#so it never occured to him that he needed to think about accidentally shooting through BOWs and walls and into friendlies

[desired-misery]

I am enjoying thinking about Chris watching Leon behave both on and off the field and noticing little behaviors that Leon does that make Chris go "hmm, that's strange, I wonder why Leon does it that way". But then Chris realizes "oh, that's not NATO doctrine (because I'm making the BSAA a part of NATO allied forces, fuck you capcom)" to "Oh, Leon is just fucking flying by the seat of his pants a lot of the time" to "Actually... I think that's a manifestation of stress... I think Leon needs some vacation time".

And Chris realizing that Leon is incapable of relaxing/dialing back the paranoia, the hypervigilance even with team support because Leon absolutely cannot do that, he cannot get his brain to relax because things always go badly and he is almost always alone-- Leon has to be ready for things to go poorly because they always do--

[partyanimal167]

Never a Shortage PT 2- Miguel x F!Reader

Chapter Two: Too Old to Make the Same Mistakes

The voting was SUPER close with this chapter, but I'm excited to indulge into my salt-n-pepper Miguel fantasies. Low key at work, there's an older guy who looks almost how I imagine old man Miguel to look (like 60). We're shooting for like mid 40s with this one (not that that's old), but reader is def older than 21 so

Any way! Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy~

PT 1

CW: SMUT, mdni, black fem reader in mind, older!Miguel variant, mild cussing, dirty talk, jealousy trope (not crazy toxic), praise kink, age gap, almost bed breaking sex, brat taming, author knows some Spanish

Life had a funny way about making things work out even when it seems like it isn't. You had the plan , but duty still called. However, maybe by the grace of the universe and LYLA, things could work in your favor.

In the moment was the idea to prove to Miguel that you had plenty of options great? Yes! However, you were now pondering how that was going to even happen when things in the Spider Society had been so busy that you and Miguel only had time to brief missions and work.

Boo! Work! Potato!

Things had gotten like this before, but that was when canon events and universes were at stake. This just seemed like an uptick in anomalies and necessary research. Which, hey, is not as stressful, so there's that. But you had fun to plan.

Things had finally been quiet for a couple days when your gizmo (watch) went off and Lyla popped up.

"Hey girl hey~" You could never truly be mad when she sounded like that. You stayed slumped in your bed and threw up a peace sign. "Wow totally unenthusiastic."

You laughed as you sat up and gave her more of your attention. "My bad. You know I've been running around everywhere." you sighed. "Don't tell me there's an anomaly here. Please, I'll cry."

Lyla's face glitched into a laughing emoji before she waved her hand while giggling. "No, silly! Pierre on Earth-161 needs some assistance on a recon mission. It's just some fancy party, but he'll need some close support if things don't go well."

It seemed easy enough, so you nodded along. "Miguel's sending me?"

Lyla popped her gum before shaking her head. "Nuh uh, he actually went home for once, so I'm just helping with the little tasks. Hopefully, he can get some rest. He was being a bit grumpy--well more than usual." You hummed as your brain was starting to roll with ideas. "Anyway, I'll send you some information while you rest. Party's tomorrow. Bye~"

You laid back down once Lyla was gone. You hadn't gone on many missions with Pierre, but he seemed like the strong, silent type. He mainly nodded and worked without comments. It kinda reminded you of those silent films except there were no text cards to see what he says or thinks. However, you never really heard Miguel complain about him, so that was something.

Speaking of Miguel...

You were a bit stuck on how to poke back at him for his little comment. You weren't lying when you said there were definitely people willing and waiting to bed you (some even again), but for whatever reason, a piece of you wanted a bit of a chase, a thrill, something new it seemed. You briefly thought about flirting with Pierre, but while you are curious to see if it got a reaction, you didn't want to accidentally hurt the guy's feelings. Who knows how he'd react?

You groaned as you swiped through wardrobe suggestions Lyla sent over and let your mind drift off.

~~~

The night was smooth-sailing as you looked around the buzzing gala hall as people spoke amongst themselves while others danced.

The mission's setting was safe and secure. You knew that Lyla and Miguel did their best to avoid sending people to universes where they could easily run into and/or interact with that universe's variant. You knew that there were no canon events at risk on this mission, but Lyla assured you that seeing another you wouldn't occur. It did bum you out though sometimes. It was nice to see the other versions and traits of a person. How were they living elsewhere? Did they pursue a dream that another had given up for something else? It seemed that the paths of life were literally endless.

For now though, you just surveyed the area while Pierre swept the building in search for some files and data. You sat pretty in a strapless navy blue dress with white fingerless evening gloves and gold accents from your earrings and necklace and hair pinned up. You weren't really a fan of dressing up, but it was nice to play the part once in a while. You also didn't mind the fun, consequenceless flirting with people who stopped to talk to you. You easily gave a fake name and believable backstory. The night was turning out to be more fun than work, and you wouldn't complain.

You glanced at your phone and saw a message from Pierre saying that he was transferring a large amount of digital wares to his base and it would take a decent amount of time. You chuckled that he texted; even earlier, he had only quietly thanked you after you confirmed the details with Lyla.

A server walked by with a tray of champagne, so you decided to take one and head outside for some fresh air.

The moonlight was bright with clear skies above. You hummed quietly to the distant music from inside and relaxed. Your body swayed along as you listened and melted into the moment. These moments were always nice to get lost into.

Suddenly, that familiar tingly flashed too late, but you barely gasped when large hands held your hips and your back met the hard chiseled chest of the stranger behind you.

"Ah, you're usually so much easier to scare. I must have lost my touch with time." the voice rumbled through you--deep and husky, but a light playfulness that made your heart skip and brain pause for a moment.

You decided to play innocent instead of going into fight mode. After all, this was a simple mix up. You weren't from here. You didn't turn towards the man but giggled sweetly in your hand. "Uh sorry, I think you might have the wrong person sir." You turned then and were surprised by the sight seemingly as much as the man was with you.

This was definitely Miguel O'Hara, but not the stressed out, authoritative boss of Spider Society. This man was an older version--modest sections of gray hair and a charm in his eye that came with time. He was still fit and large, but there was some taut skin that highlighted full veins on his neck and hands. There was a deeper set of brown in his complexion from years in the sun, soft lines around his mouth and eyes. You blinked a couple times seeming to want to capture this appearance permanently in your mind.

The gentleman spoke first. "Mi querida, you're so young."

The softness in his eyes and tenderness in his voice caused your brain to pause. It was very...sweet. You had those moments with Miguel of course, in the after glow. But the man seemed as if he would build the world from scratch for you. Fight battles for you. Destroy and create life for you.

It was shocking.

So you quickly turned away and ran.

It wasn't your best moment, but you made it back into the crowd before the man could stop you. You were thankful that you could walk comfortably enough in these shoes to get away. This wasn't really the place to shoot off a web and fling into the air. For a moment, you thought about calling Lyla to see if you could cut your mission short, but maybe you were being dramatic. Nothing was disrupted, and you got away. If you were lucky, this Miguel was just your average citizen.

You made your way to a secluded area of the building where small groups of people chatted quietly and took a breather from the fun. You stood by a pillar that faced one of the floor-to-ceiling windows and let out a deep breath. For now, all you needed to do was keep a low profile until Pierre finished up.

That tingly feeling again appeared; your eyes flashed open when a large presence blocked out the moonlight and loomed over you. Two arms caged you in, and you squeaked in response to the seeming growl that emitted.

"Amor, you should know better than to run from a retired leader of the Spider-Force." he looked down at you amused. It was just your luck--an older, wiser Spider-Man of course. Wait! Why didn't Pierre tell you anything? You were so going to cuss that sneaky quiet man out later. You pressed a little more against the pillar and felt the stone slightly give from your unrestrained strength. The man grinned. "So what game are we playing now? Is someone trying to tempt me with delusions? A clone from the past?"

And even if those were apparently threats, you could tell that man didn't mind at all. Even from the way he eyed you in place felt full of confidence. Not quite the same as with the other "main" Miguel. This felt more like control and assurance than cockiness. If anything, you felt more captured than him.

"Uh, no, sir," your brain randomly landed on that term, "this is really all a big misunderstanding. Um, maybe Spider-Man, Pierre, can clear things up; I'm not who you think I am. I'm from-,"

"Oh jeez, please don't tell me this is related to that dimension-jumping shit. I told those young ones to focus on what's happening here." the man grunted as he leaned back and pinched the bridge of his nose. He looked more annoyed than anything. You stayed pressed against the pillar unsure of how to proceed. He kissed his teeth before taking a look at you. "Excuse me," he held out his hand, "Miguel O'Hara--retired Spider-Man, decrepit geezer who now just gives back to the city and fusses at the new kids." his smile made your heart flutter.

You took his hand and shook it firmly. "I'm y/n, Spider-Woman to Earth 1019. Pleasure to meet you, sir." Miguel chuckled at you calling him that. "And well, I must say you're definitely not decrepit." Wait why did I say that?

"You're a Spider-Woman and a flirt now? And I thought I had you all figured out." he grinned. Your eyes flicked down to the canine that peeked before meeting his eyes.

Crisis averted, so you could at least relax a little. "Well I'm sure you know, but I'm not exactly the same as the...me who lives here. I'm sure there are things you don't know about me."

And for some reason, that felt like a challenge. "You sure, princessa? Maybe I know things about you that you haven't realized yet."

You huffed out a laugh. "Like what, sir?" It didn't surprise you that a Miguel seemed to think they had you figured out. It'd be fun to see even this one be shocked.

You gasped as your chin was tilted up, and that gentle calloused thumb rubbed your bottom lip fondly. Miguel rocked a little to the side as if examining you. The moonlight reflected and sparkled on some of his gray locks. You bit your cheek to stop from whimpering. "Well an easy one is that language kink of yours. Sabes que te puedo a decir las palabras todas a hacer te mojada." he leaned in closer and lowered his voice. "And you only call me sir when you're being a brat, so maybe it's been awhile since you've been fucked properly." the moan slipped past your lips before you could even process it. "Mmm, so that's it. La princessita necesita mi boca a sentir bueno. Have you been a good girl? Maybe I can show you what you get when you behave."

It felt weird to be told about yourself. As much as you wanted to argue and fight it, the things he said felt too sure and real to ignore. Plus, your body made it very clear that he was telling the truth too. You hummed as you stick your tongue out and lick his thumb before nibbling. "You can try your best."

~~~

It was crazy; everything was crazy.

Nearly everywhere that handsome man touched felt as if it was on fire. Whatever challenge you threw his way, he eagerly matched it. You thought it'd be polite to warn him about your superhuman strength, but all Miguel did was chuckle and wink.

He was gentle with easing off your dress and mindful of your hair--all an illusion. Because as soon as your hands were on him, it seemed to have awaken something feral that was hidden beneath. You devoured the sight of brown skin with its own scars and stories of the past. The moon's glow made a nearly ethereal image which threatened your bratty nature.

And Miguel noticed it all. He pushed his soft hair back before reaching down to removing your heels. He knelt down at the bed before kissing at your ankles and caressing your calves.

"You look good down there." you taunted before gasping into a moan after a sweet spot of yours was nibbled.

"Behave," was all that was said before Miguel continued to kiss and lick up for legs. He fawned over your thighs and mumbled to himself. "La reina de mi sueno, you look so delicious." And you couldn't hide the shiver that went down even if you wanted to. "Mmm, I know mami, thanks for my meal." And the man tore off your lace before beginning to devour you messily.

You immediately begun to thrash and shake a bit, but your body seemed to barely move with how easily this Miguel held you and kept you connected to his mouth and tongue despite your best attempts. You moans bounced off the walls and grew once Miguel so graciously gave you a thick finger to stretch you out. You bit your lip and threw an arm over your eyes feeling that rare shyness make an appearance.

That earned you a slap on your thigh. "Ah ah, no you don't. I get to see how you feel pretty girl. Keep those eyes on me." And you so obediently listened.

Miguel continued. His tongue traced over your clit and sucked at your lips. He built more of a rhythm and fucked his fingers deeper inside. You didn't care about being loud anymore. The room was far away from the festivities any way. You groaned and held on tight to the man's shoulder and nearly anywhere you could get your hands on.

Soon, your orgasm was approaching; you chocked on your whines and sobs not even being able to hold out longer as Miguel sped up. "Come on my face reina, give it to me." The order was simple, and your body listened. You gasped as you gushed and clenched on Miguel's fingers. You nearly whimpered as he continued through your high, but you didn't want to fight. Even as it felt nearly too much, you still wanted more.

Your chest heaved up and down trying to get air in your lungs. Your mind was fuzzy, and you could barely make out that that slick that decorated Miguel's handsome mug. There was that cocky expression. "Aww bebita, I haven't even fucked you dumb yet." And if it was even possible, you felt wetter. You made a half-assed attempt to turnover, but a lazy flick of the wrist kept you on your back and looking up at this handsome man. Miguel simply kissed his teeth at you. "No, no. You don't get to hide from me. I wanna see those pretty tears, reina." He brought one of your ankles up and rested in his shoulder. He gave it a light peck. "Been dreaming of wrecking you for years."

And even though, you knew he didn't really mean you, you couldn't help the shiver that shot through or the whimper from your throat. "Fuck me sir...please."

And Miguel's grin in response was nearly feral. "Good girl."

It seemed as though both Miguels' knew that you could handle a bit of teasing. This one rubbed his tip on your clit and only chuckled as you whined and shifted--though his tight grip on your hips let you know that he could handle all that power you kept control. Whether you were super strong or not, Miguel could keep up and more.

A complaint was just on the tip of your tongue before you gasped at the sudden full penetration that made you melt. His member was in deep and pushed against your soft soaked walls. You groaned aloud and immediately went to grip on the headboard. The needy, lustful gloss in your eyes made Miguel fill with pride. "Hehe, don't go breaking my things, reina." And with that, he started a full and steady pace that had you split between losing yourself and minding how you only aided in the bed's abuse. Then, he started speaking again. "Damn, you feel so fucking good." and if you paid more attention, you'd notice how the sweat had Miguel glowing and how his hair flowed a bit more into his face. He was groaning and panting with how delicious you smelled and the softness yet fire in your eyes. Miguel knew he was whipped from the moment he met your variant all those years ago, but seeing you like this just like when you two met had him nearly blushing and busting from fulfilling that secretive long-time fantasy.

Those deep strokes continued as Miguel leaned forward and hungrily captured your lips. You were gone at this point. It was too much; everything was burning, yet you still wanted to keep going. Your eyes glossed with tears once Miguel started hitting your g-spot over and over. There wasn't enough air in your lungs as you panted and moaned feeling something give a little under the weight of your hand. You were clueless as Miguel brought your hand into his while the other started playing with your clit. He growled in your ear.

"Naughty girl, you're starting to break the bed," but he didn't sound upset at all, "maybe next time I'll web you up." He kissed right below your ear. "Mmm, but you're a strong girl. I'll keep you nice and cozy and bound. You don't get to escape me." He took in your hazy expression and bit his lip. So beautiful. "Now, let me feel how this pussy cums on my dick," he huffed and panted "now reina."

And you barely let out the broken cries of his name as you came and felt such a stretched out orgasm. You were floating yet sinking at the same time. You hummed and moaned as you came down and barely heard the praises or felt the gentle rubs in your hair.

"Good girl. Now's time for round two."

~~~

You sat blushing as you peered over the unfamiliarity skyline and sipped your tea. The warmth of the cotton robe was enough to keep you comfortable, but your heart occasionally skipped a beat when you caught the broken bed that was favoring one side. (Definitely not your fault).

You also pondered what you were going to say to Pierre once you saw him. In the heat of your...side quest, the man had reached out letting you know he was done. However, he sent a message thanking you once he didn't get a reply after thirty minutes. You couldn't remember if your gizmos were connected, but you hadn't been woken up by an irritated call from boss-Miguel, so hopefully Pierre had your back in the end. I'll need to get him a little gift or something...I'll ask Lyla what he likes.

A large hand pressed into a sore spot in your shoulder, and you were reminded of the exact events that lead to your..side quest. You couldn't totally feel bad. You got a good look as this Miguel took a seat across from you with his own mug. The soft sunlight was warm against his skin; he certainly looked gentler than last night.

"Sorry if I kept you from your mission. That definitely wasn't...professional of me." He chuckled lightly and even seemed a bit shy from the night's events. It was cute.

You smiled and shook your head. "Ah no worries. I wasn't really needed any way." You leaned forward and placed a kiss on the man's black and gray stubble. "It was fun."

The man took your hand and pecked it. "It was."

You two sat in a comfortable silence for a while before your thoughts kept poking at you and you finally gave in. "Well I do wanna know, uh, well. I mean I'm not complaining. Last night was great. And I'm sure you're attracted to me, but why-"

Miguel's hearty chuckle cut you off, and you awaited eagerly. "Why am I not with this earth's version of you?" He smiled softly and you peered a little to see the soft blush poke from under the stubble. "I just get incredible shy when I look at you, her. She's seen me through all my mess and problems. I could never do anything to lose her. She's...precious." you blinked for a moment before giggling lightly. "Nena, behave."

You smiled and waved your hand. "No, I'm not laughing at you! It's just so sweet." You hummed and stood to stretch. "I mean, you certainly care for her, and if she's been single for awhile, then who knows? You'll be a lucky man."

There was a sparkle in Miguel's eyes as he looked at you fondly. "Maybe you're right. Do you think Miguels and yous are meant to be?"

Miguel was amused by the pout on your gave after that question. "Eh, I don't know. The Miguel I deal with on the regular is an asshole. He just doesn't realize what a catch I am." You then posed.

The older man laughed fully before winking. "Well shame on him. I'll be around if you ever need a reminder." And there was a flash of hunger in his eyes.

Your face warmed up and you turned off to the side. "I will need your dimensional number if you have one...to send you some money for the bed."

"Haha, nonsense. It'll get replaced soon and it'll be a good reminder. I've got some work to do." He paused and your gazes met again. "Besides, I hope you don't mind, but I put it in there already--under my name and everything." You were about to point out the obvious problem with that, but Miguel had it covered. "Trust me, you'll know it's me." You hummed in response.

After trying to tidying up and some light conversation, you two Spiders said goodbye, and you opened a portal to your room.

You flopped on your bed and sighed deeply. That was surely not how you expected your night to go, but damn if it wasn't amazing either. You decided to check in with HQ later since it was still a bit early in the day. You'd at least reach out to Pierre for sure though.

The morning went on with you swiping at your phone and reading random stories when a notification popped up on your screen.

Sexy Señor Papi Miguel: Stay in touch, reina 😉

You laughed loudly before humming and replying. He was definitely a sexy Miguel, but corny like an old man too.

~~~~

Whew! I'm actually proud of this chapter. Smut takes me forever to write bc I get in my head about it 😅🙃

I think I have an idea for the next chapter, but feel free to drop some ideas here or in my dms. I'm gonna try my best to get it out before my vacation ends 🙏🏾

Thanks for reading!!!

Taglist: @sukunash0e @jinnieminniemoon @turtlegreentia

[lalizah]

This is more than enough (Adam x Val)

thanks to @wayhavenficexchange for organizing such a lovely event and for letting me have the opportunity to write Val and Adam goodness for the amazing @grapecaseschoices. Hope you enjoy it!

Author’s note: Hi lovely! I know my ask said kdrama au but unfortunately life had other plans and I decided to write this instead. I hope you like it because I loved writing Val, they have completely made a home in my heart. Have a great great day love, and I hope you enjoy it!

Characters do not belong to me

Warning: Fluffyyyyyy

TW: Bobby Appearance 

Adam masks his discomfort with an indifferent and stoic expression as he surveys the town’s annual summer fair. The town square is decorated with the most vibrant flower arrangements, balloons and strings hanging off of every surface, high and low, and all the town’s people dressed in their best, most colourful attires. Stalls line the streets, the town's residents playing vendors and customers for the day, and cheerful conversations occuring between the town residents as they applaud and appreciate their friends' efforts. How he was cajoled into attending this loud, sense-piercing event is beyond him. He was supposed to be the very picture of infallible leadership, he was meant to be seen as a force you couldn’t just mess with, meant to be in the training room or the battlefield- didn’t matter either way because that is where he was meant to be.

Val walks up to him and hands him a scoreboard and there he realizes that despite his best efforts to be intimidating and stoic, this one person can break his walls, his resolve and whatever reservations that hold him down. He finds it frustrating, and he finds himself particularly pathetic. When Val had announced that they'd be attending the fair and also manning Tina’s water gun shooting contest stall, he’d volunteered to help watch over the detective simply because he believed Felix and Val would end up getting distracted from their tasks and really, Adam was nothing but efficient and wanted to keep an out for the detective. That was it. Picture of professionalism. Professionalism led to Adam begrudgingly agreeing to help Val set the stall as the rest of Unit Bravo went to explore or to go brood under a tree. Felix had left with a smug grin as well as an unnecessary comment about how Val had Adam wrapped around their finger, prompting Mason to say something very inappropriate that made Adam grumble, prompting a laugh from Val. His resolve, as well as the furrow settled on his brows had softened at that sound; the thought -that he’d do anything to see them smile like that, to see their beautiful blue eyes light up that way, especially if he was the reason to illicit their joy- crossed his mind and he found it slightly alarming that the thought didn’t disturb him in the slightest. In fact, he found himself looking forward to the prospect. The stall was tiny, incredibly so and he had to fight to keep his focus on setting it up as he and Val brushed hands, legs and sides whilst working. “You sure you’re ok with this? I can manage it fine by myself, and you can keep watch over there.” Val juts their chin towards the lone spot where Mason has settled, smoke curling from his cigarette. I want to be here, next to you, he thinks. “Whether I find the task favourable or not isn’t important. It is to be completed and I will do so.” Adam reassures, trying hard to ignore the warmth spreading through his chest at their concern.

 “Only if you're sure.”

“I am certain. I didn’t see you happy about it either. However, it doesn't matter. I find my present company makes this duty less bothersome.” The admittance earns him a slight gape from Val before they smile that sweet smile and Adam is suddenly very glad he didn’t keep it to himself. Val clears their throat before they send a cheeky grin their way. “I’m grateful for you being here too. Never know when I’d need someone to hold me back from ‘accidentally’ ruining the Mayor’s day.”

“My role is to see to your protection, not his, so please do not depend on any refraining from my side.”

