces. Morphine has its limits, you suppose. Sarah starts cleaning up the supplies, and when Laswell encourages you to walk beside her with a hand at the dip of your back, you do just as much.
“We’ll be locating the missile,” she explains, low as the two of you walk through the crowded hallway. Her hand doesn’t leave its position on your back, and you’re grateful. “And you’ll be telling me everything you can about Graves and the Shadows.”
You fall into pace beside her, embarrassed by the difficulty of the task. Sarah had said you’d suffered a minor concussion, and a pretty hefty cut on your temple which she’d patched up as best she could. Being a combat medic, you knew most of your diagnoses anyway, but it was nice having it cemented by the kind woman. The bullet graze was at risk of infection, and a general pain in the ass, but it was durable with the tending in Med Bay.
“I’m surprised the boys aren’t the ones interrogating me,” you jest, more of a seeking for reason than anything. Why would they have Laswell do the talking, when they seemed so… interested?
She shoots you a look – a mystery for you to uncover. “Price told me that you mentioned a… questionable difference in authority and age. Gaz said just as much, and while they may be brutes,” she smiles to herself, telling of her history with the team, “They’re good men. Think they’re looking out for you.”
The only person, in hindsight, who had ever looked out for you was your mother.
You blink away the burning in your eyes, swallowing, before adjusting your smile once more. “I think they’re… wary of me, more like it.”
Her brows shoot to her hairline. “You don’t think that Gaz finding you unconscious with a dead Shadow atop of you cemented your allegiance? The two Sergeants haven’t shut up about you since they arrived. Only stopped talking when Price threatened them.”
“He threatened them?” you choke on a shocked laugh, getting lost in how… nice it is, talking to another woman. How safe, how it feels like you have someone to trust. The 141, you think you can trust them, but there’s something so different in the camaraderie of women. The inherent safety you feel with one in a position such as herself, that niggling in the back of your mind gone.
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” she looks to you with a smug grin, pushing open the back exit of the compound with a nudge of her shoulder. The wind slashes against your face, a strand blowing into your mouth, making you wince and spit it out.
“Fucking hate that,” you mutter, Laswell immediately quipping, “The worst.”
You think you and Laswell are going to get along quite well.
“Fuck, Sweetheart, there ye are!” A now all too familiar Scottish lilt calls, stood with the rest of the 141 by two helicopters. You stand across the field, but you can’t help the smile that creeps onto your face when both him and Gaz come bounding over, Gaz adorning what appears to be a wetsuit underneath his standard uniform. 
Bulky arms wrap around your waist, and you find yourself being lifted off of the ground, Soap pressing you against him with a strong hug. A surprised giggle leaves your lips, and you see Gaz stop just in front of you both, hands on his hips.
“She’s still injured, you dolt,” Gaz goads, and Soap responds by squeezing you harder.
“Aye, that she is,” Soap grunts, letting you down a touch gentler as you find your footing once more. He smirks. “But… She still owes me one for that dirty move back in Las Almas.”
You playfully punch at his shoulder. “Wasn’t patching you up enough? Not leaving you for dead?”
“I don’t seem to recall…” He trails off, his dimples deepening when you punch him again, harder this time.
“Good to see you up and ready to go.” The wind whistles through your ears, the near-dusk light brushing you all in sensual blues as you meet the Captain’s affirming grin.
Even when you try and flatten your mouth into an authoritative line, the smile seems unable to leave your face. You fold your arms. “I seem to remember you all wanting me dead or nowhere near you, just a day ago.”
Gaz raises his hands in defence, teeth on display as he swings his arm around your neck, pulling you in. “Don’t group me with ‘em. Trusted you the moment I saw you.”
“And who’s to say we still don’t want those things?”
Right. Ghost.
Laswell, standing behind you all, seeming to cast her calculative gaze over the five of you, narrows her eyes at the Lieutenant at the exact same time you do. “If you can’t play nice with the Colonel, Ghost, we can and will swap you out.”
That has you instantly ready to protect the woman’s six.
“Someone seems to recognise my rank,” You look to Laswell as Gaz unravels his arm from around your shoulders, and the woman simply shrugs, hands in her vest’s pockets.
“I just recognise another woman deserving of her power when I see one,” she says, and you might’ve proposed at that very moment if it weren’t for her wife just a few doors away.
“Sergeants, Lieutenant, go ahead and check over the supplies. I’ll catch up in a moment,” Price orders, and when both Gaz and Soap go to answer back, he raises a hand, raises his brow, too. “That wasn’t a request, boys. Go.”
They do just as much, both Gaz and Soap waving back at you as they jog back over to the helicopters.
Just you, Price and Laswell then.
“Kate, a minute.”
…Or, well, just you and Price.
Leading you with a hand on your elbow, Price pauses by a quiet section of the base’s wall, looking around you for any stragglers. Not seeing any, he moves both his hands to rest on your shoulders.
“The deal we made,” he begins, and it’s like a blow to your side. You lift your chin, straighten your posture, clench your jaw. “We – I would like it to extend until Graves is officially KIA. If we can plan a takedown properly, not rush it as much, we can do it. But it’s only right if you do it right alongside us.”
He subconsciously squeezes your flesh, but it’s a grounding motion, one you find necessary.
This feels like more than just that. This feels like an offering – a sense of stability for your foreseeable future. A way for you to find your feet, with a community, a support system to help you restart this path your life has diverted to.
“Yes,” you say, earnest, eyes not straying from Price’s for a single moment. “Yes – thank you.”
“I’d argue that we get the better end of the bargain,” Price mutters, and it’s so quiet and human that you think you might’ve imagined the words. You go to push, ask what exactly he means by that –
“Captain! Hassan has entered the building!” 
He breaks eye contact, finally, and your eyes catch on his profile in the night of dusk – the slope of his nose, the angles of his jaw.
He is, all things considered, a beautiful man.
Your heart thunders, and you pull away, his hands falling from your frame like weights. With a small, delicate smile, you raise your hand to your head in a faux-salute.
“Good luck, Cap.”
His responding smile is softened by the dreaminess of it all, the light, the nervous buzz in the air. He raises his own hand, then, a mocking of your movement.
“See you on the other side, Sweetheart.”
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taglist. @lilpothoscuttings @jng-yuan @iruzias @insatiablekittie @1wh4re1nova @kaoyamamegami @supernaturalstilinski @inthemiddle0feverywhere @msecho19 @nogood-boyo @alfa-jor @lalashhyl @letmeapologise @honeybeeznutz @1mawh0re @oreo-cream @lalashhyl @someonepleasedateme @letmeapologise @uhhellnogetoffpleasenowty @inarabee
author's note. i have TWO very specific. but huge. plot twists thatll happen WAY later in the fic. im very curious if anyone can guess em before hand! both of which HAVE been hinted at. a part of me hopes that you guys miss it!! :p
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r0se1111 · 7 days
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Hi! If you’re still taking requests about Ford Pines (I am not normal about him) could I have him with maybe a reader who’s in their late 30s and is an author and loves to write him poetry and literally just be in all in love and shit.
I amferal
As are we all >:)
I'm a sucker for a little age gap so this is with post-portal GILF Ford.
The two of you meet when he's getting back into the swing of a "normal" life, or as normal as things can get in Gravity Falls. You had moved there recently looking for inspiration for your upcoming book and were browsing the local library on the hunt for some research material when your hand that was stretching up to grab a particularly promising looking book is bumped by another hand. Larger, much more calloused and- six fingered? You turn questioningly to look at the owner and that was the end of that for the both of you.
Ford is very excited to have another writer just in his circle, nevertheless as his partner. You two bounce ideas off of each other and inspire each other, all while making sure the other doesn't overwork themselves. Sometimes your various notebooks get mixed up in a moment of feverish notetaking, and it's common to find both of your messy scrawl on the same page, rambling on about plot devices and anomalies and daily occurrences and the like.
He gets a little... not necessarily insecure but worried about your age gap? Like you have so much ahead of you still and you wanna spend it all with him? After some concerned looks from you and gentle shoulder rubbing he finally confesses his plight and you almost giggle at his naivete (you couldn't imagine spending those years with anyone else, silly) if it weren't for the frown and furrow of his brow adorning his face showing how truly affected he was.
In an effort to reaffirm him of your certainty and affection, you do what you do best: Write. You had sheepishly written a few poems about Ford while crushing on him, and more after big steps in your relationship but had rarely revealed them to him, save for a few cheeky haikus. But big feelings call for big gestures, and soon you find yourself leaning away from the man during your daily writing-together-on-the-couch-time in an effort to keep his wandering eyes from seeing that the subject of your concentration was, in fact, him.
Once you finish, you write out the final draft on a little slip of paper and silently slide it to him one night before he has taken his glasses off. His amused chuckle turns into a soft gasp as he takes in your love poem to him. Then, it's your turn to gasp as he all but launches himself at you to cuddle, burying his grin into the warmth of your stomach.
Given this positive reaction you feel more comfortable writing him poems and even reading them out loud to him. Sneaking up behind him and whispering a few verses into his ear are a surefire way to get his blushing, syrupy sweet attention. He smiles at every line you write to him and it feels like standing in the sun, warm and slow and wonderful.
He feels inclined to return the favor with a few poems of his own. However much he stutters that "it's nothing compared to yours, dear" his unfiltered love as well as the pure talent of an experienced writer overshadow any questionable rhymes he comes up with.
Soon the two of you have a shared notebook where you swap poems. Sometimes you purposefully share them with the other, sometimes you leave them to be discovered in time, a little gift waiting for the eyes of your lover. It's just another way you show your love for one another <3
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lemon-lime-limbo · 4 months
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𝖎𝖘 𝖎𝖙 𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖒𝖊 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖒𝖆𝖐𝖊𝖘 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖘𝖜𝖊𝖆𝖙? | 𝖆 𝖇𝖓𝖍𝖆 𝖔𝖓𝖊𝖘𝖍𝖔𝖙
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pairing: katsuki bakugou x gn! reader
warnings: COLLEGE AU, reader does have a female roommate, reader is a nursing major, idk probably ooc bakugou ngl, soft! bakugou, bakugou has hyperhidrosis, possible tw for medical scenarios (no needles, just mentions of stuff like that), jirou and denki are dating teehee
genre: fluff
word count: 2.4k
note: i typed this so fast that my fingers started locking up LMAO anyway bakugou with hyperhidrosis is my guilty pleasure i love it so much and also can u tell i took medical classes... i tried to make it accessible but also flex my knowledge. enjoy!
When your professor told you about your upcoming project a few classes ago, you sighed in annoyance. You loved being a nursing major, and medical labs came easily to you. But those labs were always done with classmates, and your professor supposed you needed to work with fresh patients, ones you hadn’t gotten accustomed to. A valid suggestion, although it then tasked you with finding six willing participants. And as one can imagine, those were few and far between, and tracking down a sixth person was proving to be much more difficult than you had hoped.
You had already done the lab on your two neighbors you shared a kitchen with, your roommate, Kyoka Jirou, and also her boyfriend, Denki, who was just happy to be there. However, you were still one short. Denki offered to ask his friends to help, and although you were grateful, you couldn’t imagine any of them would be willing to be a test subject for a stranger, and you can’t say you would feel much differently in their position, so you declined. Of course, you could always fake it and just make up random data, but your professor was monitoring how many people you brought into the lab via a sign-in sheet, so you had to use real people.
After class, you went back to your dorm to mope about your future bad grade on your assignment. “Hey,” Kyoka said from her bed, back against the wall with her boyfriend’s head in her lap. 
That was when you saw him. Slouched down in your twin-sized loft bed filled to the brim with stuffed animals was Denki’s hot blonde friend, Katsuki Bakugou. You had gotten only a few chances to speak to him at Denki’s dorm parties, but from what he told you, aside from his general lack of complaisance, Bakugou was a fun person to be around. Aggressive, but still good company, apparently. He was your party crush that would sometimes talk to you. You were too scared to ask for his number, and he always disappeared promptly after every party. But while he was there, his eyes never left you.
Today, he wore an oversized black hoodie, and his baggy black pants had multiple straps hanging from them. One leg dangled over the edge of your mattress, his clunky black boots on the floor by your desk, buried in the fur of your fluffy rug. He didn’t seem to notice you, his eyes glued to his phone screen with his other arm casually behind his head.
You were embarrassed, both by your messy side of the room, and by all the stuffed animals on your bed. He clearly didn’t care, however, squashing quite a few plushies under his body, their plastic eyes bulging out of fluffy sockets. 
Dodging wads of clothes and cords from musical equipment, you made your way to your desk to set your backpack down, dodging his leg as you ducked under the loft bed. “You, um… You didn’t tell me we would have company…” you said to Kyoka, wishing you had dressed up a bit more for your previous class. You always expected her boyfriend to be over, but this was definitely a surprise. She knew you found him attractive, but you’re not sure she grasped the real gravity of the situation.
She laughed sheepishly. “Sorry… But I do have good news.”
“Go on.” You kicked off your own shoes onto your rug before trying to gather up some of the papers on your desk to help with the mess.
“Well, it took a bit of convincing, and a bit of bribery, but Denki found you a final person!” You turned to see her doing jazz-hands from her bed. 
Your eyes widened. “You don’t mean-”
She nodded, a devious smile on her face. “You got it. Meet Denki’s friend from high school.” If you hadn’t been staring right at her in shock, you would have missed the wink she shot at you. 
“Nice to see you,” you said after taking a moment to regain your composure, looking over the edge of your bed at him. He gave you a nod in acknowledgement, eyes snapping to yours and trailing downwards. You looked away awkwardly, feeling like a museum exhibit.
“I know you told me not to ask my friends,” Denki said, sitting up with a yawn. “But I couldn’t help myself.”