They are rudely interrupted- well not really rudely if that's what they’re meant to be doing- by people lining up in two teams of two, couples and friends alike, ready to compete against each other to fill the balloons with as much water as they can to make them pop. Adam does a fine job of keeping score as Val hands the winners their prizes awkwardly. He finds it a bit surprising that despite his imposing glare and Val’s terrible people skills, the town residents don't deter from queuing up and gossiping, not even bothering to conceal their excited whispers. Adam notices some people whispering excitedly amongst themselves and he feels his cheeks turn slightly pink as he catches …are definitely together and …made for each other. He’s about to send a disapproving glare their way when he notices Bobby looking at him with a narrowed gaze. He walks over to their stall, much to Adam’s displeasure, with a woman Adam doesn’t know of. “Hi ang-I mean Detective Montemer. I see you’ve got plenty of help, though I am sorry I couldn’t be of much use. I have been…busy being the centre of someone’s attention.” Bobby throws his date a wink before his grin drops to a scowl when Val chimes, “You never really have proven yourself useful before, Bobby. I don’t see how you’d start now.” Adam doesn’t bother hiding his pride at Val’s witty retaliation, which only spurs Bobby’s annoyance. “Wouldn’t want to be manning this cheap set-up anyway.” 

“If your presence here has no purpose, I’d suggest you step aside. Buy the ticket or go.”

“Calm down, Angel, no need to be so tense. Besides, it was her idea, not mine. And since I’m ever so generous, I’ll pay for two please.”

Adam hands Bobby his gun with a little more force than normal, making Bobby stumble forward slightly. Bobby looks up at him accusingly and Adam ignores it just as easily. Val hands his date a gun before sarcastically wishing them good luck. Bobby manages to shoot well before Val pipes in with “That’s shit form” and “Having him must be like losing ten good men” to his date. Bobby’s ego definitely doesn’t take it well, especially when his score is less than that of his partner. “Detective Montemer, would you be so kind as to show us what good form is?” His scowl has lessened and he’s attempting to put a charming front, but Adam can sense the human’s jealousy, as well as his annoyance with the whole situation in general. “The detective and I would be very happy to show you how to shoot a water gun. It is, after all, quite a difficult skill to master.” Adam quips wryly before he looks towards Val and asks with silent permission. 

“I think his definition of friendly competition is way different from yours,” Val says uncertainly before they looked at Bobby’s shit-eating grin. “Actually, you know what, fuck it. He’s been asking for it.”

They take their place at opposite ends, Adam and Val playing against Bobby and someone else he’s managed to rope in. His ego really didn’t know how to take his partner’s win well. Someone shouts “Go!” and all four of them begin to shoot furiously at the targets. Adam’s gun has other plans as it simply refuses to shoot. He grits his teeth and presses the damn thing harder and then-

CRACK!

What remains in his hands are the broken remnants of the small, plastic gun. His furious action earns him a mocking laugh from Bobby, and Adam’s resolve to win only strengthens further. Before Val can say anything, he stands behind them and holds onto their gun. “We are meant to be a team, and I cannot grab a replacement quickly.” The excuse sounds terrible to his ears, but Val doesn’t protest and gives him a determined nod before they both work in sync and take down as many as they can. Adam feels lightheaded, and it has all to do with the close proximity between them. Adam can hear Val’s heart drum louder on the contact as well, and he has to steel himself to focus on the game instead of them. All efforts at being unaffected render futile when it comes to Val, but Adam reminds himself that this too is for Val. “Last one left.” Val point with their gun. “Whenever you say, Val.” Adam notices the shiver that runs through Val at the use of their name, and he ignores the pleasurable feeling that it elicits from him.

                                                xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After successfully beating Bobby at his shit bet, and after hesitantly untangling from Adam’s warm embrace, Val decides to clear the stall up. Adam had excused himself, saying something about seeing to the rest of the team. Val is left alone with their thoughts about the evening, about the attractive brooding vampire who’s taken up all their headspace and lets out a confused sigh. Val knows Adam’s hesitant to act on his feelings -they aren’t exactly forthcoming about the idea either. It is scary. To love and to lose. Val wonders if they even know what love truly is. Adam has been making them question their feelings and their standpoint on everything. There is always a rebuttal from him, be it during work or in their personal life. Val lets out a tired laugh at that observation. He’s always arguing back, intentionally and unintentionally,  never really making things easy for them. He’s been like that from the first day, evading all their attempts at finding common ground and an attempt at establishing camaraderie. But Val has never backed down from it, from him, and neither his fears nor his denial will change Val’s determination. To show him that he is not hard to love, in fact, Val could say loving him is like breathing. So natural, so easy, so intrinsic to their being. But what do you know? A dark, nasty voice taunts. And maybe it's true. What do they know? Rebecca was never really around to act the part of a loving, doting mother, and Val naturally didn’t learn how to love either. They didn’t learn this shit, and it isn’t really their fault and-

Their train of thought stops when a nice, big cup of lemonade appears in their vision. Adam places some boxes on a makeshift table and offers them a seat. “I observed you did not take the time to replenish your energy during this entire ordeal,” Adam says with a slight wrinkle of his nose, mouth twisted in worry.

“Ordeal? You make it sound like we went through war.”

Adam smiles his dimples on full display. “I admit, I did exaggerate. It wasn’t entirely dreadful.”

“Awww, you’re learning to have fun now. Maybe I should let Tina know you’ll join us for her Halloween party this year since you’re loosening up and all.”

“Absolutely not.”

The immediate response, coupled with his disgusted expression, makes Val laugh. Adam smiles back at Val, eyes shining with affection. So much endearment in that gaze, that Val shifts and looks towards the food containers placed on the cardboard box they’re now using as a table. 

 “And it's fine, I wasn’t really hungry.” Val’s stomach grumbles to disagree and they look up at Adam sheepishly.

“If you are going to take these things so nonchalantly, I’m afraid I’ll have to keep a check. You shouldn’t place yourself as the last priority. I won’t let you be.” Adam quietly says the last part more to himself than Val, but Val hears it all the same and it hits them: perhaps they don’t know how to love, and perhaps Adam doesn’t either. It doesn’t matter though; this is more than enough. 

Val watches endearingly as Adam sets up the small table and lines them carefully with plastic utensils and paper plates in a way Nate would be proud of. His face shows nothing but clear focus on his task and Val smiles. He gestures for them to begin, and Val shoots him a grateful look. Adam sits next to them and looks relieved, fretting less than before. This is more than enough.

[vilonnie]

misc p5 replay thoughts from me mumbling to myself like a madman

I never noticed that makoto only calls out to "panther!" when okumuras palace is crumbling and not like, "you guys!" or "joker!" or anything. That's actually kind of an interesting writing choice to me... why only ann? her endless compassion here seems to be compelling her to stay by haru's side instinctively, which is more subtle writing than I'm used to from persona but it's honestly a really nice touch. I love you panther so so much <33 Well it's either that or it's Makoto and Ann having gay tunnel vision in every scene again lmao

Was muttering to myself in annoyance about how akechi had to pick the one and only time to kill okumura when that would absolutely screw the workers over and accidentally said out loud "not that you're ever actually making any of these choices. Bark Bark." and startled myself into a fit of laughter. guys I think I may be Evil

By the way does anyone know if akechi is available to level his confidant during okumura? Like I know he's in kichijoji but if you go up to him does he hang out or does it just trigger some dialogue about how he can't or smth because I was wondering if the public hate he receives during that arc would lock out his confidant... I mean I guess it's not like it would affect my playthroughs since I am um. obviously not exactly bothering to check But,

Why are the SIU director and not-hawkmoth always bragging about the child they are making kill people bitch I'm gonna smack you over the head with that potted plant

SIU director looks like a moisturized nightmare before christmas character btw (derogatory)

Why does he say that the mental shutdown will happen "at just the right time" what can akechi. can he. does he control when the shutdowns happen when he uses call of chaos w/ loki?? literally how else would any of them know this hello sir What Do You Mean.

Every time the phantom thieves get carried away and start going batshit about something Yusuke is always there like "no we have to remain calm and keep a level head I have a terrible feeling about this situation" and then I'm always like joker u have to kiss that boy on the mouth with tongue right now. If nobody's got me I know Fox has got me etc etc

Was in the Thieves den and in one conversation yusuke tried to ask ann if she thought captain kid or ryuji or w/e looked cool as a pirate and her answer was "oh well I guess a lady pirate would be kind of cool!" in another conversation futaba asked if morganas feelings were getting through to her and she was like "of course he's a great friend!!" it didn't even occur to her. I love you lesbian.

This is stupid but when maruki was talking in leblanc and he said "I hit a wall [in my research]" my immediately instinctive reaction was "did you break through it with the monabus?" anyway I think you guys need to shoot me in the head

I loooooove marukis dialogue about how the cruelty of the world makes it seem pointless to help however few people you are able to reach since there's so much suffering and it's all overwhelming and demoralizing, I think it really feeds into the theme later on in acedia about how easy it is for people to just want to give up because trying again and again every day to make any of this better feels like so so so much and it's a struggle to remember that you have to keep trying no matter what even though it would be so easy to just surrender... wauauaggh

I didn't notice the first time that the birds in marukis palace are all. smaller black birds so li. so like a cr. I'm gonna throw up

THERES MEMENTOS DIALOGUE WHERE FOX SAYS HE SAW A VIDEO OF A MAN OPENING A DOOR WITH A LEWD DANCE AND MAKOTOS FUCKING RESPONSE IS "Ok Skull you get in there! :D" COMPLETELY EARNESTLY MAKOTO WHAT. why does she say that sjgjdofkfkfkf I love her so so so so so much I wish everyone in the world appreciated how Sillay she is

I get so fucking jumpscared literally every single time I reach that bit towards the end of okumura where akechi just shows up at leblanc unprompted help. why are you in my house?? nobody invited you or anything I'm gonna have a heart attack dudeeee

[glacierruler]

Infinite Respawns

AO3

Chapter 6

CWs: Temporary Main Character Death, Temporary Child Death

Chapter Summary: Roman accidentally murders his brother. Then proceeds to die himself when running down the mountain.

Wordcount: 822

Taglist: @cutebisexualmess @oatmeal-stans-the-trash-rat

(please tell me if you'd like to be added/removed)

Masterpost | Prev Chapter | Next Chapter

Roman envied his brother sometimes, after all, Remus didn’t have to live with the guilt. It wasn’t fair, and he knew it wasn’t fair, but he couldn’t help but wish it was him falling off the cliff instead. He couldn’t help but wish to rid himself of the guilt.

He and Remus had been ten when it happened. Both of them on their weekly trip to the mountain, just having fun and pretending to fight monsters. Roman hadn’t been paying as much attention to his surroundings, he thought they were safe. No mobs had ever attacked them here before, how foolish he was to not realize he was the danger. Remus tackled him, and he pushed him off, and went to tackle him back. Only to stare in horror as Remus fell at that, he was frozen. His brother’s sudden, late, scream jolted Roman into action, as he ran towards the edge of the cliff trying to do something; but it was far too late.

He could envision Remus then and there, all distorted and broken; he could see the blood pooling around him already. And he couldn’t leave his brother to rot there. He just couldn’t. So he ran, and ran, down the mountain. Only, in his haste, he wasn’t paying attention to anything around him. He hadn’t noticed the dark cave, along the side of the mountain he never crossed. And he couldn’t predict the stinging pain that would shoot up his back, paralyzing him for just a second. A second too long, as he was shot again, and bleeding on the ground. He hoped he would see Remus again in the afterlife.

Roman jumped as he heard his brother screaming from somewhere in the house. ‘Was it just a dream, did he never really die?’ Rushing, he met up with his brother, terrified as to what had him screaming so loudly.

“You killed me!” Remus screeched at the top of his lungs, and Roman’s heart stopped.

“That wasn’t a nightmare? That happened, OH MY ANCIENT THAT HAPPENED!”

Both of them were now screaming in unison, for sure to get the attention of their neighbors nearby. But Roman couldn’t help it, he killed his brother. He killed his brother! He was no better than the bad people who murdered villages. He was no hero, how could he be when he killed his brother.

Finally, a neighbor, Mr. Raven, came to check up on the screaming twins. As they told him the story, he paled, and brought them to the elder of the village.

“Aurelies, these boys have something to tell you.”

“Why do we have to tell him, we already told you—”

“I don’t wanna talk about my brother’s death again!”

“Roman Crow, did you say your brother died?” Mr. Aurelies seemed upset at that.

“Yes sir.”

“But it’s too soon! It hasn’t yet been a hundred years! And two of them!”

“Hush Raven. Remus, would you tell me what happened?”

“Roman pushed me off a cliff—”

“It was an accident, I didn’t mean to!”

“And I died. And then I woke up at home! And I don’t think I like cliffs anymore. Cliffs are evil, they make your twin push you off of them!”

“Remus,” the elder sighed, “please get back on track.”

“Fine! Guess you don’t wanna hear the interesting bits! Anyways, I thought I was gonna be monster chow for a minute there, but then I was at home and Roman wasn’t! And then suddenly Roman was home! And we were both screaming! And I don’t think I like cliffs anymore.”

“Alright, boys. I have something to tell you.” Mr. Aurelies then went on and on about how they were chosen for some big destiny. Where they were to be adventurers that would bring fame and fortune to the village. And how they would need to train. Roman was bored, barely managing to sit halfway through, when a thought occurred to him.

“Wait, you mean we’re gonna die over and over and over again? I don’t wanna!” Tears started streaming down his face, “And I don’t want my brother to die either! Why do we have to die forever and ever! Why can’t someone else have this!”

Roman hated his fate, he hated dying, and he didn’t understand how Remus was fine with it. The only thing that hadn’t changed in those fourteen years was the fact that Remus was terrified of heights. And Roman couldn’t shake the guilt of killing him. Of being the cause of that fear. So he vowed to keep his brother as safe as possible. To make up for it. And he oh so wished to go back in time, so that he would fall off the cliff instead. Because the guilt, the guilt was worse than anything he had ever experienced. It was the only thing he’d ever have to experience without his twin, the only thing he’d experience all alone.

[minim]

Sometimes the past returns to us in unremembered clarity—such is the case when we find photographs taken when we were yet too young to remember an event that focused on us and the joy we had in being such.

These four square photos are about half of the extant photos taken in my grandmother’s backyard on a sunny day. The participants in this photo shoot are my cousin Toni, my brother Rick, and me. Toni was the only cousin in the family older than I. These photos were taken probably in 1964. I seem too big to still be three.

Toni seems to enjoy our juvenile company, and Rick and I run and play. Occasionally, we pause long enough for someone (my mother or my grandmother) to take our pictures when.

Yet the clarity of our enjoyment of the day is burdened by the past that came after that day, though I did not realize the past had already begun.

My brother, a gay man and a gay boy, spent his life pretending to be someone he was not for most of his life. He was sexually active much earlier than I, though only with boys. He did not ever reveal his sexuality to his wife. Instead, his boyfriend did, accidentally. When I asked him why he did not live the life he was born to, he did not really have an answer, but he thought I should have known. If you keep a secret your whole life, you must worry through that life that someone has already found it out. I concluded he cared what my father would think of a gay son, and we all knew what he would think. I can’t understand that myself, because I’ve spent most of my life not caring what my father thought, because I never needed or wanted his grace. I use the word “grace” because it makes no sense in reference to that man.

Toni’s life was often in upheaval. Her father, my uncle, married three times. My grandmother La ostracized her own son for years, while always treating his wife as the central part of the family she was. La often took care of Toni. She took on trips, including one to the birth of my second sister in Viginia and (much later) to visit my family in Tennessee. She even lived with us in Canada when life at home in California became too difficult. I never knew what troubles were occurring in her life. Yet she was self-assured and popular. When she visited us in Virginia for a few weeks, she made friends with girls in the neighborhood. I have the photos to prove it. When she went to school in Canada, she was instantly popular.

When she died, I think it was my mother who told me the skeletal story of her death. Toni’s death happened many years ago. I have been the eldest living cousin in the family for most of my life. I never wanted that honor.

We lose people in our families for many reasons. Sometimes, because they leave us, sometimes because they have died, and sometimes because we decide to leave them. In my own life, the last is the one most in force. After living away from my family for at least two thirds of my life, I have lost my ability to withstand constant meanness. My life has been much better by cutting those ties.

Yet I miss the idea of people coming together to enjoy each other as a family, so I miss the two-year-old my brother was, and I miss my beautiful cousin Toni, who could not stay with us long enough.

[ahsoka-in-a-hood]

Just taking the clone wars into account I honestly was surprised to learn of Filoni’s jedi-critical views. In large part I guess it was just that I watched tcw after reading lots of Obi Wan and Anakin centric fanfic, and in comparison the show barely even registered as critical, since it’s so much milder than like 80% of fanfic was. For one it does something fanfic rarely did, which is treat the council and the larger jedi body as a group of diverse people with differing opinions and constant challenges, and not an almost faceless cold single entity whose narrative function is primarily to cause problems for the protagonist, not to be people in their own right.

And then there was simply the fact that I never took Anakin to be a reliable narrator, especially since he’s covering up naughty war crimes left and right on the show, and I never really took Ahsoka as a speaker of objective truth either, since she’s young and still parsing out her teachings and philosophy by show’s end without ever reaching a conclusion, since her story doesn’t really have a conclusion, just a series of traumatic breaks. If they were meant to be the mouthpieces, it never even occurred to me.

The other big thing was the war and the clones. See, my feelings about the war in the movies were very mixed up with the political commentary it was making about what was happening in real life, and the result was pretty messy. The condensed narration didn’t help- yes, there was the through line with the trade federation’s behavior in Naboo and then their involvement with the Separatists, and the plans they were making that Obi Wan listened in on- but even so, the whole war was off screen, and it was still mixed up in this clunky Iraq war commentary. The movies do also point out more than once that the breakdown of diplomacy was something bad Palpatine did and through him the republic (though I wouldn’t say it holds the jedi to account for that so much as the Senate). Meanwhile the cartoon just uncategorically depicts the separatists as aggressors who are doing cartoonishly evil things, and the need to defend is inescapable. Even more than that, the clones- the chips really do change everything.

The fact that the jedi led these men for three years and earned absolutely no goodwill or loyalty enough for any of them to even hesitate to shoot them in the back just wasn’t a great look for either of them. But of course, that’s not the story anymore. It’s such a different story. The jedi-clone relationship is now one of my absolute favorite things. It’s complex and it’s compelling. Most importantly, it’s not characterized by indifference.

So, yeah, I hadn’t clocked that Filoni was actually much closer to the popular fanon on all this. It’s funny, I got into a conversation with someone recently, one of those people who had earnestly thought the prequels were meant to depict the jedi as arrogant and cold and out of touch, and I mentioned the things Lucas had said on the subject, and they were like- are you telling me Lucas fucked up and accidentally told a different story than the one he intended? But what’s funny is that I’m now sitting here thinking the same about the clone wars. Did Filoni accidentally write a much more nuanced and jedi-friendly story than the one he thought he was writing, or was that just me reading him wrong?

Well at any rate, I’m going to watch the tales of the jedi soooon and I guess I’ll see how that tracks. (though round one at least I might disengage my critical brain and just enjoy)

[realcube]

how they use their quirk during sex

navi | masterlist | taglist 

thank you to anon for this request 

characters ♡ bakugo, kirishima, kaminari, dabi & tamaki

content warning ♡ slapping, electrostimulation, fire play, masturbation, mentions of voyeur, choking, oral (giving + receiving), blood kink, mention of knife play, unconventional organism eating & vagina-having reader - minors dni

katsuki bakugo 

♡ he likes to ensure that his slaps leave a mark

♡ just so everyone knows that you’re his

♡ just seeing you all marked up from his explosions and hand just gets him so hard tbh

♡ also, he loves squeezing you - it makes him feel powerful and dominant - so sometimes he just grabs a handful of your tit, squeezes it then proceeds to make you yelp by setting off a lil’ explosion in his hand 

♡ he’s no villain, but he definitely wants to hear you scream in pain or pleasure - either or both works 

♡ so whenever he is hitting it from behind and you feel a zing through your body after he spanks your thigh, mentally prepare yourself for trouble in regards to sitting down - for the next week or so 

♡ it’s a hard thing to do though because he needs to be 100% that he won’t seriously burn you or harm you, or else he literally wouldn’t be able to look himself in the mirror for the rest of...his life 

♡ so yeah, if he’s not completely confident in the fact he’ll be able to smack you without burning you, he just won’t do it 

♡ also, the little crackles and pops from miniature, involuntary explosions going off as he approaches his climax not only entertain you, but they also drown out his moans 

♡ not that he’s ashamed of the sounds he makes - he’s loud and proud - it’s just that the explosions help balance out the noise so it’s not just his grunts echoing throughout the room

♡  plus, they add ambience 

eijiro kirishima

♡ he hardens his back to avoid getting scratches on it lol

♡ it’s not that he doesn’t like getting marked up by you or anything, it’s just a hero instinct tbh

♡ but honestly, you like the feeling of your nails digging into his back then suddenly, the skin becomes sniffer around your fingers

♡ sometimes he accidentally employs his quirk while he is choking you because he gets so into it 

♡ or just as he is about to slap your thigh/ass

♡ he also has a bad habit of hardening when you are trying to give him hickeys

♡ so yeah, you’ll probably be left with bruises, hand prints and bite mark scattered across your inner thigh and torso after sex with kirishima and he leaves unscathed 

♡ also, idk if this is apart of his quirk but his pointy-ass teeth definitely come in handy - especially if you have a blood/biting kink

♡ kiri is willing to go full vampire for you <3

♡ also, you don’t need knives to do knife play with kiri - he is the knife (well, his teeth are) 

♡ he says sternly that he doesn’t enjoy knife/blood play but then he gets oddly aroused when drawing blood from your thigh or nibbling at your slit while he eats you out 

denki kaminari 

♡ i am so sorry but i can’t stop thinking about kami playfully zapping you during sex AAAA

♡ like if you are into electrostimulation- kaminari is basically your sex soulmate 

♡ also if you aren’t like super into electrostim but you give consent for him to lightly zap you from time to time, he will take advantage of that

♡ like just as you’re approaching your orgasm, he’ll shock you slightly so your moans are even louder and your pleasure is escalated 

♡ or sometimes during the foreplay, when he is just fondling with your breasts, he’ll give it a lil’ zap so you perk up and whine for him 

♡ he just loves seeing the way your whole body juts in reactions and how your nipples erect at the shock

♡ whenever he slaps your thigh/ass, it’ll always send somewhat of a current through your body, which arouses you even more 

♡ tickles your clit with electric sometimes just to add some flare 

♡ he might make you beg for his touch if you’re needy enough, then simply run his charged hand over your body teasingly

♡ but if you’re into full-on electrostimulation, he’s extreme picky about the times he is able to utilise his quirk bc now he’ll have to send larger currents (instead of just lil zaps which i assume are easily to control) so ofc he needs to be in the right headspace or he could potentially harm you and obviously, that’s the last him he wants to do

♡ so yeah, he probably trains his quirk extra to ensure that he can produce exactly the right amount of electricity for you

♡ omg and he is probably into mutual masturbation/voyeur !! bc you are like his goddess so ofc he gets off to seeing you touch yourself even if he isn’t the one providing the pleasure. also it really brings out his inner perv 

♡ so if you like to use toys when you masturbate, literally do not worry about any of them running out of charge/battery while you’re pleasuring yourself, kaminari has you covered bb 💅 

♡ also, outside of sex he probably playfully zaps you all the time - like if he is standing behind you, he’ll tap your shoulder followed by a little electric shock. which makes you jump and turn around to see him standing, whistling and averting his gaze unsuspectingly

♡ ‘what, kami? and ouch.’