You wished you could be mad at him for going against your wishes, but you were just glad to finally be able to finish your project and to not have to scrounge campus for a semi-willing participant. Even though his choice of victim seemed to be a challenge to see how professional you can keep yourself. “Well, thank you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.” You leaned against one of the wooden posts of your bed frame. “I definitely owe you one!”
His eyes darted from yours nervously. “Let’s wait until after you do your thing to decide that…” Denki just hoped you wouldn’t kill him when you got back to your dorm. In fact, he was already running through ideas and excuses to not be there when you did get back.
“What do you mean?” You tilted your head with a suspicious squint.
An aggravated sigh drew your attention to your bed above you. “Where are we going for your little experiment?” Bakugou said.
You frowned at the thought of it being an experiment. While technically your project was science, as all nursing is, this assignment wasn’t anything more than gathering data and practicing your application of the techniques you learned. An experiment would entail a hypothesis and more focus on the science aspects. You almost made the clarification, but you lost your nerve when you looked at him again. “The lab is right by building B,” you said. “It’s open now, if you want to-”
“Fine.” He jumped off your bed before you could react and yanked his boots on. “Let’s go,” he grumbled, pulling harshly on the side zippers as you took a few seconds to process what had just occurred.
You hurried to put your own shoes on before he walked out the door, almost leaving you in the dust as you rushed to catch up to him after grabbing your backpack. Once outside, you were grateful you wore your jacket, the brisk air whipping around and stinging your cheeks as the sun went down. You walked next to each other, and you were determined to make this as transactional as possible, no matter what the heart threatening to erupt out of your ribs was saying. And it had very much to say, you found out. You didn't want to be presumptuous, and he was only supposed to help you with your assignment and be on his way, but it became increasingly difficult to keep the heat out of your face. You hardly noticed Bakugou’s soft jangling, the chains and straps on his pants rattling together, or the way his eyes occasionally fixed themselves on you, yours stuck down at the sidewalk under your feet. 
Building B was the building closest to your dorm, to which you were extremely grateful. It only took a few minutes of awkward silence to get there. You fumbled to grab your keycard out of the pocket of your jeans, the beep of the machine echoing through the small alcove as you pressed your card against it.
The large glass doors slid open soundlessly and you walked in, the stuffy room between the next set of doors so insulated from any sounds all you could hear was your own breathing. Through the second set was the medical lab, the large panels of windows casting a sunset glow over the equipment that had been left out. Community lab coats hung on a hook by the door. Several small doors lined the circular room, each door leading to a separate room for practicing medical exams. The sign-up sheet for your class was posted on a clipboard on the countertop beside a sink. 
Boxes of latex-free rubber gloves were lined up on the central counter, next to piles of stethoscopes and blood-pressure cuffs. As you signed in on the clipboard, writing your name and Bakugou’s in one of the tiny boxes, he wandered the lab, picking up random things and putting them back down after turning them in his hands a few times. You were grateful for the spray bottles of alcohol scattered about the room and in every smaller office, which you sprayed on the equipment you chose.
“Okay. Let’s see…” you said before scanning the small rooms, peeking into each one to check for other students. All of them were deserted, so you chose a random one, Bakugou following you inside. A table and a small chair were the only things in the room, aside from the counter and sink. “All I have to do is take your blood pressure and we’ll be done!” You set your backpack down and pulled out your lab sheet.
He rolled his eyes with a scoff. “You brought me all the way here, just for this?”
You nodded. “Yes. Now, please sit down.”
“Don’t tell me what to do, dumbass,” he said, but he sat down anyway, the wooden chair creaking under his weight. 
Your back was to him as you put your stethoscope on, scanning your paper’s instructions. When you turned back around, your eyes immediately widened and your face went hot. “What, um… What are you doing?” you stammered. Bakugou was in the process of removing his sweatshirt, revealing a plain black tank top and a muscular frame you weren’t expecting, although you tried not to imagine what he looked like under his baggy clothes.
“What’s it look like? Can’t take my blood pressure with my sleeves in the way. I thought you, a nursing major, would’ve known that.” His snide tone and his condescending smirk made you embarrassed. Admittedly, you didn’t even think about it. It irritated you that he somehow did, and it irritated you even more that he was right. You tried not to stare, not at the way his blond hair stuck out in every direction, or the way his tank top stretched over his broad chest, or the way his hand lay relaxed in his lap, palm up and waiting for you to begin.
The velcro of the sphygmomanometer was loud in the small room as you peeled it open, nervously taking Bakugou’s arm to wrap it around the thick muscle. He was so attractive you couldn’t help but look away, busying yourself with finding the inflation bulb. From this distance, you could smell his cologne, strong and masculine, and it filled your lungs like dense smoke. You had to will yourself to stay focused, to prevent yourself from fainting where you stood. “Can you hold this for me?” 
“Fine,” he said, and you placed the pressure gauge into his other hand. When your hands brushed, you took notice of how sweaty his palms were. You also noticed how he flinched slightly when you touched him. His breathing was even, but he looked at you intensely, like he had to think about each breath to keep himself alive. It was nerve-wracking being so close to him. So many times you tried to gain the confidence to talk to him, but you always chickened out as soon as you made eye contact across the room. Sometimes, he would talk to you first, but one of his friends always ruined the moment by begging him to do a keg-stand.
Staring straight at the gauge in his hand, you filled up the cuff, rapidly squeezing until it was thirty millimeters above resting. You pressed the stethoscope into the crook of his elbow, not noticing the beads of sweat on his skin, careful to keep your fingers off the back of the stethoscope bell. 
When the heartbeat stopped, you slowly twisted the dial on the side to release a bit of air. The heartbeat resumed, and you mentally wrote down the number on the dial. It stopped again, so you released the rest of the air out of the cuff. Pulling your stethoscope out of your ears, you reached to remove the cuff, velcro ripping from itself. His eyes never left you, watching the way your hands moved to slide the cuff off.
“Can I ask you something?” you said, abruptly, fingers fiddling with the tubes of the sphygmomanometer as you took the gauge out of his hand. He shrugged. You turned to set your equipment on the counter and write your data on your paper. “Do I make you nervous?”
“What kinda stupid question is that?” he snickered.
You laughed nervously, eyes meeting his as you turned around. “Well, it’s just that… You’re really sweaty.”
His smug expression had never left so fast. His hands grabbed his hoodie, scrambling to pull it over his head with a muttered, “Shit…”
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything!” You scrambled to fix your mistake, but the words had already left you.
Adjusting the hood of his hoodie, he avoided your gaze. He didn’t seem like the type to feel shame, but the expression on his face made you think otherwise. “Just forget it!” 
You shook your head, suddenly feeling like an idiot. “I shouldn’t have pointed it out. I’m sorry.”
“I just… I forgot to take my medication today. I’ve got, uh… this condition…” He trailed off as you began gathering your equipment, going back into the main lab to clean it again with alcohol.
“Hyperhidrosis?”
He blinked a few times. “Yeah, how’d you-?”
“Nursing major,” you reminded him, placing your tools in their respective piles. 
He rolled his eyes. “Ugh, whatever. Anyway, just don’t… Just don’t tell anybody, okay?”
You placed a hand over your heart. “Your secret is safe with me,” you swore. You looked around the lab for anything else you needed to take care of. “So anyway, what did Denki have to do to get you to help me?”
He looked at you, a self-satisfied grin on his face. “He told me you’d go out with me if I did.”
You froze. “He- He did what?” Oh, you were so going to kill him. Knowing him, he’d make himself scarce, but he couldn’t be hard to track down.
“So, how about it? I never do anything for free.” Bakugou walked backwards into the door, pushing it open for you.
You laughed. “As long as you promise to help me kill Denki afterwards.”
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kentopedia · 5 months
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𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐀'𝐒 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 ! !
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the people of this town love halloween so much they celebrate it twice a year!
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and wouldn't you know ... it's today ! a series revolving around the paranormal, with a twist in the summer! it will be running through the months of may-august, in no particular order ! tune in to see which of your favorite characters will be revealed, and what role you'll be playing. please read content warnings for each work, as they will all vary. some may be 18+ !! more notes at the end <3
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episode one ♱ crossroad blues. at the crossroads, you make a deal with the devil. instead of leaving you alone for the next ten years, it sticks around.
episode two ♱ provenance. f. dostoevsky you buy a two hundred year old house with a two hundred year old painting hanging above the mantel. it's not the only thing the previous owner left behind.
episode three ♱ children shouldn't play with dead things. his life faded away in front of you, and in that moment, you knew you'd do anything to bring him back.
episode four ♱ in my time of dying. he thinks he may have fallen in love with you, but you're only there to lead him to the afterlife.
episode five ♱ siren song. rumor says not to stop at the bar in the port city, for the people there are not what they seem. not everyone receives the message.
episode six ♱ skin. n. chuuya your husband has been acting different… but you brush it off and don't think anything of it.
episode seven ♱ what is and what should never be. you wake up in the bed of the man you've always loved, but the sky seems too blue and the world too safe. maybe it's just your imagination.
bonus episode ♱ series finale ! bleeding me dry.
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author's note: i've been sitting on this idea for a while and have decided to fully commit to it <3 summerween is inspired by gravity falls and each work is related to a supernatural episode (hence the titles, but some have alternate titles too)! but if u know the show, i promise they'll all be a little different tehe. thank you so much for being interested in all my little projects, i hope you all enjoy :)
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136 notes · View notes
animeomegas · 10 months
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The Quest for a Second Life - Part 6 - 50 Shades of Audacity (2)
KAKASHI x ALPHA!READER
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Summary: An office scandal, the start of your gold digging arc, and a mysterious house in the countryside... It still annoyed you that you had to have a job, but honestly, it could have been worse. This was kind of exciting! GN!Dom!Alpha!Reader x Multiple
Word count: 8.7k
Warnings: N-sfw content, workplace violations, vague discussion of canon specific suicide, playful smacking, playful physical restraint. All alphas have dicks, fyi.
A/N: Hey! We're rapidly reaching the end of this story now! Only one more chapter before the epilogue, crazy! Time has flown. Happy holidays to everyone, especially @omeganronpa who is working so hard, hopefully a break is coming soon 😖 Not much porn in this one, as I'm saving it for the finale. Enjoy~
Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - Part 7 - Epilogue
Going for a Sunday drive was always a nice way to spend a morning. Well, it wasn’t Sunday and technically you weren’t driving, but the point still stood.
You had your nose basically glued to the window as the unfamiliar city sights bled into an equally unfamiliar, but timeless countryside. Fields, animals, trees, they all rushed past, familiar and new in the same breath. You were pleasantly surprised that this erotica world city didn’t have suburbs; who knew you just had to die to benefit from good city planning?
Kakashi’s fancy car was growing on you too, with its heated seats and spacious leg room, and you couldn’t deny that it was also having an impact on how much you were enjoying this drive. It even had six cupholders. Six. Kakashi didn’t even have that many friends in total, but even having the choice to have six beverages felt like a luxury experience.
Kakashi was also in his fancy car, of course, but he was considerably less interested in the view, and more interested in the paperwork he’d brought along. What a boring place to put one’s attention; you needed to rectify that immediately.
“If you could pick one of your dogs to magically learn English, who would you pick?” His pen not even slowing for a moment, Kakashi answered with no hesitation.
“Anyone but Pakkun.”
Hmm, maybe a harder question would work?
“What’s 472 + 9012?”
“9484.”
Something shocking perhaps?
“Does your pubic hair also defy gravity?”
“No comment.”
Oh, something weird would surely get his attention!
“If I were a worm, would you still love me?”
“No.”
You huffed, sinking down into your heated seat. He hadn’t even paused in the paperwork, so your plan had thoroughly failed. You wondered why Kakashi, a man you’d seen climb out of a window to avoid a work meeting once, was now diligently completing paperwork when he had a good excuse not to. Whatever, he’d probably already procrastinated on it enough that Iruka had threatened him into finishing it. No one ignored direct instructions from Iruka, even though he wasn’t technically high up enough to give instructions at all.
You sighed, turning back to the window to keep yourself amused, acknowledging that you’d lost the battle for Kakashi’s attention to his paperwork. Maybe it was the effect of the car journey, or maybe you were just sappy, but you quickly found yourself reminiscing.
Two weeks ago, you never would have imagined being here with him like this. It was almost difficult to wrap your head around how much your relationship had changed in such a short amount of time, how comfortable you’d both become with each other. Kakashi still took his role as ‘professional nuisance’ seriously of course, revelling in winding you up as what seemed like his main past time and hobby.
He was also still late to meetings, refused to do work, skipped lunch if you didn’t bring it to him… Okay, so maybe not that much had changed. But hey, you kissed frequently now, that was new! And your name was also currently the hottest topic in every break room at work.
That very first day after the tryst in Kakashi’s office had to have been your favourite in terms of gossip shockwaves. It had turned out that Kakashi did have another spare shirt for you to wear home after both your shirt and his first spare had been ruined, and the next morning, groggy and tired, you grabbed it to wear to work without thinking about what you were doing.
You had known that there was gossip about you and Kakashi leaving work together, but apparently the security guard’s version of events, that you had both come back to work together after hours, you without a shirt, and then locked yourself in his office, was in hot debate. Many refused to believe that terminal bachelor Kakashi Hatake would ever sleep with his secretary. ‘Something out of a bad porn book’, you had heard multiple times. How ironic.
So, when you walked in late, wearing Kakashi’s shirt, you corroborated the security guard’s story and confirmed the rumours all at once.
The break room fell silent the second you walked in, even though it had been filled with loud debate moments before. Everyone turned to look at you. Have you ever lifted a rock and had all the bugs underneath it suddenly freeze? It felt like that.
“Good morning,” you said, shooting everyone a hesitant smile. “Sorry I’m a bit late today.”