♡ his eyes widened as he inhaled sharply with an offended look on his face, ‘eh, what?! i didn’t do anything!’

♡ you blinked rapidly, ‘who else has an electricity quirk nearby?’

dabi

♡ he mostly uses his quirk during the actual act of peneration

♡ he rarely uses it during foreplay 

♡ maybe just to set the mood by using his finger to light the candles on his bedside table or sumn 

♡ or, if you’re into fire play, he’ll drag his glowing finger across your chest to trace your curves while leaving a pale marks behind, shooting an erotic burning sensation through your body 

♡ or LORD he (lightly) burns his name into your skin !! so everyone knows you are his >:)

♡ i believe that - unlike the other boys - dabi is able to control his quirk pretty well all throughout sex, no matter what mood he is in

♡ so angry make-up sex with added fireplay isn’t completely out of the question

♡ though, he is a bit cruel so if he’s got your ass in his hands while he’s approaching his orgasm, he will purposefully burn marks into your skin

♡ however, everything comes with a price

♡ so although he can control his quirk at almost all times, he does not know how to deal with the aftermath pffft

♡ he’ll look at your bright red ass and how you are struggling to sit down and be like ‘put some aloe vera on it idfk 🤷‍♂️’ 

♡ anyway, just expect there to be burn marks on every part of your body that dabi touched

♡ the most painful ones are probably the ones he leave on your hips, while he holds your pretty figure in place and drills into you from behind

♡ or perhaps the ones he makes on the back of your head as he forces you take more of his cock into your mouth 

♡ then again, the burns on your neck once he has finished roughly choking you like a slut while pounding into your cunt, were also problematic  

♡ but the handprints he leaves on your torso as he feels around the bulge his massive cock makes in your stomach also hurt quite bad 

♡ god knows, but you’re just generally in pain after sex with dabi tbh

tamaki amajiki

♡ suneater more like pussyeater amarite

♡ this might be a lil bestiality-esque bc he is like a human who develops features of an animal but like..he is still a human, after all, so he can consent 

♡ but anyway, tw for anyone who doesn’t want to read anything of the sort !!

♡ ok, so, let’s get this out of the way first - tentacles 😍 KJVDKFVZDI

♡ he uses them exactly how you imagine he would; he simultaneous holds you down, massages your breast, covers your mouth, chokes you, slithers one up your cunt and one up your ass - just..everything...

♡ like if the tentacles are out, you know you are getting overstimulated that night

♡ also sometimes - if he’s feeling especially bold - he’ll slip one of his tentacles under your skirt while in public then just watch as you desperately try to stifle moans from how good he feels squirming inside you  

♡ you both like it a little more than you’d like to admit tbh

♡ also, one time he ate goose just so he could manifest wings and try fuck you mid-air lmao 

♡ that would’ve brought a whole new meaning to ‘flying fuck’

♡ unfortunately, it didn’t work as well as he had hoped as his wings couldn’t support both of your weight so it was more like him hovering over the bed while drilling into you from above 

♡ it was definitely a new angle though, so you couldn’t complain

♡ he’ll pinch your clit and squeeze your tits with his lobster claws but that’s about it - he generally doesn’t tend to manifest those during sex

♡ one of his dirtiest secrets is that one time, he paid crazy money for a dish with elephant meat in it, in hopes that he’d get a monster cock

♡ (no, the thought never occurred to him that perhaps horse would be a better, cheaper alternative)

♡ bc he highkey has a size kink but you’ve already kinda gotten use to his size so he needed to amp it up...

♡ but no- all he got was a trunk 😭

♡ however, it wasn’t all bad bc at least he made good use of that trunk- 

♡ (he shoved it so far up you, he hoped to see it come out your mouth 🥰)

♡ anyway, rapid-fire round:

♡ he once ate rabbit so he could develop bunny ears and a tail so he could be your cute lil’ bunny boy 🥺 while you peg him 

♡ buffalo wings get him riled up tbh - only top energy after he has buffalo wings 

♡ honestly, the beak he manifests after eating chicken lowkey destroys your cunt- 

♡ the leathery skin he gets after eating crocodile makes him feel badass

♡ oh! and the sharp teeth too- like kirishima, he will go full-vampire if you want him too

♡ his quirk is so versatile, just let your imagination run wild lmao ✨  

♡ plus, he is pretty whipped for you so he's basically down to try anything

[doctorstethoscope]

Not Tired || Aaron Hotchner x Fem Reader

Hi besties, it’s @ssahotchswife soft hotch saturday again! This one is a request from an anon:

Request:  can you do one where he’s coaching jacks soccer team and after they win they go out to ice cream and then go to the park to get jack tired 🥰

I hope you don’t mind but I took this and really kind of ran with it a little!

contains: loving and respecting Haley Hotchner hours, discussion of parenting (don’t think there should be any triggering content in here but if you need something tagged PLEASE lmk!!)

wordcount: 1.4k

“Come on Jack!” You called from the bleachers as you saw Aaron zipping up the sideline, following the ball. He’s yelling, too, but as the coach his yelling is more instructional and perhaps more productive than yours. Your eyes dart back to Jack on the field, and you realize that he’s lined up for the perfect shot, right past the goalie and into the corner of the neck.  “Shoot it buddy! You got it!” 

As deftly as one can at ten years old, he kicks the ball and it hits the back of the net just as the ref blows the whistle to end the game. They don’t keep score, at his age, but you’re proud of Jack all the same. 

“Did you see me! Did you see me!” Jack asked, bounding over to you without stopping. 

“Of course I did buddy! Go, listen to your dad and tell the other team good game. You’re not quite done yet, sport.” You told him, ruffling his hair and sending him back in the direction of his father as you begin to pack up your belongings. 

Your boys rejoin you after a moment, and you smile at them both. “Good work, Hotchners!” You congratulate them both. “I think you’ve both earned some ice cream.”

Jack is practically buzzing at the thought, and he takes off across the field before either one of you can even get him to take his shin guards off. Aaron wraps an arm around you as you cross the field after him, planting a kiss on the crown of your head. “Good work, coach.” 

“If they were keeping score, we would have won, you know.” He tells you. 

“Aaron, they’re ten.” You laugh. 

“I’m just saying. If you’re into guys that can coach…” he trails off and you throw your head back with your laugh.

 “I’m all set with the guy I’ve got, but thanks for looking out.” You tell him as you meet Jack at the edge of the field. He takes his dad’s hand to enter the parking lot, and you pile yourselves and all of your gear into the car and drive off towards the ice cream parlor. 

Aaron takes your hand as he drives and you peek in the rear view to see Jack struggling to keep his eyes open. You smile at the thought of a quiet afternoon, filled with snuggles on the couch. Jack, of course, perks back up at the promise of ice cream, and as you’re looking around for a table, he finds something even more exciting. 

“Henry!” He exclaims, taking off towards a picnic table where JJ, Will and Henry were sharing a banana split. JJ looks up when Jack arrives at her table and you wave as you make your way over to her. 

“Fancy meeting you folks here,” Will drawls, and you smile. 

“I’d ask if you mind if we crash, but it looks like the boys have made that decision for us.” You laughed, settling in across from JJ and Will as you look over to the kids, who are now sitting in the grass. 

“Uh huh--- and then I kicked the ball into the goal and everyone cheered!!” Jack is regaling to Henry’s rapt attention.

Aaron wraps his arm around your waist as you all eat your ice cream, laughing and joking and enjoying the warm weather. He kisses some wayward ice cream off of your chin and you can’t stop yourself from laughing gleefully-- he’s obviously never this affectionate at work, and you can tell JJ is shocked to see this softer side of him. It occurs to you that they simply don’t know the man who chases Jack around the house in his pajamas and who wakes you up every Saturday morning by singing a love song in your ear and who kisses both you and his son on the forehead every night before you fall asleep. As happy as you were to have that version of him all to yourself, you wish that the others could see little snippets of him like this, too.

“We were just gonna take Henry to the park to burn off a little energy if you want to join?” JJ offered, and Jack heard you. 

“Can we? Please please please please please?” 

“You aren’t tired from your game?” You tried to remind the boy who, less than an hour ago, practically had to be removed from his carseat. 

“No, I’m not tired.” He says quickly. 

“You sure, bud? Henry can play another time.” Aaron backs you up. 

“I’m sure.” He says. The two of you share one of those looks only shared between parents, the kind of look where a whole conversation is exchanged with the speed of a blink and the quirk of a brow. 

“Okay, we can go play for a little while,” Aaron relents, and the six of you make your way over to the park. JJ and Will are prepared with a blanket, and the four of you sit and enjoy a little bit of adult time while the boys chase each other down slides and swing along the monkey bars. Will and JJ are sitting side by side, their thighs touching and their arms all tangled up in each other. Aaron has you pulled between his legs, his arms wrapped around your middle and your head leaning back against his chest. He drops kisses to your temple every so often, and you listen to him and Will chat about the porch Will wants to build around the condo. 

After a little while, Jack bounds up to you, clearly worse for the wear of the day. He settles in between your legs and rests his head on your thigh. You brush your fingers through the sandy blonde hair at his forehead.

“Oh, buddy, you’re pretty wiped, huh?” You ask him, looking down at him with an almost pitiful smile.

“Not tired,” he mumbles against your jeans. “I’m not tired, mumma. I’m just takin a break,” he says, promptly falling asleep in your lap. 

You tense, trying not to wake Jack as you turn to look at Aaron. He’s already looking down at you, and you can feel JJ and Will’s stares boring into your soul.

“We’ll go get Henry,” Will says, helping JJ up and giving the two of you some privacy. 

“I’m sorry,” you say as soon as they are out of earshot. Aaron just laughs, leaning forward to kiss the anxiety off of your face. 

“I’m not,” he tells you, shaking his head and giving you one more kiss before giving you the space to respond. 

“I didn’t tell him to call me that.” You assure him.

“I know you didn’t, hon. Do you not want him to call you that?”

 “No!” You’re quick to correct Aaron before he can hurt his own feelings, accidentally disturbing Jack in the process. You shush him and run your hand through his hair for a moment before he falls back to sleep. “Of course that’s not it, Aaron. But Jack has a mom, a great mom, and I wouldn’t want to dare take her place.”

 Aaron shakes his head. “There’s room in his heart for both of you, just like there’s room in my heart for both of you. You’ve never once asked me to forget about Haley, to act like I never loved her, or to try to live a version of my life that isn’t profoundly altered by her impact on me. Would you ask Jack to do any of that?” 

“Of course not,” You tell him. “I know how much she loved him. I wish she was still here, for both of you.” 

Aaron sighed. “I know, my love. But she’s not here, and you are here. And I know for a fact that she’d be happy to know I found someone who loves her son like their own, and he loves her so much in return that he wants to call her mom, too.” 

You breathe out a little sigh of relief. “I love you. Thank you for letting me love you when you didn’t have to.” 

“Thank you for loving me even when I didn’t want you to.” He tells you in return, kissing the side of your face again before standing up and collecting Jack from your lap without waking him, in the skilled way that only fathers can.  You stand up, your leg now fully asleep from the weight of Jack’s sleeping form against it, and fold JJ’s blanket, crossing the park to return it to her. 

“You okay?” She asked, taking the blanket and wrapping you up in a hug. “I’m sure that was a lot, and unexpected. 

“Yeah, it was.” You agreed. “I’ve never been better.”

[zapsalis-d]

Narudar: Chapter Forty-Five—The Fervor

SUMMARY: Back-up was all you were supposed to be. How could that have led to… everything else?

WARNINGS: Mild violence, prominent angst, implications of sex, feelings & lots of feelings

WORD COUNT: 7.1k

MASTERLIST >>> MAIN MASTERLIST

Left alone within the confines of the juggernaut, your mind wandered.

Thinking about what the future may hold for yourself, Din, and Grogu thrilled you. Moving to a planet, possibly even establishing a life there on Nata. That was something you never imagined you'd be capable of achieving, much less with them. If you could travel back and tell yourself that this would be the outcome of acquiring that bounty and your temporary partnership with Din, you never would've believed it for a second.

You wanted it. But now that you were here, pondering over it, without the disaster your emotions were before, part of it didn't seem plausible. Maybe you were becoming too optimistic about this idea. It might never happen, because nobody could ever predict what will occur on Gideon's lightcruiser once you arrive to rescue Grogu. There was a significant chance that the kid might not even be there, and the Moff had taken him elsewhere while he was kept hostage. Even worse... he may not have survived. The notion was infuriating and discouraging altogether. It was difficult to bear the thought, but it was a possibility. Then what? What would Din and yourself do afterwards, without Grogu?

So much could go wrong.

It's not only Grogu. It could be you, or maybe even Din. There's always a chance that one of you won't escape alive.

As much as you wished you could obtain that life, it was actually rather improbable given your circumstances. There was still the problem that you need to be trained by a Jedi—or at the very least, learn how to control your powers yourself. The fear of accidentally hurting someone still lingered every now and then. It hadn't occurred yet, but it could. One day, it could and that was one of the largest risks you'd be taking if you decided to be with Din.

A quiet sigh sounded through the vehicle. This was a decision you'd have to think through carefully.

Din and Mayfeld were taking an eternity. It had been... approximately half an hour, but you hadn't heard a single sign of trouble. Which was fine. You were backup and you were here to fight in case the plan somehow went awry, but this was good. There were no obstacles interrupting you for now. You only worried that Mayfeld had betrayed Din in the process of earning the information on Gideon's location, because that was a large probability given that he was formerly Imperial.

You considered peering out the front window and sneak a glimpse of what may be happening around you since the transport had been parked inside the base, but that was unlikely. This convoy was surrounded by troopers, pilots, and officers—and you could hear their footsteps and conversation clearly from where you sat. So you could not risk it. Though as the sounds of the rhydonium being unloaded behind you reached your ears, you hoped that this would be over soon, before someone stepped inside to guide the juggernaut elsewhere. 

Then came the abrupt sound of a bullet.

There was silence for a moment.

You waited, anticipation crawling deep within your bones. Silently hoping that didn't mean anything—but it was blaster fire, of course it meant something. Din was not in his beskar right now, and that was what you feared the most. He was vulnerable to being shot straight through the head or the chest, because Imperial armor was fragile and useless. 

The shooting continued.

This was a definite shoot-out. So you hastened outside the juggernaut as quickly as you possibly could, heading straight for the source of the bullets. It wasn't too distant, and it seemed it was taking place in what was presumably a breakroom for the officers and troopers. There, you reocgnized Mayfeld—but that was it. Several shoretroopers fired him down, but he was surprisingly holding his ground on his own.

You revealed your blaster and assisted him against the enemies around you both. It didn't take long for you to become a target to everyone within the Imperial base, given that you were lacking their usual attire. As you fired multiple troopers down, you took note of the pilot that seemed to have turned against his team, because he was fighting against the Imperials as well. You assumed he was one of Mayfeld's acquaintances, but... you couldn't find Din.

 Which was making you skeptical.

Shooting came to an abrupt stop. It was you, Mayfeld, and the pilot that assisted you against the troopers and officers—but no sign of Din anywhere.

You couldn't trust them. Not even Mayfeld.

"Where's Mando?" you demanded, earning a startled expression from the supposedly former Imperial as you pointed your blaster to his friend. A threat to kill him if you didn't receive an answer. 

"Uh..." Mayfeld seemed to be at a loss for words, unable to form a response. His eyes darted back and forth between your angered face, and the pilot—who had frozen the second you lifted the gun. "Well, he's..."

Your cold eyes swapped over to the trooper, shoving your weapon to his throat. His dark hair was in a tousled mess over his forehead from the previous fight. He didn't seem hostile. Not even fearful of the fact that your finger lingered tightly against the trigger. No, he was more... shocked. Stunned and fixed to his spot, incapable of moving or speaking... But you were going to squeeze the words out of them, even if they didn't comply. You'd gladly kill the both of them if they didn't. You could find Din on your own.

"Where is he?" you repeated, pressing on. The thought of what they could've possibly done to him enraged you even further, and the grip on your blaster strengthened. "What did you do to him?"

But they weren't kriffing saying anything and you were growing impatient—

Your finger pushed down, and the pilot seized the barrel, thrusting it away from his head. The bullet blasted through the ceiling above. His free hand whirled you around, forcing your back against his chest. An arm wrapped firmly around your middle and he never released his grip on your weapon. You tried and tried to liberate yourself from him—first, prying his fingers from your blaster, and then attempting to push his arm away. He was unyielding. But didn't dare loosen your clutch on the gun, even as he was drawing it away from you.

"Stop— stop!" he growled in your ear. Yet you never stopped struggling against him, cramming your elbow into his stomach several times, trying to break free, anything to— "Stop it! It's me."

And you froze.

 Because you recognized that voice.

A low gravelly voice. No modulation. No distortion, no vocodor, no helmet. It was Din's clear voice.

"It's me..." he reiterated in a gentler tone. His breath fanned your ear as he still breathed heavily from the earlier shoot-out. Even as his arm slackened from your body and he let go of your blaster, you didn't move. Too surprised to act. Too confused to speak. 

No helmet.

Why?

You shrugged him off you, backing away several feet form him. That... was Din. You nearly killed him. He was standing in front of you. With nothing covering his face. With nothing to conceal his startled brown eyes— of course. Of course that was him. How could you not have noticed? The earlier incident, when you accidentally stole a brief glimpse of his eyes. How did you not realize they seemed familiar? The same gaze, the same crease between his eyebrows. That was all you glanced at.

You felt horrible.

Your head diverted to a different direction. Anywhere that wasn't his face. All you had seen were his eyes. That was all. Not his curly hair. Not his tanned skin. Not the stubble around his chin and jawline. Nothing else. You only saw his eyes... Those soft, umber hues. 

You ruined everything Din grew up believing in.

The mere notion of it left you feeling guilty. 

Neither of you could utter a single word to each other. So you spotted his helmet on a nearby table, and swiftly headed over to grab it. 

"Hey, I mean this is fine, right?" Mayfeld interrupted your rampant thoughts. You had completely forgotten he was there, given that you were distracted by... Din. This meant he had seen Din's face as well. You weren't the only one. But... that didn't exactly make the situation any better. Your gaze snapped over to the ex-Imperial. How was this fine? Then, "You're married anyway."

What?

Married. To Din.

No.

Well, the idea wasn't all that bad, it's just... not true.

Oh. Maybe that little joke when you and Mayfeld initially met had been taken seriously by everyone else...

"That wasn't..." you hesitated, wishing Din would clear everything up, but... he only grunted. As if he didn't want to continue this conversation. Neither did you, but Mayfeld needed to know if he actually fell for that. "If that were true, would I have tried to kill him five minutes ago?"

"Oh... Really? You were fake-married this whole time—"

"Drop the subject, Mayfeld, please..." you muttered, ending the discussion when you turned to Din. You only stared into the thin visor of the helmet in your grasp, without risking another stolen peek of his face. "I'm sorry," was all you could manage, handing the object over to him.

"You did what you had to do," Mayfeld added, without glancing over either. "I never saw your face."

"Neither did I... We can forget this ever happened."

You wished that were true.

It wasn't that you didn't want to see him... But this was not how it was supposed to go. If it was ever going to happen. Din revealing his face to you one day was never something that was guaranteed. If he ever decided to, then he could go ahead. But only if he wanted to. 

You doubted he wanted it like this either. Now his Creed was broken... and you were part of it.

From your peripheral vision, you observed as Din wordlessly settled the helmet back over his head.

At least it seemed they processed Gideon's coordinates into the datastick.

"Security to main comms," an authoritative voice echoed within the speakers spread throughout the base. "Security to main comms."

Great. That signified reinforcements—which soon arrived within a few seconds. Everyone's blasters were drawn out as troopers caved in on you guys, pushing you back against the metal windows that allowed minimum light to seep in from outside. 

"Ready?" Din yelled amongst the continuous shooting. You stole a brief glance back to see what he was referring to, and quickly caught up on his plan. "Go!"

All three of you slammed your feet back into the lower portion of the window, kicking a section off and allowing enough space to slip through. You escaped after Mayfeld, and Din was right behind you. There was hardly any space for you guys on the ledge of the building. Below was what was presumably a massive dam, with violent waters crashing against the structure. If either of you fell, it would be easy to drown yourselves in there. Your knees slackened a bit at the sight, so you kept your gaze up and pretended there was no dam below, continuing along the thin perimeter of the building.

The brisk flashes of bullets zipping past you caught your ears. You glanced up to find Cara and Shand in their sniping positions a distance away, taking down several troopers that pursued your group. Up ahead was ladder. Trusting in the snipers to ward off any soldiers, you continued towards it until you reached the steps. Mayfeld clambered up as quickly as he possibly could, yet it seemed he was going painstakingly... slow.

"Move!" you shouted.

"The hell you think I'm doin?!" Mayfeld yelled back.

He hurried, and reached the rooftop with you trailing closely behind. You turned around, assisting Din up the ladder as well, before hurriedly rushing towards the Slave I. It lingered by the edge of the roof, awaiting your arrival with a lowered ramp. Sprinting towards the starship, a few troopers tried to hinder you guys, but you watched as Cara and Shand shot them down with precision. When you reached Fett's ship, the distance between the ramp and the rooftop was rather significant, so the three of you had to jump as far as you possibly could. Thankfully, you and Din landed safely—although somewhat wobbly—and Mayfeld nearly slipped. But you were able to keep him from slipping off the ramp as the ship lifted up into the air. You felt a hand grip your cloak to ensure you wouldn't lose your balance—and it was Din, as he fired down the final troopers on the border of the rooftop.

"Enjoy your little adventure out of prison?" you asked, pulling him up steadily.

"Yeah!" he replied sarcastically and out-of-breath. "Oh, yeah, I'm never agreeing to this ever again. But you know what? Hand me that cycle rifle."

Din grabbed the rifle from the interior of the Slave I, before passing it over to Mayfeld—who made quick use of it. Momentarily, he aimed for one of the juggernauts below, which contained rhydonium cargo. Then, he pressed on the trigger. Even with the continuously moving starship and the distance from the base, his aim was still exact. His skills were actually better than you originally imagined. The fuel caused an immense explosion, lighting the entire refinery into flames and ultimately destroying that hidden Imperial base.

He was definitely not a stromtrooper.

Mayfeld turned back to you and Din, who could only watch. "We all need to sleep at night."