You watched as everyone’s eyes flickered from your face, down to your shirt, and then up to your face again. The room was uncomfortably silent.
Suddenly Asuma cheered, and chaos descended on the room. Not everyone seemed as thrilled as Asuma though. Kurenai only sighed and passed Asuma a handful of cash. Anko did the same, but with significantly more swearing and threats towards his delicate parts.
(You would find out later that Asuma had seen the security footage of your interview and had proceeded to make many, many bets that you and Kakashi would be fucking within a week. Because of Kakashi’s ‘no dating’ reputation, you were sure he had raked in a significant amount.)
Iruka’s face went bright red, and he sputtered for a moment before turning around and pretending to organise the mug cupboard. He did not succeed in hiding the small bit of blood now dripping from his nose.
In contrast to Iruka’s not so subtle hiding, Gai came right up to you and thumped you on the back, shouting about youth.
Yamato only stared at you, his already large eyes wider than normal. You weren’t sure what emotion he was embodying, but it was certainly creepy.
Maybe it was best if you just went to your desk?
Just as you turned to leave, Gai had one more final thing to say.
“I hope your love blossoms with intensity!” he said, giving you a thumbs up.
Why did that feel like he was giving you permission to fuck Kakashi?
People did slowly get used to the idea that you and Kakashi were something more than coworkers. It helped that you had lunch together most days, which gave people a chance to get used to seeing you together.
On days where your schedules didn’t align for lunch though, you made a point to grab dinner together. Your favourite by far had been dinner at his penthouse flat. Not only was that the night where you’d first called Kakashi your boyfriend, but it was also the first time you were introduced to his dogs.
It felt strange to be walking through a block of flats that was so fancy. The lobby had looked like something from a 5-star hotel, and you had had to show your ID before the front desk would let you upstairs, even though Kakashi had informed them that you’d be coming. Security reasons, they had said. You wondered what other high-profile people lived here.
Kakashi had the penthouse flat, so his was the only one on the top floor. You exited the lift and were immediately confronted with his front door. It wasn’t quite as big as the door in the library you had chosen his story from, but it was still an impressive size.
If you were being honest, it was a little intimidating.
The intimidation factor was shattered as soon as you knocked on the door however, because the second your fist made contact with the wood, a cacophony of barking sounded from the other side.
“Yes, yes, I’m going, you can stop barking.” You could faintly hear Kakashi’s voice through the door. “Bisuke! Get off there!”
The barking still continued.
“Sit, sit. All of you sit! I mean it, or you won’t be getting any treats today.”
Slowly, the barking and the sound of claws clacking ceased, and suddenly the door was pulled open. Standing there, in all his homey glory, was Kakashi.
You were used to seeing him exclusively dressed in suits, but he was wearing lounge clothes. Lounge clothes! Uptight, always ready for a fancy restaurant Kakashi, was wearing a grey tracksuit, with a long-sleeved top in dark blue, and fluffy slippers.
A smile grew on your face; perhaps you were biased, but these suited him a lot more. They still looked expensive, but they were just so much cosier than his normal get up. It made you want to hug him. You resisted for a moment before remembering what world you were in and what the point of this whole second life thing was, and then your resistance crumbled into nothing.
You threw yourself at him for a hug.
“Oof.” Kakashi floundered in surprise for a moment, but when you didn’t let go, he tentatively patted you on the back. You giggled and squeezed him harder, burying your face into his neck.
There were no scent patches! He wasn’t wearing scent patches! Giddy, you took a deep breath of his scent, letting it fill and sit in your lungs. Yes, he smelt utterly delicious.
Kakashi put his hands on your upper arms and gently tugged you away from him. His face was bright red. You could almost see steam coming out of his ears. You laughed at him but decided to show mercy and not tease him over his obvious bashfulness. You instead turned your attention to his dogs.
They were all sitting together to your right, tails wagging furiously. You could tell that if they had been any less well trained, they’d have been jumping all over you.
You opened your bag and pulled out a little something that you’d brought to make sure they liked you. When the dogs caught sight of the McDonald’s bag, their excitement obviously got too much to contain, because they all ran over to your feet, a couple jumping up at you, a couple barking, all looking eager to get their hands on the carroty goodness.
Kakashi, although you could tell he was amused, stepped in to corral his little gremlins. God, he was such a dog dad.
You had received copious wet kisses that day, mostly from the dogs, but also from a sappy Kakashi who had seemed utterly thrilled that you and his dogs got along.
You had had to make and study flash cards to remember all his dogs’ names, but Kakashi’s genuine smile as he watched you interact with them made it all worth it.
You had also met Charlie, Kakashi’s personal chef that evening.
The presence of his personal chef didn’t surprise you. What surprised you was when said chef made dinner for the dogs and then immediately left, leaving Kakashi to cook for you and him. It was exactly that abrupt, and you had laughed until you cried. Of course, he hired a personal chef just for his dogs. He spoilt them rotten.
You were sceptical as to how much skill he would have in the kitchen, but he produced a delicious meal with little trouble. It made you warm that Kakashi was so enthusiastic about cooking dinner you.
Cooking wasn’t the only way he was spoiling you though; he seemed incredibly willing to flash his cash for you, much to your delight.
“Have you considered a top hat?” you asked, picking up the worst top hat you’d ever seen and holding it up as a suggestion. Kakashi gave you a flat look. “What? If this Autumn Company Party thing is so important, you need to make an impression, and this hat would certainly make an impression!”
“I don’t want to make the kind of impression that has my board of directors attempting to oust me from the company.” He took the hat and placed it back on the rack.
“Fine.” You rolled your eyes. “If you didn’t want my fashion advice, why did you even bring me along to pick your outfit? I could have just waited in the car.”
The attendant that was serving you walked back into the room with a selection of ties based on Kakashi’s preferences. He laid them out on the stool for him to peruse. He had already witnessed a great deal of your banter, but if he was surprised by it, then he was too professional to let that show.
“You’re my personal assistant.”
You flicked the tie he was currently wearing up into his face. “That doesn’t mean I need to watch you pick out ties, asshole.”
Kakashi flicked you on the forehead in turn, rolling his eyes as he always did. “No, I mean that you’ll have to attend the party with me, and I figured you would need a new outfit. As you said, it’s important to make an impression, especially as this will be your debut of sorts.”
You snorted, pulling at one of the price tags of a nearby shirt. “Not in here, thanks. Just reading these numbers is making my bank account cry, I can’t imagine what buying them would do to it.”
Kakashi watched you for a moment, before he stuck his hand into his pocket. Out came his wallet.
‘James? Is what I think is happening, actually happening?’
‘I believe you are about to reach a major milestone in your goal to become a ‘gold digger’, human. My soul is warmed by your success, may it be prosperous and eternal.’
‘Thanks, James, that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.’
Just as you predicted, Kakashi slipped his card out from his wallet and handed it to you. “Buy whatever you need, I can’t have my assistant looking shabby now, can I?”
You could imagine this scene in other stories, stories where you weren’t the lead. The MC would decline, either out of bashfulness or a sense of pride. Kakashi would probably then insist, and maybe MC would feel obliged to agree, but they would slip outside and purchase the outfit from a cheaper shop down the road to make a point. And then Kakashi would swoon because MC is ‘not like other alphas’.
You were the lead in this story though, so you took the card immediately, grinning from ear to ear.
“Fuck yes,” you said under your breath. Kakashi snorted, but he looked amused, not offended, by the way you were treating his money. “I’m going to dress up like royalty.”
You scurried off into your preferred section of the shop, Kakashi’s card clutched tightly in your grasp. You eagerly rifled through the racks. At several moments, you got the feeling that you were being watched, but whenever you looked back, Kakashi was fully focused on shopping. Maybe you were imagining it?
The Autumn Company Party had been coming up a lot. It was clearly the climax of the plot, but unlike Itachi’s story, you weren’t really sure what the plot was. James had no idea what would be happening at the party either, just that something would happen, and whatever that something was, it was heavily influenced by your actions. You had originally been apprehensive, but you figured that for a porn story, it couldn’t be anything too bad, so you focused on your excitement about attending such a fancy work party. You’d bet the hors d’oeuvres were going to change your life.
(You were confident because you had been the one in charge of choosing the catering company and the menu. Your job was pretty fun at times, even if your true career calling was independently wealthy.)
In between the planning for the party, your physical relationship with Kakashi had also developed over the last fortnight.
“You’re needy tonight,” you teased, curling your fingers just right. Kakashi shivered.
“On the contrary, you need to shut up.”
You tutted, “That wasn’t your best work.”
“Forgive me; I’m a little preoccupied.” You took that as an invitation to press at his prostate as hard as you could. Kakashi face screwed up in pleasure, and he made no more comments.
“Wow, who knew that you had an off switch this whole time? If I’d had known this little bundle of nerves had such an effect, my interview would have gone very differently.”
“The more time I spend with you, the less I’m surprised that you were single when we met.”
“Asshole.”
That had been during his first visit to your flat. You had the strange impression that he felt more comfortable in your home than his own, for some reason. Regardless, that night was the first time you’d gone all the way.
“Are you ready?” you asked, kissing on his collar bones to distract yourself from his tight warmth, and how much you really wanted to move.
“I was ready ten minutes ago. I’m not going to break the second you put any pressure on me, or in me, as it were.” Kakashi purposely clenched around you causing you to hiss. “Get on with it.”
You pulled away and narrowed your eyes at him. He only raised an eyebrow in response. Fine, if he wanted it rough, you’d give it to him rough.
“Fuck, I’m tired,” you said, flopping back onto the bed, exhausted. Kakashi looked much the same, panting hard from exertion.  
“You took the words right out of my mouth,” he replied.
“…”
“…”
“Second round in the shower?”
“Obviously.”
Now that had been a fun night. Your activities didn’t stay exclusively in the bedroom though. You had quickly found that not only did Kakashi like it when you took control in social situations, like ordering for him at restaurants, he also liked it when you lightly teased him in public.
Nothing too extreme, of course, as there was a chance that such a thing would literally end up in the news if you were caught, but you had both made a game of seeing how many dirty messages you could hide in the other’s paperwork. You were winning, although the scores were close.
You were so glad that Kakashi’s morning meeting was being held in one of the rooms made entirely of glass. It meant that, although you weren’t in the meeting, you still had a prime view to Kakashi’s reaction when he inevitably found the note you had hidden in his folder.
You watched as Kakashi continued his speech to the board of directors, reaching for his folder to check something.
Oh, there, he was opening his folder!
The cover flipped open and Kakashi froze for only a moment, before he continued like nothing had happened.
You were impressed by his ability to keep his cool, you had to admit, but you still noticed the way his hand shook ever so slightly, as he snuck the note out of the folder and into his pocket without anyone noticing.
When the meeting finished, Kakashi walked straight back over to you, dropping the note in question on your desk.
“You’re incorrigible.” There was the slightest pink to his cheeks.
“So, you don’t want a rimjob?”
Kakashi gave you one of his signature flat looks, although the pink tinge ruined it somewhat, and wordlessly walked into his office, leaving you fruitlessly supressing your cackles.
To sum it up, you really liked him, and it was clear that he really liked you. You had seen his home, met his dogs, eaten his food, and seen flashes of the complexity bubbling just below Kakashi’s purposefully distant exterior.
In a moment of surprising seriousness, Gai had vigorously shaken your hand yesterday and told you that he’d never seen Kakashi as light and happy as he’d been these last few weeks. It was nice to hear.
You still didn’t like the fact that you had to work, but again, the job could have been a lot worse, and you were playing the long game. Technically, you were working right now, but Kakashi had asked you to accompany him on a mini road trip into the surrounding countryside. The days where Kakashi took you with him out of the office were your favourite, but today something was off. You had tired to write off Kakashi’s out of character behaviour as him just having an off day, but there was something about it that was really putting you on edge.
It was like he was trying to distract himself with the paperwork. You wondered if this meant his backstory reveal was coming up. Itachi had started behaving strangely when his worries about you rejecting him for his past were about to make themselves known. Maybe Kakashi’s backstory had something to do with where you were going.
Apparently, you were going to visit a house. Kakashi had mentioned that one of his properties (one of them, pfft, rich kid) required some maintenance. According to him, the roof had been damaged in a storm a few weeks earlier, and he needed to prepare the house for the builders to carry out repairs. Kakashi had described your tasks as mainly including clearing space for scaffolding, cleaning and packing away the breakables in the main rooms, and plugging in the fridge so the builders could store their lunches and have milk for beverages.
They didn’t seem like the kind of tasks that would cause a significant amount of stress. If he was doing things like packing away valuables and plugging in the fridge, it was probably a place he lived, rather than a rental or something. Maybe it was a summer home? You supposed that Kakashi was a very private person, so maybe he was on edge at the thought of having a load of strangers in his house without supervision.
Hmm, that sounded too simple for this universe though. You were due a backstory exposition scene, and maybe you spent too much time reading erotica, but this felt like it had ‘tragic backstory incoming’ written all over it.
“So, this place we’re going… is it a summer home? Oh! Or a summer estate? Is it a mansion? Does it have a pool, and can I use it?”
Kakashi didn’t take the obvious banter bait, he just kept his head down and continued signing documents, providing a short, factual answer.
“It’s none of those things, nor does it have a pool.”
“Aww.��� You tried to play up your sadness with a pout. “I was excited.”
“Doesn’t your complex have a swimming pool?”
“I mean, yeah, technically, but this would be a private swimming pool, that’s way better.”
Kakashi chuckled, but his heart didn’t seem in it. You put a hand on his knee and squeezed. He looked surprised for a moment, before his face melted into something softer. He took the hand in his and gave it a squeeze in return.
“If it makes you feel better, the property does have a habitat for racing pigeons.”
“Wha—Really?!”
“No.”
“…”
“…”
“I hate you so much.”
As the car turned off the main road, you pressed your face back against the window to ooh and ahh at the sights. The road was less maintained and significantly bumpier, but you didn’t let the risk of a concussion stop you from your sightseeing.
There were bushes and flowers and pretty trees lining each edge of the road, and one more turn had you going down what looked like a private road, or dare you say it, a driveway. At this point, you were kind of expecting a mansion, no matter what Kakashi said. What other homes had long private roads? Unless it was some kind of farmhouse? You couldn’t imagine Kakashi owning a farm, but his name did mean scarecrow, so perhaps he’d purchased it as a joke? Did rich people buy property for jokes?
As the car slowly turned one last time, the house in question crept into view. It was neither a farmhouse nor a summer estate. No, it was a traditional, single story, Japanese minka house, set amongst a beautiful and equally traditional garden, framed by beautiful trees, all of which were orange and red and practically screamed Autumn.
The house was large, but not excessively so. At a glance, you would assume it had three to four bedrooms. The roof was sloped and covered in worn shingles, stretching out to shelter the sprawling engawa. Wood and stone materials were used heavily in the walls and decorations, and lamps hung from both sides of the front door. It was beautiful.
You were out of the car the second it stopped.
Now that you were walking up to it, you could see the stone pathways, the koi pond, the sliding glass door at the side, and the shutters on the windows. It was a minka house, but it had clearly been modernised.
You heard the sound of two car doors opening and closing and figured that Kakashi and his chauffeur had joined you in front of the house.
“This is completely gorgeous! I’ve never seen a modernised minka house before. If it’s not a summer home, what is it for?” There was no response, so you turned, breaking eye contact with the beautiful house to search for him. “Kakashi?”
He was standing a few paces behind you, just staring at the house in silence.
“Kakashi—”
“Let’s get everything out of the car,” he mumbled, cutting you off and turning away from the house.
“Kakashi—”
“There isn’t that much; we could probably carry it all in in one trip.”
His tone made it clear that he wasn’t interested in answering your question. You trusted that the narrative would push you into finding out what was wrong when the time was right, so for now, you broke the trance the house had on you, and helped to unpack the boot.
The supplies in the boot took the form of cleaning products, empty boxes, and a few bags of groceries and kitchen supplies. Between the three of you, it was light work, and soon everything was resting on the engawa, ready to be moved inside.
Having other duties to attend to, the chauffeur took his leave once everything was out of the car, leaving you and Kakashi standing in front of the house, side by side. You awkwardly waited for him to unlock the door, but he didn’t seem interested in moving.
You cleared your throat, “Um, should we go in?”
Kakashi jolted like a doll suddenly coming to life and fished the key out of his pocket. He unlocked it, and the door swung open, creaking all the while.
“WD-40 who? This house doesn’t know her.”
He sighed, “Just go inside.”
“Alright, spoil sport.”
Kakashi held open the door and you went inside, slipping off your shoes in the entrance.
Inside, the house was… confusing.
Your eyes darted left and right, trying to understand what you were looking at. It was traditional but modernised with new appliances, not strange considering the outside of the house, but it looked distinctly like it had been modernised at least two decades ago. It was immaculately tidy, not single object out of place, and yet the entire thing was covered in a thick layer of dust. To make things more confusing, it looked lived it, personal, with clutter and photos, but it had an overwhelming air of abandonment.
As you said, it was confusing. Vibe check thoroughly failed.
“It’s… nice?” you said, hoping you could force your voice into something sincere. “Traditional modern vintage? Troderage? Vinadern? Whatever it is, it’s interesting, and I—”
Kakashi cut you off by placing a finger on your lips. He looked amused and exasperated all at the same time. You went cross eyed trying to look at the offending finger, which only seemed to amuse him more.
“You don’t have to find something nice to say, I’m aware that it’s seen better days.”
You went to bite his finger, so he tugged it away, leaving you to snap unsatisfyingly at empty air “Hey, I’m not lying! I like it, it has potential! And potential is the more important thing for a property in my opinion. Like, sure, you could buy one of those awful modern renovated homes with no personality, but if I wanted to live in a white monastery, I’d just—”
Kakashi took one of the masks he’d brought and pressed it over your mouth and then stretched the elastic over your ears to keep it in place, effectively cutting you off once again.
“You know I can still talk through these, right?” you asked, voice slightly muffled, but still clearly understandable. He passed you a dusting cloth and a bottle of unidentified cleaning spray.
“Just… clean. I’ll carry the boxes through and start packing, okay?”
“You’re not the boss of— Oh.” That’s right, he was literally our boss. Good job this was a porn world, because you had a feeling that real world HR wouldn’t approve.
You were rewarded with another one of his eyes smiles as he snapped his own mask into place. “Chop chop, dear assistant of mine.”
Ugh, fine, whatever. Kakashi went back out to the engawa, and you decided to start by dusting the mantel place. If you dusted the photos and ornaments first, which practically covered the mantel place, Kakashi could get started with packing them up.
You started at the left end and grabbed the first picture. Confusingly, it had been laying face down. You hesitated, wondering if it was something Kakashi explicitly didn’t want you to see. You felt drawn to it though. Was that just you being nosy, or was this some kind of hint from your porn logic overlords? Was it moral for you to look when—Too late you already grabbed it and flipped it over.
Philosophising took too long.
It was a photo of two people, obviously a father and son, sitting in the garden you’d just walked through. The sun was shining, and both people were covered in mud, clearly having just finished some gardening. It was a sweet picture, but more importantly you recognised the two people from your google searches.
It was a photo of a young Kakashi and his father. This was his—
A hand tugged the photo out of your hand. Kakashi.
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t even think—”
“It’s fine.” His voice was short, but at least he didn’t sound angry.
“This was your family home, wasn’t it?” you asked softly.
Kakashi sighed, turning away from you to put the photo in one of the boxes. “In a way. Although I haven’t lived here since I was four.”
You put a comforting hand on his shoulder, wondering if this was where you were going to find out about Kakashi’s angst. The death of his father had definitely made an impact on him, but you had a suspicion that there was something more to his angst than that.
Kakashi looked as tightly coiled as a spring, though. You decided to wait until he was more relaxed before you tried coaxing his backstory out of him. Some cleaning would get his mind off things.
“Let’s start with the dusting!” you said, artificially injecting some chipperness into the conversation. You saw Kakashi’s shoulders lift as you stopped prying into his backstory. “You should be careful though.” Hook.
Kakashi looked confused. “What? Why?” Line.
“Because we won’t be able to tell if it gets in your hair, old man.” And Sinker.
Kakashi scowled and threw a dusting cloth at your face.
Kakashi warmed up again as you worked. It seemed to help him, having a job to focus on, and of course, you were doing your best to keep his spirits high as well.
And honestly, all the cleaning and mood management was well worth it to see his baby pictures! He didn’t have parents to show you, so you were taking it into your own hands. You avoided bringing attention to any that also contained his father, but there was still plenty to work with.
You squealed, pulling a photo of a tiny, grumpy Kakashi holding a freshly caught fish off the wall to dust. “Look how cute you were! You know how to fish? I’ll be honest, I didn’t imagine that as one of your skills.”
“Will you stop—” Kakashi said, plucking the picture from your hands and hanging back on the wall. “Do you have to put effort into being so nosy, or is it a natural born talent?”
“Completely natural.” You grinned and grabbed the photo back, giving it a quick dust and then putting it in the box of valuables, cooing all the while.
Kakashi rolled his eyes, but you could see the pink dusting his ears.
“Hey, here’s a question.”
“Can’t you just dust?”
“Why was the outside of the house so immaculate, when the inside looks like it hasn’t been touched in a decade?” you asked, taping up one box and grabbing another empty one.
“I hire a groundskeeper for the outside, but I personally clean the inside.”
Your face spoke for itself as you looked around the room, still half-covered in dust. Kakashi sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “I haven’t done it for a couple of years, I admit.”
You laughed, grabbing the next photo to dust. It was another one of just Kakashi, although this time he was sitting behind a dog-shaped birthday cake, scowling at the camera.
“Did you ever smile?” you asked, holding up the photo. “Even now you don’t seem much better at it, always stone faced or rolling your eyes, do I have to teach you?”
You slid the photo under your arm so that your hands were free to push up Kakashi’s cheeks into a faux smile. You managed to hold his cheeks in a forced smile for a second, before Kakashi smacked your hands away, scowling. You sent him a cheeky grin, but he only yanked the photo out from under your arm and bent down to pack it away in a box.
What you did next, could hardly be held against you. You mean, it was right there, in all its glory: Kakashi’s toned but ample butt.
You pinched it.
Kakashi jumped before immediately standing and whirling around to face you. Your grin froze on your face as you noticed something intense flashing in his eyes, the kind of intense that promised revenge.
Oh, fuck.
You broke into a desperate run away from Kakashi, but he immediately gave chase. You ran around the coffee table and into the kitchen, thunderous footsteps sounding behind you. Your heart pounded and some hysterical giggles escaped as you ran through the second door in the kitchen, grateful that it wasn’t a dead end.
“Stop running and accept your fate!” Kakashi called from somewhere behind you.
“You’ll never take me alive!”
You ended up back in the living room, but you managed to catch Kakashi in a stalemate, with you standing behind the couch, and him standing in front of it. Every time he darted around one way, you went the other. You both stared at each other, watching for even the slightest hint of movement.
“If you give up now, I promise the punishment won’t be so bad,” Kakashi said with an unfairly attractive lilt.
“If you think I’m going to give in, then you’re as senile as the grey hair suggests, old man.” To further make your point, you gave him the middle finger. You weren’t really sure how this was going to end, because he would inevitably catch you, even if only because you arrived in his car, but you weren’t a quitter and you certainly didn’t surrender!
Kakashi chuckled, and then in a second, his whole body shot forward and the man leapt over the sofa towards you. You shrieked and continued running. Adrenaline pumping, you automatically ran towards the front door.
Unfortunately, all it took was one moment of weakness. There, in the doorway, you suddenly realised that you weren’t wearing shoes. You hesitated for only a moment, but that was all it took for Kakashi to catch up with you.
“Hidden technique: One Thousand Years of Death!”
There, in the doorway of Kakashi’s childhood home, you let out an ungodly screech as Kakashi’s fingers jabbed you in a place that you really didn’t want to be jabbed.
Your back arched and your butt cheeks clenched.
“You bastard!” you screamed, turning around to smack Kakashi’s chest. He was dying laughing, happily taking your smacks. “That wasn’t funny!”
“It was very funny,” Kakashi disagreed, moving backwards to dodge your smacks. “Although maybe not for the local wildlife; I think they might be traumatised after that screech.”
You huffed, gingerly rubbing your backside as you followed him back into the living room. “You know, you are completely and utterly— Woah!”
Midsentence, because this world was ridiculous, you slipped on a section of wet floor that you were 100% sure you had already dried. There was a split second of relief where Kakashi managed to catch you, before he also slipped on the floor, and both of you went crashing to the ground.
Kakashi hit the ground first, laying on his back, and you quickly followed, landing on top of him. Kakashi let out an oof noise as you knocked the air from his lungs.
It was the exact same thing as had happened with Itachi, except you were the one on top this time. Porn logic was just running out of ideas you thought, bitter at having been tripped on a wet floor that you had already dried.
‘Careful human,’ James interjected. ‘You do not wish you issue a challenge to porn logic, because in my experience, it does not take kindly to such things.’
‘Wait, really? What happens if I issue porn logic a challenge?’
‘The last alpha who did that… well, let’s just say that I doubt their penis was ever the same again.’
You loved porn logic. Porn logic had zero faults and you wanted to kiss it on the mouth, marry it even. It was just perfect in every way.
‘Good save, human.’
‘Thanks, James.’
“Are you going to get off me or are you just going to continue staring into space?” Kakashi’s voice jolted you from your conversation with James and you bashfully cleared your throat.
“Right, yes, of course, but I am going to use your tits as leverage to stand, just saying.”
Kakashi rolled his eyes, which seemed to be his go to response when he was in your presence but didn’t protest your grabbing at his chest.
You put your hands down and gave his chest a little squeeze, ooh, nice and squishy. You were about to push off him and into a standing position, when you felt something that wasn’t so nice and squishy.
In the inside pocket of his jacket was something hard, almost like a small book. Honestly, it wouldn’t have been notable at all if Kakashi hadn’t reacted. You would have assumed it to be some kind of paperwork or light reading, but Kakashi froze, and you’d seen more innocent expressions on kids caught with their hands in cookie jars.
“What’s that?”
“Paperwork.” Kakashi answered far too quickly for you to believe him for even a second.
“Well, if it’s only paperwork, then you won’t mind me having a look.” You grabbed the book out of his pocket, dodging his attempts to stop you. Your weight on top of him was keeping him pinned nicely, and moments later you had the book held triumphantly above your head.
“Now, let’s see,” you hummed, giving the book a look. It was a small yellow book, with large writing ‘Icha Icha’ over the top. The 18+ logo on the front was a damning piece of evidence. This was a porn book. How hilariously ironic.
“I can explain—”
“Kakashi!” you said, in a faux scandalised voice.
“I read it for the story!”
You hummed, considering his story, like a judge. Kakashi stared up at you, trying his best to be the picture of pure innocence, pleading with you to end the interrogation.
Obviously, you had no choice but to push things further.
“Well, I can understand that!” you said, chipper as ever.
Kakashi blinked, “You can? I mean, you can. Great, so if you could just give it back—"
“If the story is as good as you say it is, then I would love to give it a look!” Any hope that had started to bloom on Kakashi’s face died as soon as he registered your words. He tried to sit up, presumably to wrestle the book from you, but you used a knee to hold his chest to the ground. “Now, now, you wouldn’t be so cruel as to deprive me from such a great story, would you? If it’s good enough for you to be carrying around at work, it must be something special.”