You shared a look with Din... He couldn't speak, and neither did you. You feared he may be angered at the fact that you snuck a glance of his face. You weren't entirely sure how to feel about that yet. But you definitely shouldn't have looked—that's for certain.

Quietly, you sighed and head back into the main cabin of the Slave I. Everyone strapped themselves into their seats whilst Fett piloted the starship away from the refinery. 

"We got company," Fett declared through the comms. "Hang on!"

Abruptly, the ship was thrusted to the side, dodging the attacks of the pair of TIE-fighters pursuing your team. The screeched of the fighters reached your ears—which quickly came to an brusque stop when the Slave Idropped a detonator. By the sound of it, you recognized it to be a seismic charge, and the remaining enemies were easily eliminated.

So Fett landed the ship soon afterwards in order to retrieve Cara and Shand. Din and Mayfeld had changed back into their usual attire, discarding their pilot armor. There was a brief conversation with Mayfeld outside, where Cara allowed him to leave... pretending that he happened to have died in the refinery explosion. For a second, he could hardly believe that he was being released from prison. But he did good today. He hadn't failed you guys as you initially believed he would, and he never mentioned Din removing his helmet again. Not even once. As annoying as he was, he was appreciated and he should be able to enjoy a second chance.

Din and Cara conversed between each other for another moment, though you head back into the ship. There, you were met with Shand settled on one of the seats, wiping her sniper rifle with a rag. She acknowledged your presence as soon as you stepped inside. "You seem shaken up."

Did you really? You thought it hadn't been too obvious that something happened back there in the base... "Can I borrow your room again?"

She sent a curt nod your way. "Don't use it anyway."

You could use a moment for yourself after everything. So you returned to the room, shut the door and sat yourself on the single cot in the corner. Burying your face in your palms, you released a heavy sigh as the guilt began to overwhelm you. First, the Razor Crest and the kid are lost... and now you're partly the reason why Din broke his Creed.  It seemed that there was no end to this—that disaster followed you guys everywhere you traveled. 

Din's voice was audible on the other side of the door, his modulated voice distant and muffled. Soon afterwards, you felt the Slave I lift into the air.

You hoped Din wouldn't come into the room... Not yet, at least. You weren't sure what you'd say or what he'd say, because it was all another shock to you two. It was never expected for his face to be forcibly revealed to you like this, much less on this specific mission. It was similar to when you decided to leave the Jedi Order: you were left with feelings of repent for cycles, because you had promised to repay the Jedi for saving you. You never did, and you'd hate for Din to share these exact feelings of regret as you. You recognized how much he was devoted and dedicated to his Creed. For years, since he was a kid, he vowed to never show his face to absolutely anyone and yet... within a few minutes, all of it had been ruined.

Your chest heaved with a sigh, and you stood to head for the door.

Only, as soon as you were leaving, Din entered. You froze—partly because you nearly slammed into his armored chest, and partly because...

Well... when you looked into his visor, although it was his Mandalorian helmet, you still couldn't erase the image of his brown eyes from your head.

You struggled to find the correct words to say, without sounding awkward. All you could manage was a small, "Hi."

"Hi," he replied, pausing for a moment. Then, "I...  just sent a holomessage to Gideon."

"Good." That was progress. The Moff's coordinates were located, so he was able to send a message across to him. "What did you say?"

"Something he'll find very familiar. If he received it, then he knows we're coming for him very soon."

"That's good." You should probably leave, you thought. He might want time for himself after what happened to him. "I have to... speak to Cara about something."

"Wait." He stopped you before you could pass through the doorway (and it wasn't like you could pass anyway, because his body blocked it). Your anxiety spiked and your brain blanked when his hand delicately wrapped around your upper arm, hoping you wouldn't leave yet. "We should... talk."

Your heart pounded painfully upon hearing his suggestion. A million thoughts twisted and distorted your head, fearing he might be angry with you. That he might hate you after this. (But that was okay, right?) What occurred recently could not go unspoken between you two, no matter how many times you insisted that it never happened. (If he hated you, it didn't matter). Perhaps this could go unmentioned with Mayfeld, but not with you and Din... This was different. (If he hated you, you could leave and it wouldn't matter to anyone).

You agreed, and stepped back into the room with him, the door sealing shut behind you.

You were being selfish. It would matter to someone—to Grogu. Were you going to let him watch you leave again?

"I'm sorry," you started immediately. He hates you. There's no use in apologizing. "You have every right to be mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you," he answered easily, without hesitation. He's not mad at you. He doesn't hate you. "It wasn't an accident. I had to take my helmet off."

You weren't sure how to process that. He removed his helmet... willingly?

It doesn't matter if it was an accident or not. You should tell him anyway.

You couldn't tell him now... How could you?

"The terminal had to scan someone's face so I could access the information," Din explained when you remained silent, without offering a response. "Mayfeld recognized a nearby officer. He feared the officer would recognize him, too. He wanted to back down, but I couldn't leave without the coordinates."

"So you took your helmet off," you finished. "For Grogu."

"I did. I just..." His vocodor crackled as he paused and sighed. "I would've preferred you to bethe first to see my face. Not Mayfeld."

You could only give him a curt shrug of your shoulders. You weren't sure what to reply with... Because you were not a former Imperial, so how could you have been there with him? Maybe he had been slightly more comfortable if you had been there, but it would've still involved breaking his Creed. Everyone there—the officers, the troopers, you—would've damaged what he believed in, so what was the difference? It was all the same.

"Cyar'ika... When I said I would've shown you my face if we ran away, I meant it." He stopped for a second, as if awaiting an answer. But you couldn't bring yourself to open your mouth and speak. You were supposed to be warning him that you were leaving soon... and yet he was bringing this subject up. It wasn't helping you in any way. "There isn't anyone else in the galaxy I would be comfortable showing my face to... than with you and the kid."

Nobody else. Just you and Grogu.

It doesn't matter. You're leaving.

But it did matter. If it didn't matter, you wouldn't be second-guessing your decision right now.

"It can't happen, Din." You battled to maintain a strict expression, crossing your arms across your chest. "Not again."

"It can..."

You were beginning to tremble. You had no idea why, but you were feeling the faint quiver of your fingers as you gripped the fabric of your scarlet cloak. Your nerves were everywhere and your brain faltered again— it was difficult to comprehend all of this. That he was alrightwith removing his helmet in front of you again. This wasn't right, and your guilt never diminished. Not even as he admitted that.

"If you'll let me."

"No," you refused, lowly. How could he do that to his Creed? To what he grew up obeying? You knew what it was like—leaving the Jedi Order, even when you swore you'd repay them for rescuing you—and you couldn't allow Din to undergo this as well. "You can't."

"Why not?"

Tell him.

Tell. Him.

You should leave. That way, he wouldn't break his Creed ever again. Not in front of you, at least.

"Because when we rescue Grogu, I'm leaving." You attempted to sound optimistic about this... but how? How could you if this was the exact opposite of what you truly wanted? "For some time, actually. I need to figure out some things. It'll be easier for you and Grogu."

Your heart shattered at his subtle reaction—the way he shifted his weight, trying to approach you but not knowing if he should, his visor not straying from you for a single second—all because he couldn't believe what he was hearing. He couldn't fathom the fact that even after everything, you wished to leave him, including Grogu. "Please don't..."

"It'll be alright," you insisted. "Maybe you'll be safer. I'm still scared of it happening again..."

"That hasn't happened in a while. Not since Nevarro. And this would've happened anyway, even if you weren't here—the Empire would've taken Grogu anyway. You tried your best. Don't think it's your fault—"

"You're not understanding." Your voice was growing bitter, the conversation converting into an argument. You despised the fact, because you were the one causing the dispute and you were the one who was angry. Even if there was no reason to be irritated with him. Even if there was no reason to disagree with him like this... but he needed to accept this. You were leaving. He wasn't going to agree with this unless you were harsh with him. "We can't. We're not supposed to be together. You're a Mandalorian... and I was a Jedi. It doesn't make sense for us to get along. We never even got along to begin with."

"But things changed," Din countered. "We started getting along. It's not like before."

"No! It's just like before. We hated each other. We started getting along. We started fighting again. We hated each other again. We started getting along again. We're gonna start arguing again— it's the same thing! In the end, we're always what we have been: narudars. You said it yourself, Din."

"This is about that? You're... doing this because I pushed you away first."

"No—"

"You shouldn't have ever forgiven me for that, but..."

"It's not that. It's not..."

He was making it so difficult to argue with him. To stay determined with this decision, without leaving him feeling guilty.

"What about Nata?" he asked. Your gaze lowered when he mentioned your plan to escape to that planet... You feared he'd bring the subject up, but you were going to have to explain to him anyway. "We were supposed to go there together."

Silently, you sighed. Hoped that Din couldn't see past you. See your affliction. Your torment. Your grief... Hoped that all he saw was a bland, serious, resolute expression. And you managed a quiet, "I don't want to go to Nata."

"Then we can go somewhere else," he suggested, practically a plead for you to stay. You might be intent on leaving, but he sounded more determined to convince you than you could ever be... "Anywhere. It doesn't matter. Just... stay with me. Please."

"No." You shook your head, taking a step back from him... Gathering the strength to continue. "I don't want to... be with you."

Your own words sickened you to your stomach, nauseating you to the core—and you couldn't imagine how he must be feeling if he actually did care about you. If he actually wanted you to stay with him. He didn't deserve the way you were treating him. He shouldn't be hearing the harsh words that were escaping your mouth. You weren't sure whether you'd prefer him to believe you or perceive the truth behind your argument. Din couldn't respond, and it left you feeing vile. Horrible. Selfish. All you could do was watch as he stood there... slowly lowering his visor. Giving up. 

You hurt him.

"This is because you saw my face," he assumed, lowly.

"It's not because of that. I never saw your face."

"It happened. You can't say otherwise, because it happened. You changed your mind because you saw me—"

"Don't say that." You couldn't believe he could even imagine that. That never altered your feelings towards him. Never. "That's not the reason. It's not because I saw your face."

"Then what?"

"Din, just— stop asking."

"Tell me... You can leave, but tell me what I did wrong."

You didn't do anything wrong.

There wasn't anything he had done to deserve this, and you longed to explain everything to him... How much you cared for him. How much you appreciated him for everything he'd sacrificed to help you. How much you were grateful for his patience with you, even when you were indignant and frustrated. How much you desired to let him know how much you loved him, but you were much too terrified of saying those simple words...

Din was only met with complete silence. Your fingers fidgeted with the hem of your cloak's sleeves, anxiously and relentlessly, but you couldn't bring yourself to open your mouth.

"Cyar'ika..."

No.

His soft plead prompted you into turning around, ending up with your back facing him. The room was compact, so you still didn't have much space from him. It was better than facing him, though... Because with your watering eyes and your lower lip beginning to quiver, it was becoming more complicated to hide the fact that this was all fake. That you never wanted to leave him. That you would much rather escape to Nata with him and the kid. That you wanted to be with him.

A heavy silence subdued the air.

"I'm..."

He muttered something, faintly and tentatively, but—

You heard that.

"What?" Whirling back around, you waited for him to reiterate that. But he hadn't, and so you neared him until you were inches away from his dark visor. "What did you say?"

Din seemed unsure, his gaze averting from you...

"Say it again," you insisted. Did he regret saying it? Did you hear that correctly? Was that even... reality? Were your ears playing tricks on you? You reached out for him, gently placing a palm on the side of his helmet to redirect his eyes back to you. But he was frozen... wordless. "Din, please."

"I'm in love with you," he voiced. Louder. Clearly. Confidently.

You were losing your mind. If that was what you understood, then you had seriously gone crazy under all this pressure. Shock registered in your brain. You took a few seconds—possibly more than that—to wrap your head around his confession. By then, your hand lowered from his helmet, blinking several times before mustering the courage to speak again. "I don't think you know what you're saying... You can't be in love with me."

"I am," he claimed, obstinately. He sounded absolutely convinced about this, but was it the truth? It was difficult to fathom that he truly were in love with you, even through... everything. Through all the hardships and the problems you caused between yourself and him. "I have been for a while."

Din was simply under pressure—similarly to you. He was overwhelmed and devasted over everything he's recently lost. Grogu, the Razor Crest, his Creed... and now you. It was making him feel things he shouldn't. Things he doesn't genuinely feel. None of this was real. His feelings would fade as the time passed, and eventually you wouldn't matter to him anymore. He was only nervous about losing a partner he'd grown accustomed to having besides him. But you had been absent before, and he was fine. So he would be alright after this. He'll have Grogu, after all. He won't be completely alone.

"How could you say that if- if you kicked me off your ship?! That doesn't make sense— is this some sort of trick?"

"Why would I trick you?"

"I don't know, I just... I don't know."

Patiently, he waited for you to calm down. Allowed you a moment to think, as your eyes drifted away from him again, as frustration and confusion was consuming you. But he learned. He had learned after all this time, to stay quiet temporarily... let you gain your composure again. That was precisely what happened. When a deep sigh left your throat and your gaze returned to him, he finally started. "I don't remember how it happened, Cyar'ika. Sometime on our run together, there were... feelings I couldn't explain. It might've been since the prison ship. Or Tatooine, or maybe even Sorgan. But by the time we reached Nata... I realized."

Nata. He came to terms with the fact that he loved you on Nata.

"Is that why you want to go back?" Your voice faltered, faintly breaking by those final words. Din undoubtedly noticed the way your eyes glistened with saltwater. At this point, that was inevitable.

"I was going to tell you there, when the right time came," he explained. Which obviously wouldn't have happened if you ended up leaving. So he took his chances, and confessed here. It had probably taken him plenty of effort to gather the valor and say it. That was something you never managed to do, and commended him for it... because you never would've been capable of doing so yourself, not even under the pressure of everything weighing down on you. Maybe he did truly love you, though you were simply shocked and it was difficult to wrap your head around it. After all this time. After all this time and he finally brought it up.

"You almost died trying to save me on Nevarro. I was... scared," he continued. "I didn't want to see it happen again."

Suddenly, it clicked within your brain. The puzzle pieces snapped together. Your gaze fell, and your voice was feeble as you complete his sentence, "So you told me to leave."

Din nodded, once. "To keep you safe."

"You could've just discussed it with me. We could've talked about it instead."

"I know. We were arguing a lot at the time, so I thought you hated me. I thought it would've been easier to let you leave." A pause. He seemed to calculate his words for a second, thinking through this intensively. "It was a mistake. I regretted it, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry if you thought I hated you all this time. But I stopped hating you a long time ago."

You turned back around again, burying your face in one of your palms, squeezing your eyes shut and permitting the tears to slip freely. Were you blind? Din loved you and you never noticed anything—absolutely stuck to the idea of yourself and him remaining enemies for the remainder of your lives. Too preoccupied on keeping your temporary alliance without realizing that you both shared the same feelings for each other. You never acted on it, because you thought...

Din never thought you loved him either.

Both had been completely oblivious to everything.

Everybody else in the entire galaxy could've known about this, except you and Din.

"Just know..." A hiss reached your ears, unquestionably the seal of Din's helmet. There was a silence as he set the beskar aside. His footsteps, painstakingly slow as they approached you from behind, sent your heart into an outburst and your nerves were uncontrollable. You could not stop the quivering that was beginning to wrack your body and you despised it. "That even if you don't believe it," his voice, gruff but gentle, lacked the distortion of his vocodor. Because, standing right behind you, he was without his helmet. Without anything covering his face, allowing you the chance to simply spin around and look him straight in the face. But you waited... Waited for him to finish.

"Even if none of this works out or you don't feel the same or we're separated again, I will always love you."

"Always?"

"Always, Cyar'ika. Only you."

Din has never shown you his true emotions like that... and it was so pleasant to hear. So relieving for him to confirm what you always doubted.

His gloved hand reached out for you, for your shoulder.

It turned out you weren't the only one trembling.

His hand slid down, shakily, to your wrist... then down to your hand, tentatively slipping his fingers between yours. You felt him so close to you—his touch, his breath—and then he tugged, pulling you around to face him. But you couldn't look up. You couldn't lift your eyes, fearing that you would break his Creed again. That the guilt rotting deep within you would worsen if you stole another brief glimpse of his face again. That had not been correct. You should never have looked, but it happened. Though as much as you wished you could gaze into those warm eyes again, you could only stare into the silver armor plating his chest. Watch your distorted reflection in his beskar, your expression—upset, confused, defeated—the evident glint of tears in your eyes. That was the face Din was looking at this entire time... and there was no doubt he had realized that it was faked. That you don't want to leave him.

He squeezed your hand, while the other reached to wipe the dampness from underneath your eyes. He knew. You failed to convince him that you were determined to leave.

But it was okay.

That wasn't necessarily bad, was it? 

"We tried to push each other away because we thought it meant protecting each other. Right?" His gentle voice prompted you into nodding once. "It's not any better when we're separated, is it?"

"No. It's not," you managed, softly. "It never got easier even as the time passed."

"I don't know what I'll do if you leave again..."

"I won't," you replied without hesitation. You lifted his hand, which he still held intertwined with yours, and pressed a chaste kiss to the roughened skin of his knuckles. A flutter erupted within your chest at the thought of what you were going to say next: "I love you, Din. I can't leave you."

From your peripheral vision, you could see his relief—and how his chest sighed a breath of contentment at hearing that.

"We can still work," he muttered quietly, leaning in closer to you... When his forehead made contact with yours, you sealed your eyes shut and a small grin found its way to your lips, setting a palm to his chest. "We just need time."

You could still feel his nervousness every time he breathed, shakily, and you closed the gap between you and him. To soothe him. He sighed against your lips, pleased and relieved at the taste of you. He was gentle with you, but such a simple and brief kiss from him still managed to take your breath away from your lungs. It was concise, and as you were both calming down from your rampant nerves, you drew away from him.

"Open your eyes," he whispered. "Please."

Still, your eyes remained closed. "I don't want to break your Creed again."

"It's already broken," he answered. "Don't think about that anymore. I just want you."

Hesitantly, you opened your eyes and lifted them.

They slowly found their way along his neck, then his jaw... Square, with flecks of grey mottling dark scruff. His lips, pink and dry but you liked the way they tasted against your own. A faint scar across the bridge of a prominent nose caught your attention, and you briefly wondered how he must've gotten the mark. It was a fleeting thought. Because then you focused on his eyes. Brown. Warm. Nervous. He was nervous. And that was okay, because so were you. Your pulse raced at your proximity to each other. How clearly you could see him—every single detail of his face, even how his pupils were almost inky, blown wide at the sight of you. Perfect. Maybe it was because you loved him or maybe it were actually true. But to you, he was perfect. He was more than what you could've ever imagined. 

You never believed you would ever gain the chance to see his face. There were times when you guessed he might feel something for you, but never to this extent. Never to the point that he couldn't bear the thought of you leaving him again. Never thought he actually loved you. How much time and problems and arguments could you have saved if you had simply acknowledged all of this earlier, and admitted your feelings to each other? 

That didn't matter. Not much. Maybe your circumstances would've been easier but you were immensely pleased to share this moment with him. Knowing that he trusted you enough to reveal his face to you, to betray his Creed, brought a warmth to your chest.

It was evident that you were in love with everything about him... Including the curly mess his hair was in. 

Din nearly flinched as he watched you reach for him. It had barely been noticeable, but you had seen it—the way he squinted, vaguely, as he wasn't accustomed to someone touching his face. You were on the verge of retracting your hand from him, when his fingers enveloped your wrist, calmly bringing your palm to the side of his face. You felt the bristles of his facial hair prickled against the skin of your hand. Felt his eyelashes flutter against your thumb each time he blinked, like the butterflies that circled your stomach. Felt him place a kiss to your wrist as he caressed your knuckles.

When was the last time he felt the touch of someone he loved?

Probably not since he was a child.

"I think..." You could hardly manage a complete sentence with the chaos your brain was in—but it was a good chaos. A chaos that developed a fond smile at the thought of Din loving you back. "I think you're very handsome."

He chuckled quietly. Finally, you could see his soft grin for the first time. He even tried to hold it back but, clearly, he failed. You couldn't see why, though, because he had one of the most pleasant smiles you'd ever seen. There was no reason to hide it. Then, "I didn't think I'd ever hear you say that about me."

Soft laughter left your throat. He wasn't wrong. You never thought he'd willingly show his face to you. As you lowered your palm from him, he kept you close to him by maintaining a hand on the small of your back. "How are we gonna do this, Din?"

"Let's figure everything out together," he suggested. "When we rescue Grogu, we'll have all the time we need."

You liked the thought of not rushing into anything. The last thing you wanted was to hasten into something that may never work out if hurried.

You were only a couple steps away from getting Grogu back to you guys. Now all you needed was to figure out whether the kid truly were still on that cruiser or not, and perhaps even recruit the Nite Owls if they agreed to it. 

"For now, though..." you whispered, leaning into him. There were still a few hours to spare...

He seemed to understand the hint rather quickly because his gaze flickered down from your eyes, his hand reached for the nape of your neck, drawing your lips to his. You could feel the rough tickle of his stubble against your skin as you deepened the kiss, fingers threading through the dark hair on the back of his head, pulling him impossibly nearer to you. Your knees melted when you parted your teeth, letting his tongue slip into your mouth. Everything was so dizzying, and he could weaken you so easily—feeling his breath against your skin, tasting each other, his other hand gripping the fabric of your shirt to pull on you. Your stomach twisted when that same hand slipped underneath the material, fingers embracing your waist, calloused and pleasingly warm. You tugged on the collar of his shirt as he took your breath away so effortlessly. 

And when he pulled back, allowing the both of you a chance to breath, your foreheads pressed together. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked, tentatively.

"No..." Your lips brushed against his with each whispered word. "Please don't."

This time, he didn't stop.

note:

KDJDNFNFKDKDDKSKDNDND

when i first started narudar, i knew this would be the moment they’d confess… i just didn’t realize it would be FORTY-FIVE chapters into the story.

the slowburn was beginning to get to me but at least they finally did it 😭

sorry i had to ftb at the end, but when it comes to sex scenes i just can’t— smut is the most difficult thing to write for me and the last thing i want is to get some cringy sex scene into narudar 🥲 ( but maybe one day )

sooooooo after this, there’s only 3 chapters left for season 2… 😏

THANK YOU for making it this far. ik you guys were here for slowburn but i don’t know if you thought the slowburn was going to be taken this far bc i didn’t either 😀 but it’s been a wild ride… and it’s exciting now that they’ve finally confessed 🤭

I’LL SEE YOU GUYS NEXT CHAPTER!!

PREVIOUS >>> NEXT

[flusteredloser]

subzero - beverly marsh x fem!reader

it fandom week: huddling for warmth

content warnings: mentions of intoxication, smoking, swearing, fire, harmless threats, inhaler abuse, enemies to lovers, also i’m making bev tall bc i love tall gals word count: 3k

at the ripe age of ten years old, you knew you wanted to become a mother. the appeal of bouncing children in your lap, tucking them into bed, and the empowering feeling of calming tantrums down was something you naively believed was your destiny.  now, ten-year-old you was never wrong, you knew that. but what you didn’t expect was for your dream to come true at eighteen, stuck mothering six drunken teenage sons during a hailstorm’s power outage.