Kakashi made another swipe for the book, but you simply held it above his reach. “I hate you. I hate you so much.”
“No, you don’t! Now, let’s see…” You flicked to a random page. “This page looks like a good place to start.” You cleared your throat. When it became obvious that you were about to do a dramatic reading, Kakashi groaned.
“You’re ridiculous, completely ridiculous. I should sue you for assault and theft.”
You ignored him, scanning the page. A feral grin blossomed on your face; it was perfect.
“Elisabeth grinned down at Makoto, hunger and lust warring for dominance in her eyes, reflecting the real life battle that Makoto had just lost. Makoto wondered what it would be like to have her mouth on his—” you gasped, clutching imaginary pearls. “Oh my, Kakashi, what are you reading?”
“I’m reporting you to HR.”
“Oh? And this” -you shifted your hips against his, watching as Kakashi hissed at the pressure on his rapidly rising cock- “is going to end up in the report too, I presume?”
Kakashi had no comment to make, but his rosy cheeks spoke loud and clear. You took that as an invitation to carry on reading. You skipped a few paragraphs to get to the really juicy bits.
“Elisabeth wrapped her hands around Makoto’s neck in a gentle mockery of a collar. Makoto bit his lip, overwhelmed by the imagery. He wanted her to own him, mind, body, and soul. But first, he needed his punishment. A punishment? How exciting! Do you remember what punishment Elisabeth is going to give to Makoto, Kakashi?” You rolled your hips again, delighting in the pleasured grunt you forced from him. Kakashi shook his head as a negative to your question, something you didn’t believe for one moment; the book was clearly well loved and had been read many times before.
You leant down over his pink face and gave him a chaste kiss. You saw his arms move and for a moment you assumed that he was going for the book, but he merely settled his arms on your hips before pushing his crotch up into yours. You hummed and kissed him again. He was such a brat.
“Makoto was forced to kneel at her feet. It was with eagerness that he anticipated the crack of her whips against his skin. He had been bad, he knew that, so he accepted his punishment with grace and also a raging boner. Ah, I see what you’re into. And just when I didn’t think you could be more cliché, the CEO is into BDSM.”
“And how many porn books are you reading to know that it’s cliché?”
“Change the subject all you want; you were the one caught with your proverbial trousers down.” Kakashi rolled his eyes. He seemed to have recovered from the minor embarrassment, because the light dusting of pink didn’t get any worse. You guessed it took more than that to embarrass someone who apparently caried porn around in their pocket of their work clothes. “Okay, okay, one more and then we can keep cleaning.”
You flipped through the book, trying for find the right scene to end it on. Hmm… Maybe you should let porn logic choose? It would probably know exactly what page to pick. You closed your eyes.
‘Porn logic, choose the page that will get the best reaction from Kakashi please!’
You flicked through the pages until you felt the overwhelming urge to stop, at which point you clamped your thumb down. You had landed on page 154.
To your immediate confusion, it didn’t look like it had any porn on it at all. It looked like it was just a sappy conversation between Elizabeth and Makoto. You debated picking another one, but after James’ warning about pissing off the porn logic, you decided to just trust it.
“Elisabeth, there’s something I’ve been wanting to say to you for a while, something important,” you read out loud. Kakashi let out a strangled noise as he realised what page you were on. His lightly pink face quickly deepened into an impressive red. Oh. So that’s how this was going to go.
“Fine, you win, can I have my book back now because—”
“What is it, Makoto? What could be so important that you called me here at this time?”
Kakashi whined, pressing his hands to his face. You had never seen him act like this before. You watched, fascinated, as you continued to read.
“Elisabeth… With all my heart, deeply and truly, I love you.”
Those final words were enough for Kakashi, because he easily broke out of your hold, knocking you off of him and onto the living room floor. Now free, he turned over onto his front and buried his face into his arms. You could almost see the steam coming out of his ears.
It was as unexpected as it was adorable. You hoped this wonderful omega never stopped surprising you in the best way.
“Aww, Kakashi, I’m sorry,” you cooed, rubbing his back. “It’s okay to be a sap at heart, I won’t tell anyone! I want to keep this cute side of you to myself.”
Kakashi took a shaky breath before pushing himself into a sitting position. He was still bright red. “You are…”
“Are…?”
Kakashi gave you one of his eye smiles, reached out with a hand, and firmly flicked you on the forehead. “Annoying.”
It was such a weak attempt to restart the banter on a equal standing that you couldn’t hold your laughter in.
“You’re so pathetic,” you laughed, clutching at your stomach. “I love it.”
“So are you,” Kakashi said, pouting.
“I know, that’s why we’re perfect together!”
Slowly, Kakashi started to laugh too, joining your hysteria on the living room floor of his childhood home. You were leaning on each other, just completely lost in a weird joke that only you two could understand.
What a team you made. You really liked Kakashi. Honestly, you could say that you loved him at this point. He was just so fun to be around, fun to tease, fun to bite, everything. Being around him made you feel alive, and having money for everything you could ever need was only adding to how relaxed you had been feeling the whole time in this dimension.
You could see a very happy life here. You didn’t know if it was fortunate or unfortunate that you saw an equally happy life with Itachi. Your laughter petered out as you considered the impossible choice you were going to have to make.
The knowledge that no other person would ever enter this universe if you didn’t stay only made you feel guiltier. Was it worse to leave Kakashi alone forever, but with his money and friends, or leave Itachi with the possibility of another great love, but an equal possibility of being forced to settle with some awful person who just happened to die early and choose him?
You sighed, trying to put such heavy thoughts out of your mind for now.
Kakashi was watching you, a soft look on his face. His mask had slipped off at some point during the chase, so you could see his face unhindered. He was just watching you in silence.
You reached out a hand to cup his face. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I am,” he said, still staring at you like you were the centre of his world. “It’s just… it’s been a long time since there was laughter in this house.”
“I bet.” You smiled sadly and pressed a kiss to his forehead. His backstory was so sad that whenever you thought about it for too long, it hurt your heart. It had been easier to read at first, when he had just been some nebulous, kind of dickish, person on a Wikipedia page, but now he was Kakashi, your Kakashi… It hurt to imagine him suffering.
His father had committed suicide when he was only four, and then Kakashi had been raised by custodians, forced into business from a ridiculously early age, and then been betrayed by those who were supposed to look after him as soon as he came of age.
“Kakashi? Can I ask you a question?”
“You? Of course. Always.”
“Do you…” You struggled for a moment, thinking about how best to phrase the question. “Do you enjoy your work? Do you like business? Because from what I understand, you didn’t really get much of a choice.”
Kakashi seemed baffled that you would ask such a question. His mouth opened, but no sound came out.
“I… like my job,” he said, entirely unconvincingly.
“What do you like about it?”
He didn’t answer. That didn’t surprise you.
“Did you ever get a chance to follow your own dreams?”
Kakashi blinked at you, looking lost. He swallowed heavily. You rubbed your thumb on his cheek to try and comfort him. You understood that for someone who had never been given a choice, your question might have been quite jarring.
“What are your dreams, Kakashi?”
He stared at you and shook his head, still silent.
“You don’t know?” You pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. “It’s never too late to make dreams, Kakashi, remember that.”
“If you say so,” he said, trying and failing to keep a light-hearted tone. “We need to keep cleaning, you know, we’re burning daylight.”
You allowed the heavy-handed topic change to slid by without acknowledgment. “You’re right, come on, let’s get up. You’re buying me dinner tonight, by the way, as thanks for all this cleaning.”
He rolled his eyes, standing. “Fine, but I’m picking the restaurant, and I want it delivered.”
“Sounds good to me!”
You yawned, gratefully climbing into bed. This MC had invested in expensive sheets, and honestly you loved them for it. There was no better way to end a tiring workday than climbing into bed.
You couldn’t wait to either reject society and run off into the woods with Itachi or have a full-time profession as Kakashi’s eccentric trophy spouse. Work sucked.
You closed your eyes, and just as you were starting to drift off, your phone started to ring. Ugh.
You forced yourself awake. Your fake family and friends hadn’t even been invented yet, and you were already being bothered. You squinted at the caller ID. Oh, it was Kakashi. That was weird; he wasn’t a phone call person.
You answered the phone. “Hello? Kakashi? Is everything okay?”
“Yes, I’m sorry for calling you.” His voice sounded strange. It was softer than usual, like his head was off in the clouds.
“That’s okay.” You waited for an explanation of his call, but none came. “Did you need something?”
“Yes, I… I was thinking about the Autumn Company Party and I…”
“Yes?”
“Do you think…” He stopped talking again. Something was off.
“Kakashi, you’re freaking me out. Please tell me what’s wrong?”
There was a pause. “Nothing, I’m sorry, I’m fine. Goodnight.”
“Kakashi—” You couldn’t get any more words out before he hung up the phone.
You sat there in bed, staring down at your call log, confused.
What on Earth had that been about?
Next chapter
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fic-over-cannon · 10 months
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Always and Forever
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jason todd x f!reader
ao3 link
summary: jason tries to end things after a bad patrol. you won’t give him up without a fight.
tags: f!reader, smut, kissing, biting, piv sex, unprotected sex, fingering (mention) cock warming, orgasm denial (kind of), belly bulge, size kink (if you squint), overstimulation, creampie (if you think this is misproperly tagged please let me know) minors and ageless blogs do not interact
rated e (mdni) | wc: 5.5k
a/n: this is my first time writing smut (or a fic of this length) so please be gentle! if you find jason a little ooc, i’m still working on getting his ‘voice’ right, so just consider him one of the many versions we’ve all come to love. this started as a single smut scene and grew feelings and a bit of plot from there. this was definitely a labour of love so i hope you all enjoy it!
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“We’re done. Us. All of it. You’re free to leave.”
The modulated voice of the Red Hood startles you. It’s nearly six in the morning, and you’ve been up since three when Jason didn’t return from patrol like he promised. He’s still in his Hood gear, hasn’t bothered to take off the helmet or even the boots crusted in who knows what. The leather jacket has taken a beating, and in the dim light of your apartment living room it glistens damply like he was caught in the earlier rain. He won’t even look in your direction, hands fisted at his sides, the darkened leather of his gloves taut across his knuckles. Jason didn’t come home like he promised and now he can’t even bear to look at you as he tears your heart in two. It’s understandable then, that when your voice returns to you and you can breathe around the lump in your throat, that your voice shatters the silence.
“Look at me. Look. At. Me.”
Only the way that his body locks up, somehow tenser than before, deflates you. A whole night’s worry and frustration drained away.
“Jay? Please take off the helmet and look at me.”
His black curls are matted to his forehead with sweat. His one white streak is dark with it,. Somewhere along the way he must have ditched the domino mask, because the sight of his bare face twists something tight in your chest. His beautiful eyes are red rimmed, tear tracks still staining his cheeks. His lips look bitten raw. He looks at you the way a dying man looks at salvation. Realization dawns slowly for you.
“You didn’t get caught in the rain, did you?”
A sharp nod, jaw clenching, but he doesn’t look away. Now you’ve noticed, you can’t stop. There’s a faint blood spray on the front of the helmet, barely visible from where Jason’s placed it on the counter. The leather jacket is soaked through with blood, darker splotches on his tac pants from where it’s followed gravity. The grime on his boots now looks rusty, though that might just be your imagination. Jason’s come home hours late covered in blood and is telling you to leave. This time, your voice is startlingly gentle.
“Jay we talked about this. You promised no life altering conversations when you’re covered in blood, remember?”
At the time, had been a joke. A promise made after a close call, when Jason was still loopy from sedation and painkillers and insisting he was going to duel Doc Leslie for your honour. Finally lucid, he had sheepishly promised no more dramatic ultimatums when he's covered in blood.
“But you need to—“
“No. You promised. What’s going to happen is you’re going to leave all your gear at the front door and we’ll deal with it tomorrow. You’re going to tell me if you’re injured and let me fix you up if you are. Then you’re going to shower. Then, and only then are we going to have this discussion.”
“I don’t—”
“Please.”
He caves at the way your whole body sags under the weight of one word. Carefully toes off his boots and socks, peels the stiff tac pants off, and lays his top and jacket on top of the whole pile. Reveals a smattering of bruises down his arms and along his rib cage. To get to the ensuite he has to walk past you and through your shared bedroom. The heat of him passing by has you turning after him, a star caught in his orbit, words curling to ash on your tongue. It’s only when he’s firmly out of sight that you allow yourself to collapse into the couch. Head lolling back, gaze fixed on the ceiling. Blankly you watch the headlights of passing cars loom and fade across the ceiling.
You do your best not to cry but wet trails burn down your face. You dash them away, but it does nothing to make you feel better. You don’t know if you’ll survive the coming conversation, a litany of “he doesn’t love me anymore, or at least not enough to keep me” is running through your head. Something is wrong, you think. Usually after a rough night, Jason can’t get enough of you. He comes home to your shared apartment and holds you, needs to feel the touch of your skin and the heat of your breath to truly know you’re alive. He's never the most talkative on the worst nights, but he always reaches out. Mumbles into your throat just to hear your replies, get you to distract him with chatter about your own day. He’ll act like he’s touch starved, press his split knuckles to the back of your hand, pull you into him until his nose is buried in the crook of your neck, pet and touch whatever bare skin is in reach. You're used to shaking off the vestiges of sleep to Jason between your thighs, fingers and tongue skillfully opening you up before he slides his cock inside, splitting you open just to feel you tighten around him. Tonight he hasn’t even reached out to hold your hand.
As if summoned by your thoughts, Jason stands in the doorway to your shared bedroom. Wet from his shower, the streetlight filtering through the curtains illuminating the water still beading on his skin. The bruises look less stark now. You look at him and feel love. You look at him and see the man you gave the most vulnerable parts of yourself to, ready to hand them back to you on a platter. Rolling your head to look at him properly, you notice he hasn't bothered to dress, wrapped in a towel like he couldn't wait to put off this conversation a moment longer. Your eyes meet, and it snaps whatever trance he's in. He shuffles over to you, eyes asking for permission to join you on the couch. The couch dips under his weight, and you turn on your side to face him, legs curling up to your chest.
"I'm glad you're home."
You reach out to brush his face, aching to remind yourself that's he's real but he shies back from the motion, denies you both the comfort of contact.
"Don’t. I'm not— I'm not good for you. We can't— I'm not gonna do this to you anymore."
"Do what to me Jason?" you ask, genuinely puzzled "Be us? I chose this, I chose you, and I have kept on choosing you from the beginning. I don't understand." By the end, you're truly pleading, begging with your voice and eyes and body for him to explain this to you. To explain why he's trying to make this choice for you.
"Bein' with me puts you in danger," he says slowly, carefully. "You think you know what you've signed up for but you don't. Not really. I painted a target on your back and now the worst of Gotham are gonna come sniffin’ at your door. You're never gonna be safe with me and I don't want to be the reason why you're hurt. You deserve better than me and a life of looking over your shoulder. I can't give you that, I'll never be able to give you that."
And oh, that hurts. The way he says it, dripping with self-loathing and certainty, cracks your heart open. It speaks of long held fears and convictions that he will never be good enough, that he is too broken and too dangerous to be loved.
"Did something happen tonight?" you ask, searching for a reason, anything, that would have brought old wounds to light.
"What?" Tension laces his body tight. There's a wild look in his eyes, shifting closer to green than blue.
"Jay, you made all of those risks clear to me before we were even real friends. So, what happened tonight to make you so sure that you'll be the death of me?"
Something about the way you state the question so matter of factly unsettles him enough to reply. "Heard some chatter down at docks about Black Mask setting up a new warehouse. Tonight was just supposed to be easy. Just about fuckin' with him, get B and Wing time to gather evidence on his new operation. He was waiting for us, probably set the whole thing up as a trap. Did a whole melodramatic monologue too 'bout how if we were gonna threaten his operation — the only thing that means anything to him — then turnabout’s fair play."
He's paused in his remembered anger, hands flexing against the couch cushions. You nod, trying to encourage him, not wanting to break the spell that got him talking in the first place. But you really don't like where this was headed. When he speaks again, its in a whisper.
"He knew your name. He knew who you are to me and he knew your fucking name."
The fear that jolts through you at that statement is matched by the intensity in his eyes. Distractedly you notice that you can’t feel your fingers. Heart racing, the only thing grounding you is the weave of the cushion under your cheek.
"Okay, we can— we can handle this. It'll be difficult but I can—"
"He's dead," Jason interrupts.
"He's what." All trains of thought come to a crashing stop.
"I killed him."
Its a confession and a plea for forgiveness wrapped in one. He can't quite look you in the eyes anymore, his whole demeanor screaming shame. Stunned and wide-eyed all you can do is drink him in, this incredible, ridiculous man. Car headlights cut through the shadows, lighting up the planes of his face and catching on the still too-green of his eyes. Somewhere along the way you've moved closer. His face is only a breath away and in the silence it feels unbearably intimate.
You can't help blurting out, "Can I kiss you?" The thought of being unable to touch him any longer is utterly unthinkable. Not when he's right in front of you, lips parted and waiting for you to pronounce judgement over him. He nods, shyly, and then you're in his lap. His face is cradled in your hands, eyes wide as he looks up at you. His lips are warm when you finally give in to the urge to taste him. They're rough from where he's bitten them but they're pliant against yours. Drawing back, you rest your forehead on his, unwilling to be any further apart.
"He had your name in his fuckin' mouth and I couldn't let him live for that. So yeah, I killed him. Him and every one a his lieutenants in the room that heard." Jason pauses, tries to gauge your reaction, continues on more self-consciously. "B and Wing couldn’t stop me and I didn’t want them to. He was a threat to you and I didn't know. You could have died and I wouldn't even've known what to protect you from." He tries to pull back from you, but you don't let him. Lets his motion pull you along with him, hands still cradling his face.
"Is that where all the blood is from? You're not hiding any injuries besides the bruises from me?" you ask worriedly. He's done it before, but you'd hoped he'd learned to trust you better. Jason goes to remove your hands from his face and you don't resist. He presses soft kisses to each of your palms before folding them to his bare chest right over his heart.
"Fuck sweetheart, I tell you that I've just killed a roomful of men and you want to know if I'm okay? You're not angry that I killed, again?" And oh he looks so ready for you to reject him. Waiting for you to turn away, to call him a monster, for your love to turn to horror.
When you speak, the words come out slowly, each syllable weighed out with care. "Am I bad person if I say that I'm grateful?" You can feel his heartbeat speeding up under your hands as you speak. "Because I am Jay, I'm so, so grateful. I'm grateful that I'll never have to worry about a bullet in the dark or getting taken off the street. Mostly I'm grateful that I won't be used to hurt you. But I'm also so very sorry Jay that you had to kill again." He shudders at that, closes his eyes and squeezes your hands tight tight tight. "I know that you were trying so, so hard not to kill, to live by your family's rules and I'm so sorry that you had to break that promise to yourself. Can you forgive me for putting you in that impossible position?"
"I— I don't need your forgiveness, not for this. But don't you see? I'm the reason you were danger. If I hadn't a been quick enough, if there's ever a day when I'm not fast enough, then you'd've died." At that he stops, swallows thickly, like he's considering a world where he doesn't save you. "This doesn’t end just ‘cause Black Mask’s dead. It’s every enemy the Hood has ever made knowing that my heart’s walking around outside my body.” And that, that makes your breath catch in your throat. Stuns you enough that you’re not fully prepared for what he says next. “So this, you and me, it's gotta be done. I'll move out tomorrow, pack things up later. I won't leave you unprotected, I'll— I'll still patrol but you won't have to see me again. You can have a clean start."
Now, now you are angry. Pushing off his chest you lever yourself upright, forcing him to look up at you. Straddled across his lap your balance is precarious at best but you need him to see you, to realize that what you say next is what you mean with every wretched part of you.
"No."
"No?" He's looking up at you, glazed eyes and mouth open wide with shock.
"No. Jason Peter Todd you do not get to make this decision for me." With every word you push your finger into his chest for emphasis, your whole body shaking with the force you're putting behind your words. "I knew the risks because you told me about them. I decided that I could live with them if it meant having you. I told you always and forever. I meant it then and I mean it now. So this, you and me, it’s over when I agree it is. I gave you my fucking heart and this is me not accepting it back. You tell me I’m free to leave anytime, well I’m not.” His hands have fallen to your hips where they clench and unclench. “You haven’t been able to keep me out of your sight lines for more than three minutes tonight. You can’t go a day without touching me, feeling me up and getting your cock wet. I know you don’t sleep half so well if I’m not in your bed and neither can I. I know the way you look when you think nothing you’ve done has ever been good enough and the face you make when you feel like a hero. I know you to your bones and you know me. You want me to live a life that you’re not a part of, well I won’t." Suddenly fed up with the chafing of the towel on your poor inner thighs you try to shift, when you feel him hard under the thin layer of the bath towel. You feel Jason freeze up, time crystallizing around you before speeding back up like a poorly wound tape.
“Off. Off now” You start pawing at the blasted towel unsuccessfully, before giving up and going for your own sleep pants. You’re half way through wiggling them off before Jason’s brain catches up with you and then he’s scrabbling to tear the towel off and get you bare. You grab his hardening cock and guide it to the entrance of your cunt. You’re still not slick enough for this, didn’t spend ages getting opened up on fingers first, but you’re desperate enough to make it work. His hands around your thighs are like iron, clinging to you like a life preserver. You take it slow, letting gravity do the work of spearing you open on his cock, unable to take him to the hilt in one swift motion the way you ache to. Jason’s a big man, always towering over you in size, and his cock is perfectly large to match. Already the stretch is just the other side of painful, the thickness of him cleaving you in two. You gasp like you’ve been punched with every inch downwards. By the time your hips meet his pelvis his stomach muscles are clenched and twitching from the effort of not just fucking up into you and taking what he wants. His fingers are buried in the couch cushions. Deliriously you wonder if the cushions will still be intact by the end of this conversation.
"So tell me again," you pant, "tell me why you think you can just walk away from me and all the love we have like it's nothing." Jason groans at your words, buries his face in your throat, hips still twitching with aborted thrusts.
"Please, please baby. Let me move— shit, let me make you feel good. God, sweetheart you're so fucking tight, so fuckin’ perfect for me." The growing roll of his hips is distracting. He's so fucking thick, this position making him feel like he's somewhere in your stomach, every flex of his muscles bullies him deeper, threatens to shake all the thoughts out of your head. That just won’t do. You take back control with a soft hand on his chest pushing him back until he's leaned right back against the couch cushions.
"You started this conversation Jay. It’s not done until you finish it. Besides, you’re the one that wants to put a stop to all this." You punctuate your words with a single calculated grind of your hips, make him claw at your hips with abandon. Revel at the weight of him inside of you. Trail your hand up his chest so you can thread your fingers into his damp curls. "Why should I let you move, hmm? Give me that list of reasons, and maybe I'll let you fuck me when we're done talking." His pupils are blown so wide you can barely see the colour of his eyes anymore.
It takes a few false starts before he can put a coherent thought together. "Being— being with me makes, oh god, makes you a target. People'll go through you, tryna hurt me. You're gonna get hurt cus'a me, could die fr'me." He's trembling all over now, words slurring together and gasping for air. He settles a little when you run your other hand down his chest to trace his y-shaped scar, lean in and kiss him slow and sweet. Nip and tease at his already abused bottom lip.
"Love that ship went and sailed the first time you talked to me," you say. "There's no putting that back in the box and hoping everyone will forget that we were us." Taking your time, you mouth along his jawline, feel his hand slide under your shirt to come settle on the small of your back. "Say we split up, what then? Doesn't matter how often you swing by, someone'll always try and find a way. Tonight was just a reminder. How does breaking both of our hearts make that go away?" Nuzzling into that sweet space below his jaw, you can feel the way his pulse races and cock twitches in you. All the while you keep your hips tortuously still, warming his cock with your cunt, enjoying the stretch of him. A tug of his hair gets him talking again.
"I'm not a— not a good man. I've killed a lot a people, don't even regret most a'em." He can't look at you as he says it, eyes fixed on a spot over your shoulder. His hand on your back flexes, fingers tightening around your hip bone.
"Didn't we just go over this? Jay I'm glad you killed those men, and if that makes you a bad person so am I." This time its him that goes in for a kiss, latches on to the plush of your lips, licks his way inside. Cradles your skull and pulls you closer, has to stop kissing you to gasp when that shifts his cock inside of you.
"Sweetheart, you're the best person damn person I know," he breathes into your mouth. Traces over your cheekbone with the tip of his nose. "You're the best fuckin' thing to happen to me. But you shouldn't hafta decide if you're okay with me killing people. Shouldn't be something you gotta think about at all." There it is again, that tinge of self-loathing. And that's what it’s really all about isn't it?
"You're not making me do anything. You think I didn't know who I was saying yes to when you asked me out to dinner? That I was unaware of Hood's brand of justice? That unlike your family, I didn’t already approve of your methods? Love, I was grateful for you before you'd even walked into my life." Its a confession you hadn't said out loud before, but maybe you should've. Something about your faith in him has Jason whining at the back of his throat like a wounded animal. He tries to buck his hips but freezes when the hand in his hair forcefully tugs his head back, exposes the vulnerable line of his throat.
"Can't just say that sweetheart. Can't just say that and not let me fuck you full." Another tug at his hair has him moaning, the cords of his throat standing out. "C'mon, c'mon. You're so wet and so warm for me. I'll make you feel— feel so good." On the last word he tries to thrust up but you were expecting this, dig your knees into the couch to leverage up off of him at the same time he moves forward. You bite down on the soft skin of his throat before pressing a kiss to the forming bruise. Let go of his hair to clasp the side of his neck, rub your thumb over the hinge of his jaw. Let his head fall forward to your chest, resting his brow on your collarbone.
"I said after our conversation, didn't I? And those aren't your only reasons, are they?" you tease. "You can fuck me whenever you want Jay, you just have to be honest first."
He’s torn, you can tell. Caught between chasing his pleasure at the steep price of his darkest fears, but also wanting to do right by you, as misguided as this attempt is. But he’s been so truthful so far, deserves a reward for how good he’s been. So you clamp down, hard, feel his cock brush against that soft part of your gut that makes you shiver with pleasure. Enjoy the punched out sound that wrings from him. Grind your hips down in a filthy circle, once, twice. Then just as suddenly stop. Let him pant and shake, breath warm in the contours of your throat.
When he finally speaks, his voice is so small you can barely hear him. "M'scared." He shudders as he says it. Something in the curve of his spine screams vulnerable, sparks an itch in your fingers to touch and so you do.
"Think 'm too broken for you to love. Think 'm too broken to love you right. Scared one day that the pit's gonna burn too bright and I'll hurt you." Like a broken dam, the words come tumbling out so quickly now. All you can do is keep stroking his back, this giant of a man rendered so small in your arms. "That I'll wake up one day and it'll be my hands covered in your blood." The hate and self-loathing is almost palpable, an oil slick shadow creeping along the floorboards. You could cry from the way his voice shakes and cracks.