“edward. kaspbrak. i swear to god, if you do not go to sleep right now i will knock you out with your own inhaler.”

eddie groans at your words, still teeter-tottering towards the mattress. richie was already in bed, practically dead for a past half-hour. 

thankfully, he didn’t wake up from his comatose state when eddie gracefully slammed headfirst into the bed. you held your breath as the bed shook under eddie’s weight. drunken eddie was already a nightmare, what more, an even worse nightmare when catalysed with richie’s antics.  mike was slightly more useful. after throwing up in almost every sink in the house, he helped carry a very tipsy ben up the stairs and they were now both unconscious down the hall. bill wasn't exactly a disturbance, but he was incredibly determined to show us that he could play the piano right now if asked, that his skills were only heightened after dark. (the fact that bill had never touched a piano in his life, or that bev's apartment didn't even have a piano wasn't stopping him). bev was taking care of them in the other room, and based on the muffled conversation, was still trying to coax bill to sleep.  you and bev being the losers’ designated sober pair for tonight was the worst idea that had ever occurred to anyone. ever. the eight of you agreed. if you needed something done, you’d never leave the two of you to do it together.  but stan had explained that the rotation required the two of you to pair up tonight, no matter what. you didn’t quite understand the necessity of it but in all honesty, you’d rather put up with bev’s clownery than upset stan further.   speaking of, you glance at the lump on the floor, peacefully swaddled and engulfed in the massive duvet. you should probably check on stan’s breathing later. 

now, though, you still had one child left.

hearing the sound of an air pump go off from the bed, you walk back to eddie.

“but i’m so cold and i’m not even tired,” said eddie, his inhaler still jammed in his mouth.

“eddie, the power will be back in no time, and if you keep pumping that shit in your mouth, you’re never going to feel tired,” you sigh, taking the aspirator away.

“no, but seriously.” eddie continues, his eyes filled with sleep-deprived mania. “i swear, i’m like wide awake, i don’t even need sleep right now, it’s technically the morning and nO WHAT THE HELL-”

clutching the pump in your hand, you watch the white vapour shoot against eddie’s face. nothing but eddie’s exasperated coughing filled the room.

“i told you, i’m not afraid to use this.”

“i thought...you said...you were going to...knock me out with it,” eddie questioned between coughs.

you narrow your eyes at him, “you keep this up and i will knock you with it.” 

“wow, you really are gonna make a great mother someday.”  you let out a deep groan, turning to see where the new voice came from. leaning against the doorframe with a lit cigarette between her fingers was bev in all her smug glory. 

“you know, after dealing with kaspbrak tonight, he makes you look like an angel,” you roll your eyes.

“hey!” you hear a muffled voice from under the blanket. 

“go to sleep, pretty boy,” bev chuckles, some smoke escaping with her laugh, “i know it’s hard after seeing her troll face but you have to try.”

you rolled your eyes again at the two giggles in the room, shuffling around the bed, carefully stepping around stan’s body. you continue to walk past bev and into the hall. 

the house was silent. no one lived here anymore but bev since you guys graduated, and since mr. marsh stopped residing here, the apartment had an almost peaceful quality.

walking past the guest room, you grin at the sight of mike, ben, and bill entwined together on the floor. oh, how much tamer this group would’ve been compared to the menaces next door. 

you snatch your backpack from the living room sofa and dug through the pockets anxiously. searching against the walls of your bag and still finding nothing, you began to feel more and more nervous. “fucking hell, where is it,” you whisper. at this rate, you weren’t sure if the thumping in your ears was from the sound of sharp hail hitting the windows or your heart beating in your throat. you stand up in a deeper panic, aggressively patting your pockets up and down.

“you know, as entertaining as this is to watch, i almost feel bad.” 

“bev..." you sigh. "i am not in the mood."

“why? too busy looking for your pack of camels?” you hear the sound of a familiar cardboard flap opening, “personally, i’m more of a marlboro girl but i mean, these work too.”

you spin around and storm up to bev, snatching the lit cigarette from her lips. “that’s mine?”

she smirks, “you left your backpack open, it was practically an invitation.” 

“an invitation for you to go through my shit?” you hissed, dangling the ignited end near her face.

she snatched her cig back and mockingly dangling it back near your face, “yeah, a formal invitation for me to smoke off this monstrosity of a temperature. what do you want, an apology too? i can write you one asap, let me find bill’s notebook-”

taking the cig back once more, you snap. "you’re such an ass, bev.”

she grins, following closely behind you. she could feel the heat radiating off of your body, and she secretly hoped you’d accidentally stop in your tracks so she could run into you. in the name of transferring body heat and what not. shaking off these thoughts that were hijacking her brain, she makes a kissy sound, “c’mon, you know you love it.”

“mmhm sure, bev. because i’m really into girls stealing my shit.”

pinching the flame from the cig and dumping it in the tray, she leads the both of you into the supply closet. she chuckles as she leans against the doorway, leaving you feeling trapped in the tight room. you knew she was laughing because you insisted on going in first and now that you were the one having to get the stuff, but you didn’t quite register that the things you needed was on the top shelf. up high stood a high stack of blankets. and they looked like they could singlehandedly cure the subzero temperature. 

clearly, you must have been looking up at the blankets for a moment too long because bev gave up and leaned forwards to grab the stack. the sensation of her flushed against your back was enough to make you dizzy, not to mention how absolutely warm she was. and of course... it was bev. 

bev. the girl who you rolled your eyes at every day, the girl who taunts you at any given minute, the girl you would, and had, risked your life for. you guys never talk about neibolt, but sometimes you catch yourself thinking of what could have happened if it went south. if you hadn’t grabbed her in time, and if you didn’t switch places just before pennywise launched at you...  absentmindedly tracing the scar down your stomach, you think of the absolute lack of regret you feel to this day. you always had this joke that you wanted to kill her, but how much of that was true?

“darling, did the cold already go and rot your brain?” bev faux-pouts, “not that there was much to begin with, but i’m still worried.” the stack of blankets was now under her arms with one stretched out as she began to wrap it around herself.

never mind. sometimes you did want to kill her. 

by habit, you went on your tip toes in order to get to bev’s face, but she was already crouched a couple inches from your face. trying to keep your racing heart under wraps, you choke out a semi-convincing “don’t make me murder you, beverly.”

she grins back your serious face. "aww no, i couldn’t let you do that. the knives and other weapons are also stored up there.” she teases, slinging her arm around your shoulder and dragging you to deliver the blankets to the boys. 

"oh, fuck off." you shove bev's arm off of you and walked back into richie, eddie, and stan's room. true to your word, you kneeled down to the floor and gently rolled stan’s head towards you. placing your two fingers against his pulse point, you giggle to yourself at the absurd action. if it wasn’t already obvious that he was indeed alive, he groans under you, but you shush him in time. lightly stroking his curls, you whisper. "i’m just checking up on you, stan,” placing the second blanket onto him. he groaned back.

quietly tip-toeing towards the bed, you tossed the other blanket over richie and eddie. “i swear, these guys would be dead already without us.” you laugh to yourself. 

a dim light flickers from the living room and casts a light across the hall. you shut the door behind you as you leave, going into the living room to see bev on the sofa, engulfed in her own large fleece blanket. the only thing peeking out was her face and hands as her she alternated flickering her lighter's warmth on her fingers. 

without thinking, you plop by her on the sofa. “whatcha doing there, you pyro?”

“it’s getting so fucking cold,” bev half-heartedly jokes. you can see her eyebrows are furrowed in concentration, but her voice was so contradictingly soft it made your heart melt.

you extended your open hand to her and she stared at it. “blood oath part two? promise to never be sober again during a powercut?”

“i wish, and shut up. don’t play dumb with me, beverly.”

you notice the slightest tinge in her cheeks as she places her hand along with her lighter in yours. you immediately recoil at her freezing fingertips and the lighter clatters to the ground. bev rolls her eyes and shifts away, “first you want to hold my hand, secondly you’re acting like i have fucking HIV.”

“firstly, smartass, i’d still hold your hand if you had HIV-”

“aww-”

“because it’s a blood-borne pathogen so unless you bleed or shit or lactate on my hand, i’m safe.”

bev’s face scrunches up. “how romantic.”

“now shut it and give me your hand already.” you say, placing your palm out for her again.

now bev is the one rolling her eyes at you for a change. she gives you her hand, much slower this time though, careful not to have you pull away again. not having you pull away? why was this something she was considering? 

immediately, bev felt the heat from your skin radiate against hers’, instantly igniting her skin in goosebumps. she instinctively gave you her other hand and you take with a soft smile. 

“now...why the hell are you built like a goddamn radiator.” bev grumbled, rubbing her hands together under yours.

“well, i don’t see you complaining, do i?” you raise your eyebrows.

“i’m not mad...it’s just that it’s not like you need it,” bev says between chuckles, “you’re like five feet tall. not exactly a lot of surface area to heat up.”

“you’re such a dick, bev. you’re losing your hand-holding privileges,” you side-eye, pulling your warm fingers away.

she gasped, “oh, don’t you dare.”

“yes, i do. it’s not like i’m dying to feel your freezing hands on me, bev.” you desperately try to make the statement sound as sarcastic as you can, but it ends up coming out much shakier than expected. 

even in the dark, you can see the glint of bev’s mischievous grin. “oh really? you don’t want to feel my freezing hands?” “is that a trick question?” you sigh exasperatedly, “because if you as much as-”

suddenly, you feel bev’s ice-cold fingers press against the skin on your ribcage and you immediately squeal. you clamp your hand over your mouth at the scare, you try and contain the others sounds that escape you as she further presses her freezing hands against your warm skin. scrambling away from her grasp, you slap the back of her head.

“you stop that right now or i will leave you on your own porch to freeze,” you threaten through gritted teeth.

“mmhm, like you would.” she teases, continuing to press the pads of her still-cold fingertips into your stomach. 

you felt your heart rate rise significantly, to the point that you were sure that your unknown warmness was actually due to bev making the blood pump 10x more than normal. every braincell swimming inside your head was on the brink of short-circuiting at the feeling of bev’s hands dancing along the edge of your bra. what the hell is she thinking?

after a couple more rounds of her threatening to freeze your midriff and you threatening to crack open a window, you both surrender and allow her keep her hands clasped between yours, resting atop your chest.

“are you not getting any warmer?” you groan, forcing yourself to snap out of your own feelings. 

“hey, you’re the hot-pack here. do you think i’m feeling any warmer?” she goes back to press her freezing palms against your stomach.

“no, no, no, do not do that again.”

bev sighs, “then what the hell am i supposed to do?” she sits upright and tightens the blanket around her head. shifting away from you, she shivers her way back into the other end of the sofa. “i’m dressed in triple the layers you are, moved around way more than you have, i’m even wearing this gigantic fleece eyesore-”

“oh for fuck’s sake just come back here.” you roll your eyes.

bev moves about an inch closer. 

you feel your heart constrict in your chest and you let yourself say it before you could think it any further, “i said, come here.” you lift one of your arms and gesture for her to come closer. scooting your body near to the end of the sofa, it was clear that the space you made was so she could easily crawl in next to you.

“are- are you... you want me to-”

you’re sure your whole face has gone red. bev she already can’t stand you so why not just make it even more awkward, huh? you bit your tongue gently, calming yourself down. if bev didn’t know that you offered to cuddle with her just because you could, then that was her fault for being so daft. you sigh, resuming back into your deadpan state. “yeah, i can’t listen to another minute of your whinging.”

“no, i heard you, i just-” she stammers, looking equally red herself. you feel a huge tiny sense of pride as you realised you’ve rendered bev speechless. beverly marsh. speechless.  

“what are you waiting for?” you tease, “a formal invitation?” 

having the upper hand for once was refreshing, if not thrilling. being the one to tease her and watch her become flustered was something you wish could happen more often. 

bev’s face breaks out in the softest smile you’ve ever seen. she slowly makes her way over to you, shifting her body close to yours without touching you yet. “is that too much to ask for? a formal invitation?” you let out an unexpected genuine laugh at her silliness and bev giggles in unison. this was different than your default laughter made of semi-amusement and sarcasm. she rests her weight against you, her cheek gently pressing into your collarbone. her fingertips resume their spot against the flushed skin of your stomach and your own cheeks turn red again. there wasn’t a functional reason for her to do that anymore.

“stop that before i regret this, bev.”

“there’s no way in hell you regret this.” she grins, followed by the faintest whisper of an “i sure don’t.”

you were about to reply and perhaps mention how you’d be okay with her falling asleep in your arms, that you could tolerate such juvenile behaviour. you know, in the name of public health and safety, but bev beats you to it.

“just let me warm up here for ten minutes, alright. then you can let go and i’ll sleep on my side right after,” she rushes out.

that wasn’t how you thought it was going to know. your heart sinks slightly at her words but you try not to take it personally. what else could you do? it was almost like a wake-up call, reminding the both of you that this wasn’t normal for you and bev. 

after a minute or so, you found yourself absentmindedly weaving your fingers through bev’s auburn hair, gently combing it with your hands like you did earlier with stan. “you have such soft hair,” you whisper against her hair. 

you hear her mumble against the blanket indistinguishably and you find yourself closing your eyes at the vibrations of her voice against you. if only bev wanted to stay here like this and this feeling between the two of you could last more than the next ten minutes. you let your eyelids drift down momentarily, and you smile at the thought.

just a couple minutes later, your mind jolts back awake, and your heart sinks at the thought of having to wake her up so she could move to her side of the sofa and sleep. you reach over to feel the ends of her hair between your fingers again, grounding yourself to this feeling one last time before bev had to wake up. once you peel your eyes open however, you immediately shut them against the bright light shining at you. was richie planning on abducting y’all in the middle of the night again? gently prying your eyes open for the second time, you notice the light is shining from the window. you sigh in relief.

wait. the window? 

your eyes shoot open fully. the hail had stopped. and it’s day time. 

snapping your head down to bev, you take in her figure still fit snugly into your side. her free arm rests across your chest, her legs were entwined with yours. ...and her electric blue eyes stare right into you. your heart instantly jumps into your throat as you scramble for excuses, fuck, anything that would keep you from explaining yourself.

instead, she shifts her body upwards so she’s fit even tighter against your side,  placing her face into the crook of your neck. her lips were right at your pulse point, sending your mind spiralling at the thought that she could probably feel how fast your heart was beating right now. her lips move against your skin, saying something barely above a whisper.

“you tell anyone about this and i’ll fucking end you.”

[miss-smutty]

A/N- I've been dubious about writing Thor but I just had to do this, it's been running around my mind for weeks 🙈 I'll be adding this to my Valentine's One-Shot series

Summary- You've been stood up, on valentine's Day or all days. At least you won't be spending the night alone, now Thor finally has you to himself.

Word count- 1, 806

Pairing- Thor x you

Warnings- Swearing, smut, unprotected sex

18+ Only!

Posted: 10th February 2021

⚡ Bolts of Pleasure ⚡

You leant your head on the cold, marble worktop - the coolness easing the pressure of the already lingering tension head ache. How could he stand you up? Today of all day's. 

Somewhere in the distance, over the sound of your own thoughts, you barely hear the sound of the main door sliding open. Nonchalantly wondering who it could be, you knew it wasn't Tony because he was out at dinner with Pepper and you knew this because you were supposed to be there too - a double date. 

Something Pepper had organised because she was the one who set you up with that prick in the first place - you can't even bring yourself to say his name. You should've known dating anyone who wasn't involved in anything within the headquarters would end in trouble anyway.

You assumed the other couples would be out doing other romantic bullshit while you were sure all the other guys were on a mission. So who the hell could it be? 

The kitchen doors opened behind you and by the sounds of the unmistakably heavy foot fall, it was definitely Thor. Neither of you said anything for a noticeably long pause, you didn't even bother to move your head off of the kitchen worktop.

"You do know it's the day of the valentine's, don't you?" Comes Thors booming voice from behind you, trust him to state the obvious.

"Valentine's Day and yes of course I do, why do you think I'm here? Alone. Banging my head against the counter." 

"Please don't do that, I don't want you to hurt yourself" he says with a sincerity in his voice.

"Sarcasm just goes straight over your head doesn't it?" You say, finally standing up to face Thor just so he could see you rolling your eyes at him. You know the statement would be lost to him if he couldn't see your facial expressions.

"Not much can go over my head without me seeing it first, but yes if you say so" ok so even seeing your facial expression didn't work this time. You laugh out loud at his lack of understanding.

"Oh Thor, you do know how to cheer me up" 

"Good. Now you may proceed with your head banging if you so wish" 

Have you always found his ditziness to be so cute or is this a new occurance?

"I'm going to put my head back down but only because I have a banging headache, these pills should kick in soon. Besides now you're here you might as well keep me company" This made Thor smile from ear to ear as you resumed your earlier position.

Unbeknownst to you Thor had walked in to the room to find you bent over, your delicious ass accentuated by those tight leather trousers you were wearing. He'd been hoping to find you here alone, once he'd heard about you being stood up, but wasn't quite sure how to handle how he found you. If he had his way he would have just walked over and made his move straight away but he'd been taught how things work differently here and he's been working so hard on his restraint.

Now you're bent over again and it's making his mind go blank, all he can think about is how he wants to shove his dick into you while he grabs on to those voluptuous cheeks. 

"Thor?" You ask wondering why he's still stood by the doors.

Fuck, the way you say his name makes his fingertips tingle with bolts of electrical current. He wants to hear you scream his name while he's pulling your hair back and slamming his dick between those cheeks until he's balls deep. 

"Your trousers are very tight" You hear Thor's footsteps stop behind you and before you can mutter something about him stating the obvious a moan escapes your lips as a slight bolt of electric soars through your core. Where did that come from? 

Thor still hadn't quite got to grips with controlling his power while he was in the moment - maybe something to do with all the testosterone. His eyes widened, shocked by your reaction but the way he elicited that moan spurred him to continue.

Thor's hands were still gripping your ass as you got your bearings, realising where the shock came from and not hating the idea. You wanted more.

Moving his hands to your hips as you pushed yourself on to his straining cock, gripping on tightly while he pushed himself against you - his head hanging back as he bit his bottom lip and felt the lightning electrify his body.

Fuck me. If you knew sex with Thor would be this amazing you would've made sure it happened a lot sooner. You could feel his body tingling, like a vibration as the currents circulated through his veins,

flowing with the blood into his rather large appendige.

Thor slapped your ass again, accidentally catching your slit with his fingertips. Your pussy clenched as another bolt of pleasure went through you.

"Shit, Thor" you moaned deeply making him groan with desperation.

He's wanted to hear you saying his name, like that, for a while now and isn't disappointed with the way it sounds falling from your lips. Now he won't stop until your screaming his name, begging for him to fuck you into oblivion.

You pushed yourself against his now rock hard cock craving the feel of him inside of you. The vibration hits your clit and sends you over the edge, making you tremble and your knees go weak as you come, hard. Feeling dizzy as you come down.

Thor catches you as you buckle, turning you around and pushing you up against the counter. Your eyes are hooded with need as he handles your body, gripping at your curves with his electric fingers.

Your body jerks everytime he touches you, little does he know that with every touch your pussy clenches building up that deep orgasm once again. Thor's powers leave other men at a major disadvantage, how can anyone ever live up to this. Even worse, how can you now be around Thor without thinking about what he can do to you every time you see him.

His hand travels hungrily up your top, straight to your nipples while his lips attach to yours. You can feel his facial hair tickling your upper lip, a whole new sensation to your already tingling body.

Thor takes your tender, erect nipples between his thumb and forefinger. Squeezing gently as he emits tiny shocks and watches as you convulse around him, small, soft whimpers leaving your mouth involuntarily.

"Mmm, Thor. Fuck" you can't stand the tension much longer.

He's in awe with how much he can pleasure you with just the touch of his fingers. If he'd known it would be this easy to make your usual fiesty self, submit so easily, he wouldn't have been quite so intimidated by you. Look at you now, quivering under his touch, he's pretty sure your seconds away from fully giving yourself to him. He stops touching you, waiting to see how you'll react, testing his theory.

"Don't stop" you moan, pushing your heat against him as his hands grab your ass.

"Tell me what you want, my love" he whispers seductively against your ear, almost making you come.

"Oh god, do that again" you whine into his neck, wrapping your arms around his neck and savouring the other worldly scent of the god of thunder.

"Do what? My sweet - " his breath tickles your ear as he whispers again, he knows exactly what you want. Nibbling gently on your earlobe as you struggle to hold up the weight of your head, crumbling beneath him. " - Now, tell me what you want" 

"I want you. Fuck me Thor, fuck me hard" leaning back on your hands with your lips parted.

"I thought you'd never ask" he growls, his voice becoming impossibily deeper.

Trying to pull down those tight trousers is going to take way too long and he doesn't have the patience for that. Instead he reaches out and effortlessly slits the gusset in half. Unable to contain himself when he sees how wet you are.

You reach down to unbuckle his belt, he's watching you intently, his cock straining against his trousers. You pull them down, just enough to watch his cock spring up, with a weapon like that he has no need for the Mjolnir. You instinctively want to take it in your mouth but there's no time for that now. You lean backwards, watching as he lines his cock up with your entrance. He stops, pausing for an agonisingly long time, watching your face screw with need.

Thor can see how much you want him and he's savouring the moment, relishing in it. Not forgetting how he wants to hear you beg for him, waiting patiently. 

You look at him expectantly, grinding yourself forward until you can feel the tip of his cock. 

"Thor, please!" You plead embarrassingly, desperately.

That's all he needed to hear before he painfully, slowly eased himself into your tight pussy. Inhaling deeply as your walls clamped around him. Finally feeling the warmth of your insides, a feeling he's been craving since the first time he met you.

You laid back on to the counter while he gripped your thighs, holding them up as he slammed his cock deep into you, the pressure building as he relentlessly pounds you. Those bolts of pleasure sending shocks shooting through your veins, with every thrust.

Thor held onto your thighs tightly, gripping his thumbs into your flesh while he ravages you. Months and months of pent up frustration finally being released. Grunting as he thrusted the brutal strength of his passion into you with force, loving the way your face contorts with every hit of your spot.

"Thor!" You scream his name as you gush all over his cock when he hits your spot, hard, repeatedly.

Your finally screaming his name, hopefully not for the last time. He watches the way your third orgasm builds, clenching around him as your legs shake in his hands.

How could it be the only time, when this is what he does to you? You're a dripping mess by the time he's ready. The gripping sensation rising as your climaxes peak again, releasing sparks of lightning all around you. Pushing his cock deep inside you as he shoots his warm, powerful load into you.