“Oh, love.” And this time it’s your voice cracking. “I’ve never thought of you as broken. There’s never going to be a day where I think you’re too broken for me to love. If the day ever comes that you do break, I’ll pick up all the shiny pieces with my bare hands if I have to. I’ll put you back together again even if it cuts me open because that’s what we do Jason. You don’t think there aren’t parts of me I’d rather smooth out too? You don’t have to love me perfectly to love me right.” He’s straightening up now, trying to get a better view of your face, needs to see the truth of your words. His arms have moved around you like a vice, holding on as if you’ll disappear if he lets go. “You’ve never hurt me Jason. Scratch that, you’ve never hurt me before tonight and your stupid, noble attempt to break up with me. But not once have you laid your hands on me and not once have I been afraid of you.” He tries to interrupt, opens his mouth to speak but you’re not finished. You lay finger over his lips, force him to let you say your piece. “But I know that the problem isn’t my trust in you, it’s yours. Besides Black Mask and his thugs, did you hurt anyone else tonight?” At the shake of his head you continue. “There you have it. Even tonight, when you had every reason to spin out of control you didn’t hurt anyone you didn’t mean to. So talk to me. We’ll figure this out. Hell, we’ll find you a therapist if that’s what you want. So trust me, at least, even if you can’t trust yourself.”
You’d swear there were tears in his eyes if you didn’t already know never to trust the early morning light. It’s past dawn now and in the silence Jason looks like something out of a fairytale. The weak golden light makes him look so alive, so vibrant. He sits there still as stone, holding you tight in his lap, dumb with the weight of your love and acceptance. His grin, when it breaks over his face, is a little watery but possibly the most precious thing you’ve ever seen.
“There’s really no scaring you off, is there?” It’s a weak joke, but he’s trying.
“No. There isn’t.” If your words don’t convince him then the tone of satisfaction ringing through them would. Pushing at his shoulders you maneuver him as close to lying down as you can manage on your old couch. Tearing off your oversized sleep shirt (stolen from Jason of course), you’re finally as bare as he is. Perched over him, you enjoy the view of him splayed out like an offering. Reaching for his arm, you find his hand, place it on the curve below your belly and lace your fingers over the back of it. You push his palm down into you to feel the hard swell of where his cock is curving you out, carving out a place in your guts and moulding your cunt to the shape of his cock. You can see the exact moment his restraint snaps when he realizes he’s feeling himself through you. Let him jack knife up into you, feel the way his hardness moves under his palm. Enjoy the way it feels to finally have him drag his cock through you. But he’s trying to be respectful and you haven’t given him the go ahead yet. He restrains himself to shallow rocking motions, unable to stop himself completely, but the effort this is costing him is clear by his straining muscles and wide eyes.
“You paying attention Jay? This—” and this time you clench down on his cock as you press his hand to the shape of your womb just to hear him choke, “is yours. And you left it aching and empty for hours. You made such pretty promises earlier.” For this last part you lean down real close, brace yourself with an arm over his shoulder, wanting to make sure he doesn’t miss a thing. “And our conversation just ended.” He takes it as the permission it is and slams into you, deeper than before like you can feel him in you throat. Hands an iron grip around your waist, pulling you down to meet each sharp rolling thrust. Bullies his cock into you until he finds the angle that has sparks running under your skin, keeps hitting that angle with all the precision and aim of a sniper with his marksmanship. At this angle, his head’s at the perfect height to mouth at your breasts. You can feel him smiling around a nipple as he listens to you moan, only detaching to give the other breast the same kind of enthusiastic attention. Your arm finally gives out, falling down onto his bare chest. Limp, you let him manoeuvre him how he wants you, a rag-doll for your mutual pleasure. All the while he doesn’t stop fucking into you, any semblance of earlier control gone.
“Fuck, sweetheart you don’t know— don’t know what you do to me.” He’s gasping between each word, but the meaning of them still makes their way to your blissed out brain. The slick drag of his cock head along your clenching insides making everything else fade away. You can feel your orgasm building, heat pooling and growing with every thrust. Jason can feel you tightening up around him, knows the signs of your body so well. He starts circling your clit with his fingers, alternating pressure with his thrusts. The long drag and stretch of his cock, almost too much for you to take, never falters. It bumps up against your cervix, fills you up so completely that there’s room for nothing else but it and the pleasure it rips from you. Your release tears through you like wildfire, and for a moment dark spots cloud your vision. You know that you’ve clamped down, tight and hot and slick by the punched out groan from Jason, the way his head falls back onto the couch. But through it all he still keeps pumping into you.
He bites and sucks at your throat, a distraction from your over sensitivity. He leaves your clit alone, stops assaulting all your senses so viciously. Listens to you mewl from how sore and sensitive you are from having taken his cock nearly dry, having held it in you for so long before getting your cunt battered by it. “M so sorry sweetheart. Didn’t wanna hurt you. Gonna— gonna make it up to you. For the rest a m’life.” Now he’s rutting into you, all rhythm and finesse gone in pursuit of his own pleasure. Fire is running through your veins, gathering in your cunt and burning you whole. Your legs are weak and trembling where Jason’s placed them, hands trailing down your thighs to hook under your knees and pull your legs wider. Like this you’re trapped, pinned against him by the spread of your cunt, clit wet and grinding against his pubic bone every time he fucks back into you. You’re so close to another orgasm, quicker than you’ve ever been before.
“Please— Jay please, don’t— don’t stop. Need you. Need you har— harder. Jay. Jay” Jason being Jason, obliges. Your whole body jolts from the force of him inside you. You’re so frustratingly close, dancing on the knife’s edge of oblivion. Jay’s close too. You can tell by the way his breathing speeds up, the way he wraps one arm over your shoulder to keep you in place as he fucks your cunt raw. What sends you both over the edge is Jason taking his other hand and pushing down hard on the swell of your abdomen, the both of you feeling his cock kick and spurt inside of you. Heat paints your walls, and it’s that combined with all consuming pressure of his cock remaking you in his image that has you crying out your orgasm. Jason doesn’t pull out right away. Stays inside you and lets himself grow soft. Kisses featherlight over your face and eyelids. Strokes your flanks and combs his fingers through your hair. Soothes you into a light sleep.
When you wake up, it’s to full sunlight streaming into your bedroom. Turning your head, Jason meets your gaze, propped up on an elbow to watch over you. The both of you are still naked under the blankets but he must have cleaned up the mess between your legs. He pressed a kiss between your eyes before you can get too swept up by your thoughts.
“Hiya sweetheart.” The corners of his eyes crinkle up when he smiles like this. You think they’d make him look kind when he’s older. “I’m not going anywhere now, I promise.”
“Always?”
“Forever.”
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infinitystoner · 9 months
Text
Compliance
A continuation of Misconduct / MASTERLIST
Pairing: James Conrad x Female Reader
Summary: You disobeyed a direct order during a mission, and, now that you’re back in the safety of your motel room, Conrad reminds you that actions have consequences.
Word Count: 2.1k
Tags/Content: Established Relationship, Soft Dom!Conrad, Bratty Sub Behavior, Bondage, Orgasm Denial, Smut! Smut! Smut!, Plot? What Plot?
Rating: Explicit; 18+
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“...you’re going to talk me through it.”
Conrad’s tongue darts across his bottom lip, drinking in the vision of you, bound and on your knees before him. He leans back, propping himself up on one elbow and spreading his legs with measured grace. His right hand is still wrapped around his cock, but he’s halted his motions.  
In this moment, you grasp the gravity of your current situation and his need for control. You commit to doing whatever he asks of you. 
“Go on, love. I’m waiting.” 
“Stroke yourself… slowly,” you say, saliva pooling in your mouth as you watch Conrad unhurriedly move his hand along his hardening length. His piercing gaze remains focused on yours. 
Yes, you’ll give him exactly what he wants tonight. 
He should be careful what he asks for. 
“Now imagine my warm tongue against your balls, licking my way up your cock until—” you pause, watching Conrad’s hand tighten around his cock as he pumps faster, groaning out a string of curses. Your pussy shamelessly throbs in response and you press your thighs together in an effort to relieve the burning ache, groaning when the seam of your jeans provides the tiniest bit of friction. “—until my lips wrap around the tip. Touch yourself there.” 
At your words, he runs the pad of his thumb over the head of his cock, whimpering as his hips jerk.
“Come closer,” Conrad growls. 
The intoxicating scent of him envelopes you, and you suppress the urge to take him in your mouth as you settle into your new position between his thighs. You’re determined to prove you can be obedient, but you wonder how long this little game will last. Because for the past six months, you and Conrad have followed the same routine: complete an assignment, come back to the motel, and release your collective adrenaline. 
His stamina post-mission is always impressive. You can’t wait for him to rail you within an inch of your life. 
“Imagine your cock hitting the back of my throat as I gag around you.”
You wet your lips as Conrad continues to thrust into his hand, tossing his head back as his hips shift off the edge of the bed. He’s quick to catch himself, but his cock grazes your mouth before he does so, and you give in – licking the tip as he groans above you. 
“Naughty girl,” he rasps, cupping your chin as he runs his thumb over your bottom lip. The rough timbre of his voice reverberates through you, settling in your core as your traitorous hips buck against the edge of the mattress. 
“Stand up.” 
He knows exactly what he’s doing, giving you these brusque commands. The heat swirling through your cunt pulses in time with your frantic heartbeat. You don’t stand a chance. 
Conrad steadies you when you struggle to rise to your feet. So much for being seductive. But he doesn’t seem to mind. He’s honed in – hastily unfastening your pants and tugging them over the curve of your ass with ease as he positions you between his knees. His cock, resting heavy against his thigh, twitches as he runs a finger through your folds. The way he parts his lips and slants his brows lets you know he’s recalculating his next move. 
“You’re soaked.” 
“Let me come,” you say as he strokes your swollen clit with calloused, practiced fingertips. 
“Not yet,” he replies, pulling away. “Bend over.”
His firm chest presses against yours as he stands. Tilting your head up to meet his gaze, you note your own lust is reflected in his eyes. 
Any other man would likely fuck you into the mattress, but Conrad is not just any man. He’s methodical, precise in his actions. There are never any hasty decisions with him. No sudden deviations from the plan.  
It’s what you love most about him; yet, earlier tonight, you’d commandeered his mission and subsequently betrayed his trust.  
Conrad meticulously positions you in front of him. You don’t say a word, instead imagining the intense focus on his face: the furrow of his brow, the way his lips press together in concentration, a hint of his tongue peeking out. He guides your upper body to rest against the bed before seizing the belt around your wrists as if it’s a rein. The thought of him riding you to the edge of oblivion sends a tingling thrill up your spine. 
“Is this alright?” he asks. 
Craning your neck, you finally take in the sight of him behind you as he bends his knees to line himself up. He’s a terrible tease, and the well-worn denim of his jeans tickles the back of your thighs as he drags his cock along your pussy, applying just enough pressure to drive you mad. 
“Just fuck me already,” you whine, and Conrad chuckles as you writhe beneath him. There are several reasons why you shouldn’t goad him, but that requires a presence of mind you don’t currently possess.   
“Such a filthy mouth. But, if you insist.” 
Conrad snatches the belt as he buries himself in your cunt, bottoming out in one swift snap of his hips. Your back arches and you cry out at the sensation of being so perfectly full. His fingertips once again find your clit, delicious pressure building in your hips as he mimics the wave of pleasure that crashes over you each time his hips roll against your ass. 
“Need to come, James. Please.”
“Do you think you deserve it?”
“I- I …” you stutter, every last brain cell focused on the feel of his cock dragging along your g-spot.
“Answer. Me.” Each word is punctuated with an agonizingly slow thrust. Both his hands are now firmly holding your hips down, but you attempt to squirm anyway, your throbbing clit searching for pressure or friction — anything to aid you in toppling you over the edge. But Conrad’s grip keeps you still and at his mercy. 
“Oh, you wicked thing,” he drawls, leaning over, his solid form pressing you further into the mattress. 
“So wicked,” you agree as he leans back and smacks your ass, the sweet sting making you clench around his cock. 
“God,” he breathes out between gritted teeth, his large hand kneading your cheek before giving it another swift smack. “You must want- want me to fuck the brat out of you.” 
Conrad wraps an arm around your midriff, pulling your body back against him. 
“You can try.” You rise to your tip-toes as he continues to rock into you, your bound hands clutching at the hem of his t-shirt. A deep laugh rumbles in his chest as he leans down to whisper against the shell of your ear. 
“Oh? Is that what you really want? Will a proper fuck set you straight?” 
“Yes, Daddy.”
You know it drives him wild when you call him that, and, as predicted, his movements become more frenzied. The sounds of Conrad’s groans as his cock slides into your pussy over and over again are hypnotic. He’s quickly losing himself – and so are you. The noises of bliss he’s pulling from you meld with his own as they reverberate around the room, and soon you’re ready to scream out his name. It’s only when his hips judder and he rests his forehead against your back as rides out his climax that you realize he’s not going to let you come. 
“You did so good,” Conrad praises as he unfastens the belt from your forearms and pulls you into his embrace. He brings your wrist up to his lips, tenderly kissing all the places the leather dug into your flesh. You whine as your orgasm ebbs. 
“Do you know why I didn’t grant you release?” 
You’re frustrated, and he knows it. You open your mouth to reply with some bratty retort, but Conrad simply tuts, pressing a finger to your lips. 
“Because you were impatient. Disobedient. And for this,” he motions between you, “to work, I can’t have you taking unnecessary risks out there. Is that understood?” 
Your heart plummets at the realization that you’ve truly disappointed him. Your mind whirs as remorse floods your senses – there’s got to be some way to make him realize how much you regret your earlier misconduct. 
“I understand,” is all you manage to say. 
“Good. Now,” Conrad says, nodding towards the bathroom. “Let’s get cleaned up.”
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The shower soothes you and rinses away some of your worries, but then Conrad joins you. As you silently begin to wash the dirt and sweat off each other’s bodies, something more than water slickens the space between your thighs. You guide his hand to the crease of your hip, praying those talented fingers will finally grant you release. 