Your hair clings to your face as you fall back onto the counter, your body feels like jelly and you can't move just yet. Your eyes are closed but you can feel Thor still holding your legs while he waits for you to recover, gently tickling your thighs with his thumb.

"I've wanted to do that for such a long time, would you be willing to make love with me again?" He says smiling widely, hardly breathelss at all - the stamina of a god! 

"You can do that again?" You say breathlessly, impressed with his enthusiasm.

"I can go all night, my love. I am the god of thunder" he says proudly, puffing out his chest. 

"You certainly are" 

[aizawaorkuroo]

A Burnt Offering

Ship: Dabi x f!reader

Rated: Explicit

Word Count: 5.7k

Summary: Your long lost childhood friend sends you letters. And then everything falls apart. Or perhaps together? Otherwise known as “Dabi wants you. And Dabi gets what he wants.”

Warnings: dubcon, non-consensual voyeurism, stalking, manipulation, spitting, dacryphilia, size kink, overstimulation, creampie, cock warming, unprotected sex

A/N: Spoilers for ch. 290 kinda!!! Don’t think too hard about how they’re childhood friends. Not going to be canon compliant cause i make the rules uwu,, also this is a little darker than what I’ve written in the past, (but still pretty soft all things considered) so please read the warnings!!!

_________________________________

“Dreamed of peach trees. Dreamed, again, of drowning. Dreamed of highways becoming rivers. Dreamed of me, my long hair in flames, my body no longer a body, but a burnt offering, strange smoke rising up to meet him” - Nicola Maye Goldberg

.

.

.

The first letter you received was a little out of the ordinary, but nothing special. It had been left under your doormat, sticking out ever so slightly. You had brushed it off, assuming they had gotten the address wrong, or meant to send it to the person who lived in your apartment before you.

The right thing would’ve been to leave it there, or throw it away. But curiosity is a fickle beast, choosing to rear its head at strange times.

You furrow your brows, eyes scanning the words hastily scratched onto the paper. It felt familiar, but nothing truly stuck with you. You couldn’t think too hard about it, now when you had so much to get done.

It was a random occurrence, one that slipped your mind as you went about your day, the letter sitting on your kitchen counter.

hey,

we haven’t talked in a while. i miss you i guess. i swear to god i sometimes still feel your hand in mine and sometimes i think of your smile. maybe I’ll see you soon.

It’s left unsigned, and you can’t help but to feel bad that it got sent to you. But there’s no return address, nothing to hint at where it’s supposed to go. So it sits on your counter, slipping out of your mind in the following weeks.  

The second letter sends a small shiver down your spine.

“you will be alone always and then you will die.” i can’t remember who told me that, but it rings around my head. there are days where it feels like it’s true, like time will catch up with me and I’ll be gone. but it’s not true. because I used to have you. but I’ll have you again.

Your eyes gloss over the words, a small frown slipping onto your face. Something melancholic sinks into you, making a home in your chest.

“You will be alone always and then you will die,” you whisper to yourself, fingers grazing over the sloppy letters. You feel guilty that the writer’s thoughts are stuck with you instead of this person they so desperately miss.

Yet there’s something unyielding about the last line, something so definite. Curiosity fills you, and you can’t help but to want to get the letter to where it’s supposed to be. But like the first letter, there’s no return address, no signature, nothing outside of the longing in the letter.

So it sits on the counter with the first, the weight of the words lingering in your chest until it too is forgotten.

_________________________________

You’re sitting on a hill, watching as the stars plummet down. Someone’s sitting next to you, but when you turn to face him, he stays blurry as if he exists on the edges of reality, unable to be fully perceived.

You watch as a rainbow of flames overtake him and recede, further obscuring him. But the flames continue to cycle in and out, a constant ebb and flow. You know who he is.

He flickers, you cannot touch him. You place your hand on the flames. Nothing burns. When you look up again, the hill is gone. You're sitting in inky darkness, watching as the stars continue to fall all around you. And the boy is gone too. In his place is something of shadow and smoke, two gleaming blue eyes tearing into you. You freeze, unable to do anything but stare.

It stalks towards you slowly, grinning to show rows of sharp teeth. You know what it wants, you can feel the need across the space in between you too. And so close your eyes and tilt your neck, offering yourself up. And you don’t scream when it takes the first bite.

“I’m always on your side.”

You wake up in a cold sweat, heart pounding. You’re awake now, but you feel like the stars are still falling around you and him - right.

Touya.

His name blossoms in your head, memories of laughter and secrets told underneath the shade of a cherry blossom tree. Your head's pounding, and you run to the bathroom, splashing water on your face. That night, the last night you had seen him, when you watched the stars streak across the sky.

“I’m always on your side.”

A promise that withered into something shallow after he disappeared.

You blink at your reflection, fists curled into themselves so tightly it hurts. You wish Touya could hold your hand now.

You don’t go back to sleep.

_________________________________

The third letter makes you frown a little. Three makes a pattern.

Really wish you would say something back. Has it been that long? Guess that’s to be expected.

You scan the page, melancholic thoughts lingering until you read the last line. Your eyes widen, heart leaping in your throat, as you read it over and over again. Your hands are shaking, mind cloudy, breath short.

Really, say something back y/n.

Your name, clear as day. They know your name. You’re the recipient. You blink blankly as a line from the previous letter pops into your brain. I’ll have you again.

The letter sits untouched on the counter for days before you finally build up the courage to tentatively write back. Who is this?

As you shakily write, it dawns on you how stupid this is. You should be going to the police, or getting a security system. But you can’t help but wonder who it is, and the fickle beast inside of you rears its head.

You tentatively place the response under the doormat, and scurry back inside, as if the action would burn you. The next morning the note is gone.

_________________________________

It takes a few days for you to get a response. When you get home from work, you’re tempted to walk right past it, pretending to not see it. You could just let it slip from your mind, go on with your life as if nothing has changed. But nothing can ever be simple, and with shaking hands, you steal the letter before locking yourself inside.

I can imagine how scared you must be. I bet you’d look so cute. Part of me wants to make you guess. But I’d rather speed this up. It’s me. Y’know. Touya.

“Touya,” you whisper. It’s heavy on your lips. “Touya.” Your throat is raw. “Touya, Touya, Touya.” Your chest burns. Tufts of red hair, memories of childhood and shooting stars.

Brain pulsing in overdrive, you try to reconcile what you know to be true and what is being told to you.

1. Touya was your best friend.

This one is a fact. You remembered holding his hand, running around the estate. He would be battered, bruises and burns littering his skin. Right. His father. You shiver thinking about the man.

2. Touya disappeared as a child.

Another fact. You remember his mom’s tear-stained face as she turned you away, and when you were back home, safe in bed, you cried so hard you thought you’d never stop shaking.

3. Touya is still alive.

The first in your list that is debatable. No one’s seen him for years. It’s fully possible something horrible could have happened to him. But there’s no evidence he’s dead. If you can reason that Touya is still alive, then it’s possible…

4. Touya is sending you letters. 

The most difficult conclusion of all. If Touya is alive, it could be possible he’s sending you letters. But there’s no way to guarantee it is him. It could be some stranger, some pervert pretending to be your sweet redhead from childhood. You would have to test him.

Your response is careful, calculated as you try to navigate your emotions. Your hands shake as you write the final line, a question.

What was the last thing we did?

A small frown slips onto your face. It’s kind of a lame question, and yet it’s the best you can do. But it’s a baseline, a place to start.

His response comes almost immediately.

We watched a meteor shower. Go ahead. Dig deeper.

You chew on your lip while thinking. “Touya” is off to a good start, but there’s still no guarantee. So you push farther

Where did we hide the bowl I accidentally broke?

C’mon, it was a vase, not a bowl. We buried it along the fenceline. Good try.

You smile at the memory, the way you had cried over the broken porcelain, embarrassment coursing through you. Touya had helped you hide the evidence, telling you no one would find out.

What did you promise me?

I’m always on your side.

You inhale sharply, eyes glued to his messy scrawl. That’s it. It has to be him. You’ve never told that to anyone before. You squeeze your eyes shut, but you can see stars falling all around you. You feel a little light headed.

How did you find me?

Pure chance. I missed you, y/n. Does your face scrunch up when you get mad still? It was so fucking cute.

Shut the fuck up, Touya.

You don’t know how he’s done it, but Touya has inserted himself back into your life, whisking you off your feet with his stupid jokes and laid back attitude. And everyone in a while he’ll say something, that has you burying your face into your pillow, face warm and stomach in knots.

I’m going to hold you, and never let you go.

Would you let me kiss you? Would you let me sink my teeth into you? I bet you would.

I’d kiss you until you melt.

That one in particular made your chest burn, full of something warm and sappy. You read it over and over again, until the words are branded in your brain.

You’re sitting at the kitchen table at 2 am when you realize, you would. You would let him kiss you, let him sweep you off your feet. It occurs to you that you don’t know what he looks like anymore, but his words reach into you, stirring everything around to the point that you’re completely enamored anyways.

A sharp knock draws you from your thoughts. You narrow your eyes, glancing at the clock. Hesitantly, you approach your front door. You hover right in front of it, debating on whether or not to open it again. There’s a chance that no one’s even there anymore.

A second forceful knock makes your stomach flip. Taking a deep breath, you crack the door open.

Your eyes widen, and you're deafened by the blood pumping through you. Patchwork skin, pitch-black hair; you feel yourself begin to panic. 

Dabi. You recognized him from the Fukuoka fight that was on TV. You slam the door shut before he has a chance to say anything.

“No, no, no. Don’t do this to me y/n.” His voice is muffled by the door, but the separation doesn’t hide the way his voice barely cracks. You feel sick, brain cloudy as the room spins around you.

“How do you know my name?” you choke out, stomach growing nauseous.

“I thought we already did this… but you can’t recognize me either.” You furrow your eyebrows in confusion, wracking your brain for what he could be talking about.

“After all those letters.” 

Oh.

Oh.

Your stomach drops, and your heart does with it. Dabi is Touya. Touya is Dabi. You tremble against the door, flashes of red hair and childhood innocence ghosting through your mind. You should’ve paid more attention to how he found you.

“Open the door.” Touya’s voice- no Dabi’s voice? You shake your head at the confusion, finding it difficult to reconcile the two versions of him you know. Regardless, his voice is even now, something sharp lingering beneath the soft surface.

You shut your eyes, letting your head rest against the door; it’s all too much for you. You can practically feel the tears stinging the back of your eyes. Maybe he’ll go away, maybe you don’t have to have a breakdown in the middle of the night.

“Open up for me, Y/N.”

You blink your eyes open, something cold slipping down your spine. He’s not going away. He could burn the door down if he wanted to. You know what he does now, and you feel so fucking stupid. The fact that he’s asking is an unexpected kindness. Summoning all the willpower you have, you open the door, hand grasping the handle to avoid shaking.

Dabi’s head tilts to the side as his eyes meet yours, and a sharp grin pulls at his lips.

“Aren’t you going to let me in?” Your eyes dip to the floor, and you stumble to the side, closing the door as he brushes past you.

You awkwardly stand in front of him, fingers messing with the hem of your shirt as you try to control your breathing. Your stomachs in your throat as Dabi circles you. He is not the boy you knew. There’s an edge to him, a coldness radiating off of him that rolls into you.

“Now you can’t even look at me,” he sneers. Your gaze tilts up to meet him, trembling his words. Your heart lurches as you take in his appearance again. The puckered flesh, the staples, the jet black hair. It’s all too much.

But his eyes.

His eyes are the same, the same vivid blue that haunts your dreams. It hurts looking at him now, but it also hurts remembering what he was.

Hesitantly, you reach out to cup his face. He tenses under your touch, eyes flashing in warning. You swallow past the lump in your throat, forcing out a small “hi.” Your voice cracks under the weight of emotions, but his eyes soften, and he ever so gently tilts his head into your hand. And that’s enough.

A steady stream of tears leak from your eyes; you’re not completely sure why you’re crying, the emotions too jumbled, too complex to pinpoint a specific reason. Your thumb brushes over the marred skin under his eyes, and you feel sick. Like everything that’s wrong with the world has reared its ugly head in your apartment. But it hasn’t. It’s Touya. 

“Awww. Baby girl’s crying for me, huh?” he teases, making you narrow your eyes. He moves quickly, pulling you against him before you can step away. “Still the same crybaby from before.” You squeeze your eyes shut, trying to ignore the way your head’s spinning.

“What else am I supposed to do?” you bite back, letting your head rest against him. “I missed you.” He scoffs at that, hands sliding down to grip your waist.

Your breath stutters, and you squirm in his hold, unsure what to think. His grip tightens, making you wince. You pull your head back to look up at him, trying to keep your breathing even. Touya leans in close, eyes glued to you.

“Glad you missed me,” he mutters, and the borderline painful grip switches to something softer as he massages your flesh. “I missed you too, Y/N.” His voice rumbles through you softly, making your stomach flip. His tongue darts out of his mouth to flash across your cheek, licking the salty trail your tears left behind.

“Touya, what the fuck?”

You jerk away from him, sputtering as he throws his head back in laughter. Your skin feels too hot, and you struggle to put together a thought. You wiggle out of his grasp, wiping your face, and glaring at him.

“C’mon. Don’t be like that,” he laughs, obviously not taking this seriously. But you just shake your head, trying to squash all of your feelings.

“What do you want?” Your voice bends under the stress, and you face screws up, trying to stop the pathetic flow of tears.

“To see you,” he murmurs, eyes softer than before. The feelings behind the phrase are normally enough to make you giggle and your eyes turn into hearts. 

But this is Touya, or Dabi, or some bizarre amalgamation of the two. And you know what he’s done now. You know the price he’s paid. He is not the same.

“That’s not an answer. You shouldn’t be here,” you bite at him. All traces of warmth leave Dabi’s face, and your stomach drops. Something cold and sharp glints in his eyes, threatening to cut you if you get too close. You take a tiny step back, but he simply follows.

“Don’t be like this, Y/N.” His voice is tense, a warning of who he is now, what he’s done, what he could do to you. He cocks his head to the side, eyes trailing over you, gauging your reaction. He’s not the same. You know he’s not the same. His patchwork skin is proof of that enough.

It’s not fair. Echoes of childish giggles and burning blue eyes dance across your thoughts. But what he had done to all those people…You shut your eyes, crossing your arms as if you could hold yourself together.

“Well, what am I supposed to think? You were gone, for so long. And then you sent those fucking letters, and all I could think of was seeing you again. But you’re…” you trail off, but the unsaid hangs heavy in the air.

“Broken,” he hisses out, cold eyes narrowed at you as he gestures to his body. You glare right back at him, tears still flowing.

“It has nothing to do with that,” you manage to force out. “I just- I just don't know who you are.” Dabi’s face twists up into something bitter and forceful, a hurricane that’ll sweep you into something dangerous, you just know it. He is not the same.

“I wrote you those letters, Y/N. I’m still me.” But you don’t know who that is. Not anymore. He abruptly steps forward, forcing you against the wall, eyes wide in panic. He’s too close to your face, too warm, too overwhelming. 

You missed him so much, and it hurts. It hurts to see what happened, how he had to put himself back together, a dull mosaic that’s missing pieces. He reaches out to brush his thumb over your cheekbone.

“I’m always on your side.”

If it had been anyone else but Touya, you would’ve scoffed and kicked them out. But he knows you. He knows how you think, he knows what’ll make you respond. 

After all, he’s been watching you, making sure he knows how to say that’ll make you bend to his will. Touya wants you, his sweet best friend, to be his forever. So he knows what to say.

And something in you finally gives in, and you wrap arms around him, burying your face in the crook of his neck. He slips his arms around your waist, holding you flush against him.

Your knees wobble, legs failing you as you melt to the ground. Touya follows you down, arms circling around you tighter as he smiles into your hair.

Fuck the league. Fuck his family. Fuck a normal life. Fuck, the whole world can burn down. He doesn’t give a fuck. But maybe, just maybe if there’s anyone out there listening, just let him have this. Just this once.

“That’s my baby girl,” he murmurs against you, pulling you into his lap. He kicks out his legs behind you, bending his knees to force snug against him. If he were a better man, he’d be content with this, having you on his side.

But Touya is not a good man. He’s greedy for more, and all he can think about is the heat radiating from your cunt.

His hands splay out against your back, gently rubbing you as you sniffle against him. But he can’t help it when his hands start to travel further down. You sound so cute and desperate, it ignites something within him. He squeezes the flesh of your ass, making you freeze against him. You lean away, lips trembling as your eyebrows draw together.

“Touya, what are you doing?” You sound pathetic to your own ears, and you hate it. But you’re not given any time to dwell on it when he leans forward, lips a few mere centimeters from yours. He rocks you gently against him, watching the conflict in your eyes.

“Hey,” he murmurs, leaning to peck the corner of your lips. “I’m always on your side. Let me make you feel good.”

You stay stiff against him, hands slowly tangling into his hair as he litters the side of your neck with sloppy kisses. One of his hands pushing its way down your little shorts making you gasp. You can feel his erection growing beneath you, and you bite your lip, trying to make a decision to stop him or not.

“Touya,” you ask, “are you sure?”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got you.” You’re not 100% sure if this is the right decision, but he feels so good against you. And he’s handsome, scars and all. The intense warmth from earlier slipping into something more comforting, enveloping you as you rock against his hand ever so slightly.

So you don’t stop him. He would never hurt you, right? And it's been a while since you’ve gotten laid. Touya’s made sure of that. So you let him continue his exploration, melting against him as he gently rubs at your clit.

Touya watches your face, memorizing the expressions you make as he slips a finger into your hot cunt. To be clear, he’s seen your face when you’ve creamed around your little fingers on your own, unaware that he was stroking his cock outside your window. But you look so much better, happier even, when it’s his fingers you’re grinding into.

He nips at your neck, before pulling his fingers out of your shorts. He pushes you off of his lap, rolling his eyes at the way you pout.

“Calm down, baby girl. Wanna taste you.”

“Wait!” you warn. Touya freezes, eyes flicking up to yours, taking you in curiously. “Let’s go to the bedroom,” you stutter out, nervous at the look in his eyes. You can’t help but to feel embarrassed, laying on the floor of your apartment sputtering with your childhood best friend turned villain nestled against the apex of your thighs. Anything that can restore an ember of normalcy to the situation would make you feel better at this point.

Touya rests his head against your thigh, warmth returned to his eyes. He smiles at you a little too widely, too sharply. He resembles a predator, something stalking alone at night. Something you shouldn’t have let inside. He’s going to eat you alive. And maybe you’re okay with it.

“Alright, little girl. Lead the way.”

An awkward, hot tension surrounds you as you scrabble off the floor, grabbing his hand as you pull him towards the bedroom. Your thumb brushes over the staples, heart twisting at the feeling.

But the melancholic sting is forgotten once he’s leaving sharp little bites on your thighs, your clothes and his jacket tossed to a forgotten corner of your bedroom. His breath is hot against your exposed skin, goosebumps following his path to your hot cunt.

You’re nervous, still unsure of your current predicament. But Touya pinches your thigh, bringing your attention back to him as he watches as your thighs tense around him. His eyes meet yours, confident and sure of his place between your legs, and all of your uncertainty vanishes, consumed by the want and desire that fills you.

His eyes meet yours, clear and sharp, and he brings his hands to your pussy, thumbs pulling your folds open. His gaze drops, focused on your cunt, watching the way you clench around nothing. You squirm, embarrassed at the intensity of his stare.

“So wet already,” he mumbles, before his tongue swipes along your slit. You let out a small gasp, slamming your hand to your mouth in a lame attempt to gag yourself. Touya narrows his eyes, as he laps away, tongue flicking up to tease your clit, circling it but never touching the sensitive bud. You whine into your hand, trying to keep your hips still as he takes his time.

“Drop that hand.” The rumble of his voice travels through you, making you shiver. “Drop it, and I’ll touch this cute little clit.” Looking at him nervously, your hand falls tentatively, hovering above his hair, unsure if it’s okay to ground yourself there. Touya rolls his eyes, before pushing your hand down.

His tongue swipes at your clit making your hips jolt. He lets out a snort before repeating the action. Your grip in his hair is light, not wanting to hurt him; but your self-control goes out the door the second his lips make a seal around your clit.

He sucks at the throbbing bud, eyes lighting up at the way you buck against him, moaning loudly. Your fingers tangle into his hair, keeping him snug against your cunt. He slips a finger into your sopping hole, practically melting at how warm and wet it is. He needs to be inside you. Soon.

“Touya,” you moan, rocking in an attempt to increase the friction. He curls his finger inside of you, mouth still focused on your engorged bud. Your grip in his hair tightens, the pleasure that’s been simmering building rapidly.

“Gonna cum!” you squeal in warning. He doesn’t slow down, eyes trained on your face as your jaw drops, a choked noise clawing out of your throat. You tense around him, muscles quivering at the intensity of your orgasm. You whine and buck against him, and he lets you ride at your orgasm.

When his ministrations borderline into pain, you weakly push his head away, trying to catch your breath. He lets you pull away, eyes glimmering cruelly.

“That was fast.”

You whine in response, moving your hands to cover your face. Touya hisses, surging forward to yank your hands above your head. You wince as he squeezes, eyes narrowing on your face.

“Don’t hide what’s mine.” His lips pull back into a lazy grin as his eyes trail over your body, landing on your glistening cunt. “Gonna fuck you so good,” he mutters, mostly to himself. You blink stupidly at him when he lets you go, processing the fact that he’s kicked off his pants and taking his cock out.

Your eyes widen when you see the shiny piercings that gleam on his cock. It excites you, making your cunt clench around nothing. And yet your stomach drops when you finally realize that he’s bigger than you thought he would be. You bite your lip, trying to tame the swarm of nerves that take over the excitement.

“Touya, I think I need-” he cuts you off with a sloppy kiss. Your hips cant when you feel the head of his cock sliding along the lips of your pussy, his piercings tapping at your clit nicely. You’re not sure if you’re ready for him, and it simultaneously excites and terrifies you. But he leans on you, keeping you still with his body weight.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. Open up for me,” he murmurs. And then next thing you know his lips are on yours, but you can’t help but to let out a cry against him when he thrusts his cock into you, bottoming out. He’s red hot inside of you, and tears prickle the corners of your eyes, leaking out as your nails dig into his back.

“So warm,” he murmurs, before pulling his hips back and thrusting into you. You cry out at the harsh stretch, tears falling down your cheeks as his piercings pull at your walls. He seems to like that though, and he brings a hand up to your cheek, thumb stroking the salty liquid. “You’re pretty when you cry.” He punctuates the sentence with a particularly harsh thrust, sending more tears down your face. “Attagirl,” he coos, looking absolutely enamored with your blubbering face.

“Touya, please,” you whine, not exactly sure what you’re asking for. But Touya seems to know, a sharp grin spreading wide on his face.

“Awww, does my baby girl wanna feel good too?” You nod, face twisted as you babble away.

“I’m sorry, baby. I’ll take good care of you.” He kisses you again messily, before slipping a hand in between your bodies to play with your exhausted clit. He massages the swollen bud, sighing as you start to gush around him. “Is that better?” You nod and whine, hands twisting in his hair to hold him against you.

Touya can’t help but chuckle, and he presses another kiss into your neck before sucking on the skin there. His thrusts are gentler now, appreciating the snug warmth that surrounds his cock. If he could stay buried in the heat of your cunt forever, he would.

He’s drawn from his thoughts when you tug at his shirt, wanting it gone. He stills against you, tensing. You look up at him with a pout, eyes begging him to take it off.

“Please,” you whine. “I wanna feel you.” His mouth opens, and you can already hear the annoying quip that lies on the tip of his tongue, so you push forward, hands tangled into his shirt. “I wanna feel all of you.” He pauses, head tilting to the side as you watch the gears turn behind his eyes.

“Please.” Your voice is soft, as you try to avoid squirming around his dick. Something seems to click in his mind because he draws back, pulling his shirt off. Your eyes wander across the expanse of stapled skin, the puckered burns, making your heart squeeze. But there’s nothing you can say, nothing you can change. So you reach out to him, beckoning him into your arms.

He falls forward, barely supporting himself, letting his body cover yours. You wrap your arms and legs around him holding him close as he begins to lightly thrust again.

“You feel so good,” you cry out panting against his face. Touya angles his head to face you, eyes boring into yours as his breaths mix with yours. It’s too hot, too much, but you can’t move away, overwhelmed by the sensations and entranced by his eyes.

Touya’s hips increase in pace, rutting violently against yours, the sharp sting of his skin against yours making you whine. Each thrust into you, steals your breath away, your hands digging into his back.

“Ever since I found you again, I needed to have you, needed you back. I wasn’t going to let myself lose you again,” he growls. You whimper as you gush around him, finding that you want him to stay buried in your pussy forever.

“Stick out your tongue,” he barks out. His eyes flash, and you do as he says, all while letting out little gasps as he thrusts into you. He hovers above you, a cruel grin spread out on his face. You watch as he spits onto your tongue, a shudder going down your spine. He reaches out to grip your open jaw harshly.

“Swallow.” When he lets go you do exactly that, cunt squeezing tightly. “Oh you like that?” he laughs as you nod. He hums before kissing you sloppily.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck. You’re gonna do what I say from now on. I’ll make you feel so fucking good.”

You should be alarmed by the promise of obedience, but you feel too good to care right now.

“Mine, mine, mine.”

It crosses your mind to tell him that you don’t belong to him, but all you can do is nod and hold him closer.

“Wanted to be inside this pussy the moment I saw you. You’re never gonna want another cock than mine.” At this point, all you can do is whine and nod, burying your face in the crook of his neck.

“Nothing’s gonna hurt you again, baby girl. I’ll make sure of it. I’ll take care of you.” Your nails scratch down his back, making him hiss, as your hips rut against him.

“Touya,” you cry out, tears leaking from your eyes so sweetly. “Gonna cum again.” He nods, lips brushing against yours.

“Wanna feel you cream around me, baby girl.” You nod blankly, drunk on the feeling of his cock pounding into you, piercings pulling so nicely at your gummy walls.

Propping himself up with one arm, he slips his hand in between your bodies, fingers playing with your clit again. It’s enough to send you over the edge, and you cry out, writing against him as your pussy gushes around his cock, squeezing him tightly.

He chokes against you, and your pulsating cunt launches him into his own orgasm. Touya’s hips jerk against you as his cum paints the inside of your cunt. He collapses against you as you twitch in a post-orgasmic haze. He nips at your neck, alternating the sharp stings with sweet kisses.

“You did so good, baby. So good to me. I’ll take care of you. I promise,” he murmurs against your skin, making you shiver. You’re still panting, sweeping your hands over his back, before they land in his hair, gently scratching at his scalp. He shuts his eyes, enjoying the sensations and the warmth, letting himself get lost in you, if only for a little bit.

But when he pushes himself off of you, pulling his hips away, you whine. Your legs lock around him, keeping him lodged inside you. He barks out a laugh before flopping down on his side, pulling you against him.

“I’ll stay right here. Don’t worry.”

“Touya…” you murmur, gently. He sends you a questioning gaze, waiting. You lean forward, pressing your lips against his, trying to convey the complexity of what you’re feeling. He responds aggressively, as if you might disappear. But it makes you melt. Maybe he was right about that.

 When you draw back, his thumb strokes at leftover tears on your cheek.

“It’s okay, You’re mine now.” It’s not exactly what you wanted to hear, but it’s all you get from him because he pulls you tight against him, eyes shutting in exhaustion.

You curl up against him, feeling his breathing even out. His cock feels heavy inside of you, and something cold sits in your stomach.

You shouldn’t have done that. He’s not okay. You really shouldn’t have done that. But you would deal with that in the morning.

For now, Touya is yours, and you’ll enjoy the warmth of his skin and the way the stars fall when you shut your eyes.✨

[un-beel-ievable]

Obey Me! Headcanons - The Demon Brothers react to a MC who owns a golden retriever 🐕

Author’s note: I'm home :3 Feel free to reblog, but please do not repost!! If you enjoy my writing, do leave me a like and/or a comment (and follow me to see similar content in the future :D)!

_____

Lucifer ☕

• When your dog first bounds over to greet Lucifer, it’s difficult to tell if the eldest born is a fan of your four-legged pal or not. The Avatar of Pride scrutinizes the ball of fluff as if he were a judge on a dog show —all the while as your dog vibrates impatiently by the front door with a tennis ball in its mouth. Perhaps it senses the need to be on its best behaviour if it’s to impress Lucifer.

• “A pet is a responsibility, not a novelty. I sincerely hope that you thought long and hard about the obligations of a pet owner before you went ahead with your decision to adopt. That being said, you appear to be doing quite well with your four-legged companion —they’re very well behaved. I have absolutely no qualms with you taking over Cerberus’s care when you return to the House of Lamentation; clearly you’d manage much more elegantly than my brothers. Perhaps Cerberus would enjoy the company of your charming pooch as well…”

• So Lucifer does like your dog. Not an entirely surprising revelation, if you’ve seen how he behaves around Cerberus in private. The strict no-nonsense archdemon turns into the softest dog owner that you’d ever have the pleasure of meeting; he’s all ear scritches and belly rubs. By the end of his visit, your dog is blissfully rolling on the carpet by Lucifer’s feet as the Avatar of Pride informs it over and over again that it is indeed “a good dog”.

• Perhaps you’ll even catch the small —but genuine— smile twitching at the corners of Lucifer’s lips as he does so.

Mammon 💳:

• In hindsight, perhaps giving Mammon a heads up about the presence of your pooch would have been a good idea.

• Despite your numerous attempts to reassure Mammon that the furry ball of enthusiasm barreling towards him is a Good Dog™, the terrified shriek that escapes the Avatar of Greed is shrill and ear-splitting enough to shatter your windows (Metaphorically speaking, of course. Rest assured, no windows were harmed in the writing of this headcanon.). When your dog leaps at him to nudge its head into his hand for scritches™ and headpats™, Mammon’s life flashes before his eyes. The only image that he can bring to mind before he passes out cold on your carpet is Cerberus’s terrifying snarl.

• When Mammon comes to, your dog is sitting on his chest —looking concerned and suitably chastised for accidentally scaring the living daylights out of the demon. (Even though Mammon refuses to come clean about how terrified he was. “The great Mammon? Afraid of a lil’ dog? W-What...What are ya talkin’ about? I wasn’t scared!”) The events that occurred over the last couple of minutes play on a loop in Mammon's mind. It finally dawns on him that your dog isn’t the ferocious beast that his imagination had conjured up, and his cheeks flush scarlet.

• Please give your demon a hug. I think he needs one. Or several.

Leviathan 🎮:

• If Leviathan had a pet ranking system, Henry 1.0 and Henry 2.0 would always claim the highest spots possible —the S-tiered, 5-star gods of the pet world. No golden retriever could ever worm its way to the top and snatch his love for them from under his feet. Sorry. But your dog is pretty cute, he’ll give you that.

• Too cute, maybe. Hey...um...you don’t love your dog more than you love him, right? What? Him, the Avatar of Envy, jealous? No! Of course not! Why would you make such an outrageous assumption? He’s not jealous —an adorable fluff ball of enthusiasm for the outdoors and joy is a way better than an icky otaku, after all. Leviathan doesn’t blame you for choosing your dog over him. Any sane individual would do the same...

• When you finally manage to reassure your demon that your dog is in no way competition for the affection that you hold for him, —he’ll always be your favourite demon, even if you have a dog. Even if you have a hundred dogs. Nothing is going to change that— he begins looking at your pooch in a different light. That’s right —as a potential cosplay partner. There’s this new anime that’s been released recently...Levi was wondering if you had heard of it? It’s titled: My Partner Is The Proud Owner Of A Golden Retriever And I’m An Otaku Who Enjoys The Simple Pleasure Of Collecting Merchandise and Cosplaying. One of the main characters happens to own a golden retriever as well, and if you’re willing to give him your blessing (the irony, I know), perhaps you’d lend him your pooch for an afternoon of cosplay and photography?

Satan 📚:

• Satan is a cultured demon who enjoys the company of four-legged companions, but he’s admittedly a fan of felines...not canines. Still, he prides himself on keeping an open mind towards new experiences, so he agrees to spend an afternoon with you and your dog (Even though he’d much rather be attending the opening day ceremony of the Devildom’s newest cat cafe. The things he does for love.).

• He performs some through research before meeting your dog for the first time; spending afternoon after afternoon in the sanctuary of his room reading about dogs and how to care for them. No number of books could prepare him for the real thing, however. When Satan first comes over to spend the afternoon in your home, he’s stiff and awkward —unsure of what to do with a dog. He ends up spending the first hour on your couch, sipping tea and spouting facts about golden retrievers.

• Show him the rope that your dog enjoys playing tug-of-war with, or the tennis ball that it insists on carrying in its jaws everywhere it goes. It takes a while for Satan to warm up to your pooch, but he’ll gradually learn to love —or at the very least, tolerate— your canine companion, even though he still firmly believes in the superiority of cats. Speaking of which, you’d accompany him on a date to that new cat cafe, right?

Asmodeus 💋:

• Oh! Your golden retriever is absolutely adorable! And gorgeous too —albeit not as beautiful as him, but that’s to be expected. There’s not a single individual in all of the three realms that could match up to his beauty. And your dog has such luscious fur too...dear Diavolo, he’d kill to have a haircare routine that’s as effective on his locks.

• Would you be willing to take a photo of him posing with your pooch? It’s for his Devilgram followers, of course —such beauty must be shared with the world, no? You’re not entirely sure if Asmo’s referring to his beauty, your dog’s beauty, or the shared, collective beauty of him and your dog. It doesn’t particularly matter. The two (three?) of you end up spending the entire afternoon orchestrating an impromptu photoshoot, and then spending the evening editing the photographs from said shoot for Devilgram.

• Generally gets along with your four-legged companion like a house on fire. There’s just one, itsy-bitsy issue.

• Your dog sheds. A ton. No matter how often you brush its fur, or how many boundaries you set about it not being allowed on the furniture, it seems determined to shed every carpet, sofa and bed that you own. Asmo never stops whining about the copious amounts of fur that now decorate every article of clothing he owns, but at least your dog seems happy to be able to leave its mark —on Asmo’s ensembles, of course, but also his heart.

Beelzebub 🍔:

• Corporate has asked you to find the difference between this picture and this picture—

• Asmo gets along well with your dog. Beel gets along with your dog even better. As one of the few only brothers who’s willing to spend any amount of time with Cerberus (granted, most of the time he’s only doing so because he’s been promised free food), Beel has grown into quite the dog lover. Your dog seems thrilled to be in the company of someone who appears to wholeheartedly enjoy its company —your dog is thrilled by the company of anyone who’s willing to give it their time of day, but still— and Beelzebub is thrilled to be in the company of a four-legged companion who appears to wholeheartedly enjoy his company. Beel is happy to spend whole afternoons playing with your dog...interspaced with the occasional snack break, of course.

• Speaking of which, Beel very much struggles with not giving into your golden retriever’s extremely convincing puppy dog eyes. Objectively, he knows that giving your dog human (or demon) food is a terrible idea —the last thing he wants is to be the reason that your dog has to take a trip to the vet. But your dog is so cute! And it’s looking at his food with such an intense longing in its eyes...Beel can relate to that. Surely a little nibble wouldn’t hurt…

• When you find yourself having to tell Beel off, suddenly you find yourself at the receiving end of 2 sets of puppy dog eyes; both Beel and your pupper are very sorry. They swear it’ll never happen again! Please don’t be upset…

• How are you supposed to stay mad at them?

Belphegor 🛏:

• ...listen.

• It’s not that he hates dogs. Honestly! He likes dogs as much as the next demon! But they can be loud and yappy and so incredibly energetic, and your golden retriever is more hyper than most. It always wants to go on walks, or play fetch, or make him throw its favourite tennis ball over and over again but refuse to hand it over so he has to engage in a slobbery game of tug-of-war to steal the ball from it —it’s just too much for the Avatar of Sloth. Just watching your dog zip across the room in a display of its endless amounts of energy is enough to tire Belphie out...is playtime over yet? He just wants to take a nap.

• Makes multiple attempts to talk you into allowing Beel to look after your dog. Just for an afternoon! His twin certainly has the energy to keep your hyperactive pup entertained for the whole day, and since you can be assured that your dog is well taken care of, perhaps the two of you could finally stay inside for once and take a nice, long nap. It’s been too long since he’s gotten to hold you in his arms…

• By the time Beel returns your dog to you, it’s all tuckered out from its day of adventures. As you’re thanking Beel for looking after your dog for the day, you catch him chuckling softly at something over your shoulder —Belphie and your furry friend, dozing off together on the couch. They appear to finally be getting along.

BONUS: I'm still not terribly comfortable with adding the (former) undatables to my writing repertoire, but my partner happens to be very fond of the demon butler...and I happen to be very fond of them. So just this once, just to see how it goes...

Barbatos 🍵:

• Oh? So this is the sweet bundle of fur that he’s heard so much about. It’s a pleasure to meet them at long last. Barbatos has always been fond of dogs, and your dog is quite an endearing creature to say the least...it actually reminds Barbatos of Cerberus when he was a puppy. How time flies.

• Treats your dog as if it were an esteemed guest of the castle. As long as Barbatos is around, you needn’t lift a finger when it comes to the care of your beloved pet. Keeping your dog fed and watered? Barbatos has it covered; the butler seems to have an in built in timer when it comes to feeding your dog —Barbatos serves its meals at exactly 6 in the morning and 6 in the evening. Not a minute early, not a minute late. When taking your dog out on walks, he carries a spare bottle of water for the sole purpose of offering it to your dog if it gets thirsty. Speaking of walks...Barbatos is more than happy to escort your pooch on walks in the event that you’re unavailable to do so yourself. Barbatos generally allows your golden to lead the way on their excursions, and is content with following along behind it to keep it out of trouble for however long it wishes to remain outdoors. If it were to tire itself out, Barbatos takes your dog into his arms and carries it the rest of the way home.

• Your pooch becomes very spoiled very quickly. It’s unclear if you’ve gained a butler...or if your dog has.

[retrievablememories]

stuck with you | yoongi

title: stuck with you pairing: yoongi x reader, taehyung and jimin as side characters genre: fluff request: “Can you do a idol!Min Yoongi of BTS request of his crush being best friends with Jimin and Taehyung and him and his crush consistently fluster the other but they never realize until one day he does and finally make as move despite everyone telling them for weeks that they like each other?” word count: 3.3k warnings: some cursing, mentions of the pandemic a/n: i’ve been actively avoiding writing anything concerning the pandemic/lockdown cuz let’s be real, we’re all here to have fun, not think about real-life shit...but i decided to try it here

i wasn’t sure how to write their living arrangements tho since most of them seem to have their own places? so i just used the hannam the hill house for reference 🤪

“How have things been for you guys lately?”

Taehyung and Jimin exchange skeptical looks with each other, which you don’t catch because you’re too busy picking over your food.

“We’ve all been stuck in the same damn place for weeks now, so you tell me.” Taehyung chuckles, shaking his head. 

You visiting their house right before the stay-at-home mandate was issued ended up with the three of you—plus Yoongi, to your luck—being cooped up in the same house for almost two weeks now. It wasn’t wholly a bad thing, since you got to be with your two best friends, but living with three men was pretty much as messy as you’d expected it to be. “Wow. Never thought we’d run out of things to talk about.”

Jimin tries to humor you. “Things have been fine, you know...same as always. Except for Yoongi-hyung acting like a lovesick weirdo. But you wouldn’t know about that, would you…?” Jimin feigns an innocent look.

You look up from your plate. “A lovesick weirdo for who?”

“We’ve been through this like 20 times already, Y/N,” Jimin sighs.

“Yes, and every time I tell you you must have the wrong person because that makes no sense whatsoever.”

“He’s lovesick over you,” Taehyung reiterates, like you didn’t catch the gist the first time around.

“I don’t think Yoongi likes me.” You shake your head and make a face at the notion of it, trying to disguise your irritation at them constantly trying to provoke your emotions.

“Why not? There’s a lot to like about you, don’t downgrade yourself.” Jimin insists.

“He doesn’t even act like he does. If anything, he gets all odd around me.”

“That’s just how he is,” Taehyung says, leaning back in his chair. “You’d think you’d start to catch onto this after being here for so long, but…”

“No, she’s too busy being too embarrassed and intimidated to even get within 4 meters of him.” Jimin and Taehyung both giggle at that, and you shake your head.

“You guys are like little schoolkids. How many more big tales are you going to think up before our quarantine lifts? You could probably write a book by the end.”

Taehyung shrugs, putting his arms behind his head. “I might do that, as long as you let me make you and hyung the star-crossed lovers who are too dumb to tell each other how they feel.” He stretches his leg under the table to nudge your shin with his toes, knowing how you hate when he puts his bare feet on you, and he cackles when you protest loudly.

“Will you stop trying to get my hopes up for nothing—?” 

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Yoongi steps out onto the terrace with the three of you a few minutes later. He shields his eyes against the sun’s sudden brightness after he slides open the glass door, holding his other arm up.

“Look who’s appeared!” Jimin says excitedly, his eyes glittering with enthusiasm.

“You’re loud,” Yoongi grumbles, though he’s mostly speaking to Taehyung and Jimin. “I can hear you laughing from downstairs.” Your body tenses up and melts all at the same time, and suddenly you feel like you don’t know how to do anything right—like hold your chopsticks correctly. They shoot out of your hand when you try to use them again and hit the patio floor. You look at them forlornly.

“You good?” Yoongi asks, a smile fluttering across his lips at your clumsy actions.

“Uh, yeah I’m fine.” You can only glance back at him, embarrassed that you’ve made yourself look like a clown. Jimin laughs like he’s just witnessed the funniest thing on Earth. You shake your head and push away from the table, wanting—no, needing—a quick exit. “I’ll just find some more of those…”

Jimin shakes himself free of his sudden bout of laughter and jumps at the opportunity. “Wait, I’ll get them for you.” He bolts up from the chair before you can even think about it and goes back into the house, already planning to take his sweet time on his mission to get you new chopsticks. Taehyung picks up the hint almost instantly.

Yoongi turns back to the doorway after Jimin disappears through it, his movements a few beats too late—as if he’s just now realizing the other man left. “What was that about—”

“Oh shit!” Taehyung’s exclamation cuts into Yoongi’s question. In a sweeping motion, Taehyung “accidentally” elbows your water off the table, sending the bottle splashing out onto the patio in sad little streams. You jerk away from the splash, but the water droplets have already gotten you.

“What the hell?!”

Taehyung shrugs like it was inevitable and gives a sheepish smile. There’s an undeniable scheme lingering in his eyes, though. “Looks like I’ll have to get you another one.” He stands up to get your aforementioned water, though you begin to form the idea that you’re not getting any water at all.

You sigh and rub your fingers across your forehead. The heat of the sun has turned from pleasant to uncomfortable, and you don’t even have your water to take the edge off. Great.

Yoongi turns back to you, his eyebrows creased. “That was weird.”

“They’re just trying to…” Force us together? You’re too embarrassed to say anything like that, and your words trail off in a stammer. Why did they ever think this would be a good idea? Yoongi raises his eyebrows in curiosity at your bitten-off answer. “An-anyway, that doesn’t matter. So...what are you doing out here?”

Yoongi shrugs, smirking slightly. “Well, I do live here.”

You snort to cover the way your stomach cuts a flip at his smirk, and you reach for your food in a nervous gesture before you remember your chopsticks are still gone. “You sorta seem like a vampire, though. I’m surprised you came out to get some sun.”

Yoongi mulls over that thought. “Hmm…a vampire, huh?” He runs a hand through his pitch-black hair, and even though the gesture is just an afterthought, it makes your heart skip a beat. You almost want to roll your eyes at your reaction to that simple movement. “Don’t tell me you were one of those obsessive Twilight fans over a decade ago.”

“And if I was?”

“Would you enjoy being bitten by a vampire?” Yoongi regrets it as soon as he says it, and you ducking your head into your hands doesn’t help the flaming embarrassment. “Fuck, that was stupid—sorry.” Your shoulders are shaking with laughter, and even though it’d be cute in another context, he feels like he’s about to combust. So he decides to make a run for it. Maybe a cowardly move on his part, but it seems like the best one right now.

“Hyung, you can’t be serious—” Jimin calls out to Yoongi as the older man brushes past once he gets back indoors, but the other man tries his best to ignore Jimin as a blush crawls up his neck. “Go back and tell her. It was the perfect moment!”

“There’s gonna be a lot more of that mess until we can leave,” Taehyung says, peering through the glass at your now confused expression and shaking his head. “God, one of them needs to say something before I lose my mind.”

--

Like Taehyung predicted, there’s a lot more of “that mess” over the next week. You and Yoongi continue to tip-toe around each other, unsure of how to appropriately handle each other and never unable to shake the awkwardness that colors every interaction.

The most notable incident of all, however, occurs when Yoongi does his laundry one day and somehow finds a pair of your underwear mixed in with his clothes after taking them out of the dryer. How the hell did they even get there, and how did he not notice them before?

Bound to his usual fierce overthinking, he stands there for a few long moments, wondering what he should do. Obviously, the only answer would be to return them to you. But then what if you think that’s weird, him somehow having your underwear? Or what if you assume he’s some pervert who’d taken your panties on purpose?