He leans back to observe your face. “Feeling quite bold tonight, are we?”
“I need you, James.” 
“I know, darling. But I need you to take this seriously.” 
A whine rumbles at the back of your throat as he steps out of the tub, his glorious ass on full display as he reaches for the towels. In quiet defeat, you turn the faucet off, watching the water circle the drain. What a fool you’ve been. 
Conrad gently wraps a towel around your shoulders and helps you out of the shower, his touch a comforting anchor in the midst of vulnerability. 
“What if your plan had backfired? You could have been captured — or worse…” his voice trails off, like he can’t bring himself to say it.  
Because the mission’s success and your safe return home had been pure dumb luck. You replay the moment it all went to hell: Your target, a bureaucrat being held captive by a small crew of outlying militants, was left unguarded. You took advantage of the opportunity and succeeded in securing the abducted party. But you had compromised not only your own safety, but everyone else’s, in the process. 
His voice drops as he nudges his nose against yours. “There is only one thing that matters to me in this life, and that is you, my precious girl.” 
Conrad runs his thumb over your cheek, and your heart drops into your stomach as those crystal blue eyes look down at you with unwavering devotion. You don’t deserve him, and yet he is yours – completely.  
“And I- I cannot bear the thought of something happening to you.” 
“It won’t happen again. I promise,” you reply quietly, wanting to say more, yet realizing that your words aren’t enough. Not when you were so reckless. 
“I want to believe you,” he murmurs against your lips before kissing you. It’s brief – much too brief – and you do your best to ignore the twinge of pain that jabs your heart as he walks away. 
You’ll do whatever it takes to earn back his sacred trust. Taking a deep breath to compose yourself, you search the small armoire tucked in the corner of the motel bathroom for an item Conrad gifted you months ago as a peace offering. Finally, you find it: an embroidered beige negligee. The thin silk highlights the contours of your curves, and you delight in the way it skims over your damp skin as you walk into the bedroom. 
Something akin to hope bubbles inside you because Conrad is waiting for you there, leaning against the pillows, long legs stretching across the bed and his bath towel slung low around his hips. The tense pinch between his brows softens as he notes what you’re wearing. He beckons you to him.
“Surely you’re not ready for sleep yet?” he teases as you lie down next to him, the scent of lavender soap intertwining with the heady, lingering smell of sex.
“I’m much too stimulated to sleep,” you admit with sigh, nuzzling into the crook of his neck. 
“Oh?” He rolls on top of you, pushing the hem of your nightgown above your hips before caging you between his arms. “We’ll have to do something about that then.”
“Are you sure I deserve it?” you ask, although you widen your hips in anticipation. Conrad settles between them, quickly discarding his towel. The soft amber light of the sconces above your bed highlights the expanse of muscles rippling beneath his taut, tanned skin. He looks at you through half-lidded eyes and you think you might break under the weight of his gaze.
“My love. This life we lead… it’s dangerous. Imperfect. That is what you don’t deserve.”
At times, it feels like you’re standing on the precipice of your own destruction. The love you possess for this gorgeous man consumes you like a raging wildfire, and you know it will inevitably leave a trail of ashes in its wake. You inhale, gliding your fingers across the sharp line of his cheekbone before curling your hand around the back of his neck. 
“It’s the life I want – the life I choose. Every day,” you assure him. “Just as I choose you, James. Every day.” 
Whatever he sees in your expression must convince him you’re telling the truth because, as he slowly guides himself inside you, he says, 
“I believe you.”
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Hello-um hi,sorry super nervous but I have a hypothetical question.Lets say a angry hormonal teen of a triangler shaped being and six finger parentage . ACCIDENTALLY transcended dimensions and now is in dimension.How wold they get back home with out unraveling both dimensions.
(Asked a suspicious golden blonde hair kid that looked strikingly like Ford.But triangle shaped pupils and freckles.A. he fidgets with his six fingers.)
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Hmm. Hypothetically I think you may already be causing a dimension rift by talking to me…
This is… I’m not sure I have the words to describe this. Bill and I? Hmm… Are we really together in your dimension?
I can’t imagine that at all. What is your dimension even like? Did Bill take over Gravity Falls there? Should I even be asking these questions?
Ford then takes a moment to take in the teen’s appearance.
Wow. I mean- I’m actually stunned by this. This is making me question a lot of things.
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I imagine after Akari gets banned, the 'Train Clan' takes her in because Ingo took a liking to her, since they're both amnesiac an she's a sweet girl.
Kamado can't do anything because he won't dare attack the people who aren't afraid of Pokemon; and whose own Pokemon take down Alphas as if they're Bidoof.
(Also I'm sorry if Kamado is the wrong name, I mean Galaxy Commander. I'm German, his name is differnt in English and German, and I constantly mix them up)
Oh Ingo and Akari are Besties. Unlike the rest of Hisui, Ingo and his depot agents are really enthusiastic about battling and Pokémon relations, so Akari, someone equally enthusiastic and good with Pokémon, is basically pseudo-adopted pretty quickly. Not to mention battling her actually helps Ingo knock some memories loose, unlike battling the other depot agents.
I think in this AU I wanna go with a more Big Brother - Little Sister relationship with Ingo and Akari. Ingo is still a grown ass adult, but acting like a big brother for Akari comes naturally and feels really familiar to him. Think Lilo and Nani's "Oh no! Gravity is increasing on me!"
When Ingo finds out Kamado (Denboku) banished Akari knowing full well that she could DIE out in the wilds, he is VERY angry. He and the depot agents take Akari in without hesitation, she has long since been one of theirs after all.
Kamado doesn't seem to realize that the act of banishing Akari was itself a provocation. Around this time, Ingo's grown a full team of six, and his three experienced, competitively trained Pokémon have picked up agile and strong-styled moves. The guards don't even try to stop him when he walks through the village gates. He's got an aggro walk, his eyes are shadowed by his hat, his frown is deeper than usual, and he's over fucking 6 feet tall, he is the scariest motherfucker in Hisui and everyone knows it. No one is willing to stand in this man's way.
(Well, except maybe Zisu, but she liked Akari. She's gonna turn a blind eye. If anyone asks, she was inside the dojo and didn't know what was going on. She can challenge the guy to a battle later, on friendlier terms.)
Ingo doesn't hurt anyone, obviously. He simply formally challenges Kamado to a battle. Then fucking decimates him. Unlike usual, Ingo offers no polite congratulations or advice. He simply huffs, looks Kamado up and down, then leaves. The battle was enough to show Ingo that nothing he says will make it through to this stubborn man, so he decides to not waste his time lecturing him.
Kamado and the rest of the Galaxy Team takes this as a warning shot.
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the-fiction-witch · 7 months
Text
Life
Media Doctor Who
Character The Doctor (Eleventh)
Couple Doctor X Reader (Prior Companion)
Rating Sweet Af
This is a lil trial so if you like it! let me know!
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I scrubbed the bottles and cups with my sponge and hummed to myself when I perked up as I heard the unmistakable sound. I set down my dishes and headed out of my little house to see the familiar blue box on my garden grass. The door opened and he stepped out looking almost exactly as I last saw him but there was more gravity to his eyes, more darkness there than I had last seen. He wore the same suit his hair the same and he smiled at me.
I chuckled as I put my hands in my pockets, "Been a while since I saw you doctor,"
"Did I inspire you?" He smirked as he looked at my outfit,
I looked down at my outfit, my little white sneakers, my black leggings, long sleeve white t-shirt, blue pinafore and white headband in my hair, "Somewhat." I shrugged putting my hands in my pockets, "How long has it been for you? Since we saw each other last?"
"...I don't know," he sighed, "I'm fairly convinced... a few months, a few years, It's hard to keep track of these things."
"Six years."
"Six?"
"Six years since you left."
"...God I've wasted time." He sighed running a hand over his face,
"It's alright, I know it passes quick for you,"
"It never gets any easier. To see how people change when I come back." He explained,
"What are you doing here?"
"... a bit of a farewell tour, I had to come visit one of my favourite humans."
"Quiet the compliment, Tea?" I offered,
"Pop the kettle on Y/n." He smiled so I led him into the house, "quiet the place,"
"Well I had time," I laughed, "You still take Three sugars?" I asked as I went to the kitchen and began to make two cups of tea the basic reflex of it all coming back to me even after six years to make the two teas as perfectly desired,
"You still remember? Still, care?"
"Hard not to care about a man you spent so long of your life flying around space and time with," I laughed handing him his tea and taking my own having a seat on the sofa,
He had a sip and sat down beside me and we chatted between the sips of tea, "what have you been up to then? the last six years."
"Living I suppose, It's a little strange to just come back and settle into a normal life after everything... I mean... You took me to the edge of the universe. To the beginning and the end of time. To sights and sounds, I'd never even imagined... And then I come back and ... get a mortgage"
"Ugh normality," he grimaced,
"It's not all bad, I've built a decent if... dull life by comparison."
"You miss it? Travelling?"
"I miss it. But... life goes on. I'm happy."
"I'm glad to hear it." He smiled, "That you're enjoying it,"
"I am." I nodded,
"Do you ever think of about going back?" he asked,
"I don't know," I answered, "So much has changed,"
"You like living here then? No more living out of suitcases and the tardis' wardrobes exploring the ends of the universe."
I giggled, "No, no more of that. I like living here. Built a career, a life, filled my house with trinkets from adventures."
"quiet the life, all that's left is a wedding and a baby,"
I did my best to save face but, "I uhh yeah... divorced so."
"Oh... sorry. I-"
"It's alright, don't worry over it,"
"I am sorry, really I am sorry," he said as he took my hand, "I don't mean to bring up bad memories,"
"It's fine. really." I nodded squeezing his hand,
"Anything else I should know I missed?"
I smiled and squeezed his hand tugging him with me as I set down my mug, I led him upstairs to the bedroom I let him go and headed inside to the room filled with stary wallpaper, sweet blue fabrics, the shadow of the star lamp on the ceiling, and the little crib to the side, I leant on the side of the crib and he came over to have a look too.
He smiled and leant on the crib with me too, he laughed and looked down at him.
"This is Danny,"
"Danny." he smiled, "I love it, perfect name, brilliant name," He smiled, "May I?"
"So long as you don't wake him, doctor," I laughed picking Danny up and handing him over,
"Ohhh Hello," he smiled as he held Danny in his arms, "You're my new best friend aren't you Danny,"
"Ohh I bet he will be," I smiled, "He loves stories about you,"
"He does?"
"Of course, he loves them. there his favourite stories for bedtime," I smiled, "Ohh almost forgot, he'll get grumpy without his favourite toy." I laughed as I took Danny's little crotchet sonic screwdriver from the crib and let Danny hold it in his little hand,
"You made it for him?"
"Yeah, I figured he'd like it."
"Maybe, he always waves it at the light switch when he wants them turned on,"
"Like his own little sonic screwdriver," he chuckled, "He'll be ready to head off through time and space pretty soon,"
"I think so," I laughed,
"You're a very good mother to him Y/n,"
"I do my best," I laughed,
"You must be, he loves your stories, loves his toys gets his beautiful eyes from you,"
"I kinda hope he didn't get much from his father,"
"Was his father that bad?"
"He was a jackass. some men are."
"Some men are." He chuckled before he pulled out his screwdriver pointing it to the starlight and after a few seconds, the cheap white star and moon-shaped shadows turned into vibrant colours and views of the stars of planets, stars, and galaxies full of colour and life, moving gently with a spin and sweep across the white ceiling.
"You-"
"My little gift. for Danny," He smiled, "so he can look up at the stars,"
"Thank you," I smiled,
he set Danny back in his crib to sleep, and we headed back to the sofa,
"Why are you here doctor?" I asked,
"Visiting." He smiled,
"You haven't visited once in six years, why not?"
"Because I missed you, I miss everyone but... I missed you most."
"Thank you, I missed you too."
"did you ever think that you'd be a mother back when we were travelling? Or did you ever think about it when travelling the universes, settling down and having a child?" He asked,
"Admit it very rarely entered my mind. So much else going on." I explained holding my mug in hand and stroking it between my fingers, "But it had always been there the desire to settle down and have a child."
"You deserve to finally rest and raise a child, life is hard and it's nice to have a little bit of hope and peace in your life. I just hope that you are truly happy that you are finally able to settle down somewhere and be content,"
"I am happy," I nodded, "But... can I tell you a secret?"
"I won't tell a soul,"
I blushed running my hands along the curve of the mug, "I always thought It would be with you... Settling down I mean. Crossed my mind more than once over all those years to imagine a room in the Tardis with a crib and a universe's worth of toys, and a baby... with you,"
He blushed a little, "Really?" He asked, "We went through so much together and now you're telling me you were really thinking about settling down with me,"
"I did. Guess I was a stupid little girl then..."
His smile widened, "You weren't stupid,"
"No?"
"No, and if it means anything. I was thinking about it too."
"What?"
"I did,"
"why didn't you ever tell me?"
"All of time and space... I never found the time," He said, "but I did always wonder about what would have happened if we did just settle down and have a nice quiet little life together,"
"it would have been nice... It must have been hard then ... To just leave me here?"
"I wanted you to stay with me... that's the thing, that was the hardest for me, it was extremely difficult leaving you. I wanted to stay and stay with you forever,"
I finally met his eyes, "Wanted? or still want?"
he didn't answer leaving us in silence for a moment before his hand gently took my cheek and his lips pressed gently against my own, I blushed hard and softly kissed back, until he pulled away his nose against my own,
"Do you really need me to answer that?"
"...More than anything,"
"Yes, it's always been yes. always will be yes." He smiled as he happily kissed me again, I kissed back excitedly until we pulled away.
"If it is still what you want," I whispered, "It's here waiting for you,"  
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