And to his great luck, that’s precisely when you walk into the laundry room. You give him a timid smile and greeting, which melts away into pure embarrassment when you see him standing there as if he’d just been framed for murder—and your deep red panties sitting in his laundry pile.

Yoongi’s gaze darts between the laundry and your eyes, his jaw working aimlessly as he tries to come up with something that makes sense.

He decides on “I didn’t know they were there,” though this feels just as inadequate as it sounds.

“M-maybe I threw them in the wrong bin,” you rush out, and in the same breath you cross the room to practically snatch them out of the pile of his clothes. You know you couldn’t have done it, though, which leads your mind back to those two sneaky men who’ve been trying to exercise their terrible matchmaking skills as of late.

“A-ah, yeah—maybe,” Yoongi agrees half-heartedly, rubbing the back of his neck.

You both pause for what feels like an eternity, for a reason you can’t decipher, and you think you might burst from the sheer discomfort of it all. “Well—th-thanks. One less thing to wash, I guess.” You try to laugh, but the sound comes out high and forced. Similarly, Yoongi’s answering smile is tight around the corners.

The next few days after that, you are both unable to maintain any kind of eye contact. Taehyung and Jimin are endlessly amused by the way you and the older man dance around each other like two ghosts struggling to inhabit the same space.

You make up for it slightly by turning all of Jimin’s white shirts into a splotchy pink once you find out that this was indeed his terrible and silly idea.

--

You’ve been sleeping in Jimin’s and Taehyung’s beds since you’ve been barricaded in their home with them, which none of you really think twice about. You’ve been friends with them for years and don’t see either of them other than platonically, so it’s not awkward for you or them. Although it was originally intended for you to mostly stay in Jimin’s bed, you end up alternating between the two, climbing into whoever’s bed you feel like that particular night. Neither of them mind the switch-up, and Taehyung likes using you as his personal pillow, so it all works out.

If there was anyone who minded at all, it was Yoongi. It wasn’t a burning jealousy, because he knew he had no right to feel like that about you—not when he couldn’t even admit to you that he liked you. But it didn’t make him want to jump for joy to know you were in either of the younger men’s beds, even just as friends.

He spent many nights imagining you were beside him instead, warming the empty spaces of his bed, whispering to him and telling him about your day. It didn’t matter if he already knew everything you did that day because you’d all been living in the same space for weeks. He still wanted to know. 

But until either of you made a move, he didn’t know when that would happen. If ever.

He didn’t even know if you’d be interested, or if you saw him the way he saw you. You were never as close to him as you’d been with the other two men, and although that could be explained by you being best friends with them for years, he honestly chalked it up to you not liking him as much. Taehyung and Jimin had tried to tell him the exact opposite several times before, but he wasn’t really convinced. Not with the way you seemed to lock up around him—like if you said or did the wrong thing, he’d hate you forever.

If only you knew he could never feel that way about you.

--

You decide to sneak your way to the kitchen for a late-night snack one night, your socked feet scuffing quietly on the floor as you make your way to the kitchen. However, your plan is derailed when you run into Yoongi in the hallway, who has apparently just taken a shower. He’s fully clothed—thank God, because you’re not sure how you would’ve survived it otherwise—but the towel on his wet hair speaks to his recent shower. Your immediate response is to jump in surprise, feeling like you’ve been caught red-handed; although there’s no law stopping you from getting something to eat in the middle of the night.

“Oh—Yoongi.”

“You’re still up?” he asks, pulling the towel away from his face so he can see you better.

“Uh, yeah...I was just getting something to eat, I guess.”

“No crime in that. You’re tip-toeing around like you’re nervous about it, though.”

“I didn’t want to wake anyone up.” You shrug your shoulders, trying to appear more nonchalant than you really feel. “But I see you’re already up…” Your words trail off behind you as you walk into the kitchen. Yoongi watches your retreating back before making the split-second decision to follow you. He’s not really sure why, previously intending to go back to his own room. 

“Were you getting something to eat too?” you ask, turning back to glance at him when you hear his footsteps behind you. You’re admittedly happy at the idea of spending a little more time alone with Yoongi, though you’re still nervous as hell.

It’s probably not the best idea to say I just came because I wanted to be next to you, so he nods to your question. "Uh, sure, I guess. What were you gonna get?”

“I don’t really know, just whatever’s in here…” You open the fridge and stare into it absentmindedly, your eyes raking over the food but not really seeing it—not with Yoongi’s presence hovering behind you.

Eventually you settle on some leftover rice and kimchi—which there’s always plenty of—not wanting to expend too much energy on cooking anything new.

You and Yoongi sit at the table together, using the light of your phone’s flashlight and the under-cabinet lights to illuminate the room instead of the overhead. Maybe it’s a little strange, but you like the ambiance of it more than having the harsh overhead light on.

The room is quiet for a while as you both eat, which you don’t initially mind. But you can’t ignore how Yoongi keeps stealing glances at you, like you aren’t going to notice, like he isn’t sitting right in front of you where you can see. It makes you antsy, but not necessarily in a bad way.

“Is something up?” you finally ask, keeping your eyes on your half-empty bowls, too nervous to look straight at him.

He hums like he’s thinking intently about it. Then he decides to rip the band-aid off and says, “You’re always tense around me.”

“Oh.”

He chuckles at your short response. “Why?”

You feel like you’ve been backed into a corner, and you hesitate. “Well, you’re always weird around me. Why is that?”

“Touché.” Another tense pause where he thinks of what to say, and then, “Jimin and Taehyung swear you like me.”

You try not to react so obviously, but your spoon clatters against the side of the bowl. If he’s acting weird because of the idea of you liking him, how can it be possible that he returns the feelings? Maybe he doesn’t know how to let you down easily. You suddenly feel ridiculous, like you’ve been wasting your emotions on nothing. “...I see.”

“I thought they were...trying to play some game. But, since you’re here now...is it true?”

Maybe if you close your eyes hard enough, you can poof yourself out of existence. If you felt trapped before, you really are now. You blurt out the first thing you can think of, trying to save yourself.

“Before you think I’m stupid for liking you, you should know they’ve been saying the same thing to me about you. So. Yeah.”

Yoongi looks at you full-on. “They told you I like you?” A nervous grin fixes itself on his lips, which makes you second-guess yourself. At this point, your head and heart are tangled in a knot. Why does your love life have to be this difficult? “So that’s it, then.”

“What is?”

“We like each other.” That makes your heart rate pick up. “...and didn’t even figure it out until just now, despite everyone else’s ‘help’.”

You take a shaky breath. “You like me.”

Yoongi nods, glancing between his hands on the table and your face. “I should’ve said it sooner.”

Despite yourself, you feel the corners of your mouth twitch into a slight smile—one that’s colored with relief and a tinge of lingering nervousness. “Later is better than never, I guess.” You find yourself laughing from the way all your stress slowly unwinds itself from your body, and Yoongi joins you, his eyes sparkling in the dark.

“So. This means we’re dating now, right?”

“I hope this isn’t considered our first date.” You snort, looking around the kitchen.

Yoongi shakes his head, placing his cheek in his hand with a sleepy smile. “I promise I’ll take you somewhere nice...after the pandemic is over.”

“We might be waiting a while, then.” Finished with your food, you go to quickly wash the dishes in the sink, and Yoongi slides in next to you to do the same. Another silence falls over the two of you, but for the first time, it’s not uncomfortable or pulled taut with words unsaid.

When you finish, Yoongi leans against the counter, his eyes openly tracing over you, wearing just a big T-shirt and shorts. It’s a simple outfit, but it warms his heart.

“Come sleep with me,” he says suddenly. You crack an awkward smile at that, and he’s blushing before the last syllable even leaves his lips, because he understands how that sounds. “I mean, actually sleep. It’s late.”

You pretend to hesitate on it. “I don’t know, Taehyung might miss me…”

“Taehyung and Jimin have had you all to themselves the past few weeks. It’s my turn now.”

And with that, you let him take your hand and guide you back to his room, maneuvering carefully through the dark house. His bed is new to you, but it’s instantly comfortable—like home. The smell of him surrounds you, as does his arms when he pulls you closer. You smile against the fabric of his shirt as you tuck your face into his chest, his chin on top of your head.

“Goodnight,” he murmurs, his fingers curling around your shoulder. His voice is soft and low, already halfway to sleep.

“Goodnight, Yoongi.”

[ginkgomoon]

Gavin and MC’s High School History- Detailed Timeline

Dedicated to my amazing and kind friend @cheri-cheri- one of the Queens of the MLQC fandom on Tumblr! I literally didn’t know how to use it before but I had learnt how in order to keep up with her posts. Without her work, I literally wouldn’t be on here making my own blog either. Thank you, Cheri!!

This is a timeline following the years of high school that MC and Gavin had together. Compiled of dates, rumours and secrets, calls, texts, and other from multiple servers. The source will be shown allocated to its corresponding sentence. I created this because I was really moved when I rewatched Gavin’s Old Days Date and suddenly thought of the many things other players could have missed out on regarding their high school years. If there is anything you need clarification on, or if you would like to add anything in, feel free to send a post/ask or just comment and I’ll try to incorporate and adjust accordingly! 

Based off of true correspondence of the Chinese education system in Shanghai, where the schools there are very strict, with specific responsibilities and events students must have and attend to. In addition, this is different from Western school systems where years 7-9 are in a seperate schools from years 10-12 before university. Dates and seasons mentioned will also be noted as accurately as possible to suit the Loveland storyline in which different events occurred. I felt like a detective trying to piece a fractured storyline together to solve a mystery, honestly...

Prepare your tissues, your milk tea and your soul because even I almost didn’t make it to publish this...

Timeline

2008

Gavin enters high school.

2009

MC and Minor enter high school. MC does her hair in a nice ponytail, one of the only hairstyles she ever had in school.

Gavin is a grade above her. He is in his last year of high school. [Spring Festival Date]

Late Autumn of October 2010

“I noticed who you were before you ever noticed me.” 

On a rainy first day of school, Gavin helps Mr Keller move the tables and chairs in the classroom. 

Without taking an umbrella, Gavin leaves. 

At the same time, MC saves a cat in the rain with her handkerchief, attempting to shield it from the incoming rain under a roof. She gives it snacks from her bag while sheltering it from the rain. 

Gavin thinks she was nerdy-looking, but couldn't take his eyes off her and watches her from a distance for a long time. He feels out of place standing.

She looks back at him in astonishment, not knowing how long he stood for. 

She smiles at Gavin.

Gavin notes that MC’s smile just like her eyes, were pure and comforting as they start filling his vision. 

The rain starts to get heavier and MC shivers. 

Something stirred in Gavin’s heart as he notices this, and kicks a can in frustration then shelters her with his jacket. 

He runs away as MC shouts, “thank you!” 

She didn’t know it was Gavin who gave her his jacket at the time.

MC goes back and is then told by her fellow classmates that the boy she encountered was the “tyrant school bully”,  and “the Underworld Senior Gavin”, and that she should stay away from him. [Tilted Time- Rumours and Secrets]

-

MC finds piano dull to play the same songs over and over again.

MC in her spare time practices and sings to Liszt’s Liebestraum No. 3 (Love Dream) for a talent show.

At the rooftop, Gavin is wounded by a gangster’s knife. A gradually intensifying melody is heard. 

Gavin kicks the gangster boss but then is pursued again. Outnumbered, wounded and losing consciousness due to major blood loss, the gangster boss kicks Gavin off the roof. 

Gavin reaches out, to something- anything. 

A heavy, surging melody sounded, transcending through time and allows Gavin to reflect on his past- to his father, to his late mother, and invokes deep reflection and epiphanies. 

Heavy notes seep into Gavin’s ears as he almost hits rock bottom. He feels his limbs emerging with the wind and awakens his wind evol. 

Gavin is now reborn.

The music continued to play. Gavin ends up humming with a bird. 

He then hears MC’s singing.

MC stops, mesmerised by the ginkgo leaves flying through the wind. The ginkgo leaves falling was her favourite time of the year in high school. This vivid sight is still engraved in her memory after many years.

Gavin vows to protect her for the rest of his life. [Campus Date]

-

Gavin saved Minor from bullies. 

Minor also happens to be MC’s outgoing, talkative desk mate who sometimes helped old ladies cross the street. How he managed to hang around Gavin and not get beaten up, nobody knew (except us). He would often copy MC’s homework but never dragged her down with him if he got caught. This was MC’s biggest impression of him. 

During science class, MC cooked noodles for Minor on the Bunsen burner when he was hungry. The recipe was Shrimp flavoured instant noodles, mix two eggs in well, then add a dab of sea salt and black pepper. [S1 Chapter 7-1]

-

Gavin is always at the school gates at 7:30am. Carrying his flat school bag, he orders fish balls at the snack kiosk on the north side of the school. It was the third day in a row that Minor notices this. [Minor’s Memory Book]

Gavin would occasionally travel around on his bicycle. (Pre-debut Sparky??) He says he was good at riding it. [Lost Love Date]

It was hard to find Gavin as he’s rarely at school, so she didn’t see him until 3 days later when MC went to the library at sunset. 

She tries to retrieve “Byron’s Poetry Collection” from the top of a 2-metre shelf, and since Gavin was a head taller, he was able to help her get it. 

He musters up the introduction that he recited many times- but MC quickly thanks him and leaves before he could speak.

Minor notices Gavin watching after MC and that he was SMIL-ING. 

He helps him locate MC and reports that every day after school she would go to the library for afternoon revision, always sitting in the same seat. 

Gavin sat at a corner not far, quietly flipping through textbooks he hated. People who were reading in the library would be driven away because they were scared of him LOL

MC would then leave at 5pm sharp to go back home. 

Gavin commits to walking back 10 metres behind her with Minor every day on forward. [CN Tilted Time Rumours and Secrets] 

-

Gavin saves Minor from bullies again. Minor dedicates himself to be his “bro”. 

He finds out that MC is an honours student, but doesn’t know that she’s the school orchestra leader. [Mystery Wings Event] and [Mark Date] However, he does know that she’s renowned as the “campus belle/ school flower”.

Minor idly mentions that more people were giving MC love letters.

Gavin tells Minor to collect all the people who were planning to confess their love to MC. Minor doesn’t want to be wingman anymore HAHA

Gavin stared those boys down as they trembled with fear. He tells them to take them back and if they scare her, he’ll make them regret it. 

Minor realises Gavin’s feelings for MC. [Minor’s Memory Book] 

-

MC eats from a small stall outside the school gate selling red bean puffs. ($3 for one, $5 for two. What a deal!) 

She also encounters the stall that sells sugar figurines [Gift of Life- Sugar Figurine Call]

MC ate chocolate sticks often at school. It's also a memory of student life for Gavin, as well. [CN 2021 March Sign-In Taste of Happiness]

Students would scramble for the small swing set in the school garden. MC never went at lunch breaks, but she watches the sunset on it after school. Gavin is sometimes nearby. MC never noticed him, but she does however notice the ginkgo leaves dancing in the wind. [Mini House Small Happening- Leisure Time]

-

Gavin isn’t his usual self anymore. He sees MC out in the library everyday and starts reading “5 Years of College Examinations and 3 Years of Sample Questions” (book for colleague entrance examinations).

MC watches a basketball match at school. She calls someone from an away team “dashing” because they won with a dunk. This has been engraved in Gavin’s memory ever since. [Dreamers Date]

Gavin found out that he was very fond of basketball success stories, rushing into the court to try hundreds of shots after. He writes “I will beat you” beside Sakuragi Hanamichi from a Slam Dunk poster alongside “not a step back”.

(Slam Dunk starts out with a boy wanting to play basketball to impress his crush.)

Gavin then injures his head badly :(

He realises that basketball couldn’t help him to protect anything he wanted. He determines that he will do whatever it takes (to “beat” himself”). [Mystery Wings Event]

-

Gavin leans against a tree as he watches MC hurry down the corridor as she clutches a textbook. [Boundary Rumours and Secrets]

MC would eat pocky. Gavin would eat them too. [2021 March Sign-In Moments]

- 

MC faints during a sports meet because she didn’t eat breakfast.

Gavin hurries to carry her to the infirmary. [CN Delightful Search Date]

He leaves bread and milk before she wakes up.

-

MC is on duty during PE class, which happens to be on basketball. 

Minor was careless about his aim and the ball almost hit her in the head. Gavin slams the ball away. [Minor’s Memory Book]

Gavin glares at Minor as MC thanks him.

Minor also “accidentally” pushes MC towards him.

Gavin glares again.

Gavin later is continuously shooting hoops. 

MC returns late at night to clean up the gym but all had been returned neatly in the basket. MC wanted to thank him but couldn’t. [CN Basketball Court Date]

-

There was a school sports competition that they attended. Gavin participated in the 10 lap race and came first by an impressive large measure. [Minor’s Memory Book]

MC participates in the sprint race, too. Gavin is worried about her performance, and if she would faint again. 

Gavin requests Minor to take a photo of her on his phone (which probably ended up as the photo that he carried with him in his early days at special training where the other men teased him about hiding a photo of a girl.) 

Approaching the End of October 

Gavin, Minor and MC are walking home. 

The weather is cold, and Gavin notices MC shivering in the distance. Gavin, conflicted by this, tells Minor to buy MC a hot drink without telling her that it was from him. [CN Tilted Time Rumours and Secrets] 

MC would occasionally spot a hot drink or a carton of strawberry milk in the piano room. [Chapter 31-12]

-

Gavin one day is conflicted by their early exchange, recalling how MC looks startled at the entrance of the library after seeing each other. His spirit depletes, kicking himself (metaphorically) in the corner of the classroom at how he might have scared her. 

Minor rushes in with a pink bandaid from MC for the wound at his mouth. 

He carefully took that bandaid, treating it as if it was his world’s most precious treasure.

This pink bandaid was always taped on his heart and whenever he stepped into the swamp-like darkness of the night, it gave off a faint warmth. [Mystery Wings Event]

-

MC starts to notice Gavin everywhere. At the corners of windows, she would see his figure. At the library, he would help her retrieve books from higher places. She would also see books laid out on his table, but most of the time he would be sleeping. Beneath his overlapping arms, he sees “Byron’s Poetry Collection”. Gavin doesn’t understand the poems, though. 

Lord Byron's "Don Juan" - Canto the Ninth, XVI 

"To be, or not to be?" — Ere I decide I should be glad to know that which is being? 'Tis true — we speculate both far and wide, And deem, because we see, we are all-seeing; For my part, I'll enlist on neither side Until I see both sides for once agreeing; For me, I sometimes think that Life is Death,

-

At the music rehearsal room on the fifth floor, she would see a corner of his shirt in the wind. 

MC thinks Gavin is friendly and slowly lets down her guard. 

At the canteen, he would offer her the last bottle of water. 

She begins smiling at him when they see each other, with the small arcs forming on her lips, soon becoming smiles that made her eyes squint.

-

MC would walk along the Senior hallways and subconsciously stop at a certain classroom- catching the sight of Gavin sleeping. On one particular day, she sees him standing by the window, staring at the sky. 

-

Minor asks Gavin if he could form a band with him. Gavin rejects him. He then asks Gavin if he wanted to join the school’s singing competition. Gavin rejects him again, saying that he didn’t perform for unimportant people or have others tell him how well he could play.

MC plays “Falling Slowly” on the piano. Gavin hearing this, learns to play the guitar. He doesn’t know the name of the song but familiarises himself with the melody. [CN Music and the Past Call]

-

Whenever school let students out early, she would go to Lynn’s Kitchen. MC gets her noodles with clear broth, chopped scallions and a half-boiled egg. Gavin usually gets his spicy noodles with garlic, cilantro, thinly sliced beef.

Gavin remembers her favourite order. 

MC leaves a post-it note at Lynn’s Kitchen, “I might never see you again and I didn’t even get to say goodbye. I miss you”, about a friend who transferred schools. 

Gavin knows she hates people who leave without saying goodbye the most.

Gavin, also in the vicinity near Lynn’s Kitchen, writes a post note.  “Until I met you.” [Mystery Box Game]

He saves Mr Noah’s son from an accident, immediately takes him to the hospital and pays for the medical fees. [Anime]

-

Gavin dismisses rumours of high school romance. 

“If you confessed on the 7th step of the stairway in the corner of the 3rd floor then it’ll succeed, or if you carved your name and another person’s name on the 6th tree in the courtyard at the back then your misunderstandings will be resolved, or if a guy gave the girl he liked the second button of his uniform on graduation day then the two of them will end up happy together.”

At lunch, he hears MC talking about the second button, and upon seeing her yearning face, he raises his head in thought, suddenly couldn’t wait for graduation. He tears off his second button. [Mystery Wings Event]

Gavin is just in love at this point.

-

Gavin sees one of the top students stealing money from a shop outside of school. The shopkeeper doesn’t believe him. 

He stops the student on his way home to hand him back the money. 

MC sees him at the alley then leaves.

Gavin spent all the money on a walkman he wanted for a very long time.

Mr Keller was the only one who believed in him. He said to him, “Since you can’t change what others think of you, you might as well just listen to your heart.” This had a great impact on Gavin. [Campus Date] 

Winter 

In the snowfall, the school allowed additional ten minutes of break time. The class next to MC’s stuffed Minor’s shirt with snowballs.

Gavin thought of helping him with a counterattack but MC had already returned a snowball to the male student who pulled the prank. 

Gavin looks at MC the whole time. [CN Recovery ASMR]

-

MC overheads girls in her class say that Gavin had bullied students for lunch money that morning. 

MC rides her bike back home after studying at the library for her finals. 

MC sees Gavin being handed an envelope full of money at Lynn’s Kitchen in an alleyway. 

She mistook it for him taking protection money. 

-

Summer of June 2011

On a humid afternoon, MC looks outside the window of the classroom in boredom. A boy in a loose-fitting school uniform ran by. She couldn’t make out his face. [S1 Chapter 7-23]

MC begins to distance herself from Gavin. She rushes out of class and goes straight home instead.

Gavin is sad. He broods by the piano room, goes to the library to brood, then stares at the place MC sits to brood some more. 

Minor wonders how he’s able to stare all afternoon at an empty space in the library but sleeps all day during class hours. [Minor’s Memory Book]

Before graduation, Gavin’s father expresses his thoughts for Gavin to join the organisation for special training. Gavin refuses, but his father uses MC to influence him to agree. 

Gavin remembers the panic and timidity in MC’s eyes when she first met him. He recalls that moment was probably the hardest to bear in his life.

Gavin in his short period of freedom writes a letter to MC. He ponders about what to say, thinking about their first encounter, and how she started to distance herself from him. But all he writes is-  

“Saturday 9am, I will be at the school library waiting for you.

-Gavin.”

-

MC attends the flag-raising ceremony and rehearses her speech. She then leaves to study for her exams. 

Meanwhile, Gavin finishes a fight with other boys from school in an alley after they talk inappropriately about MC. [Old Days Date]

Gavin, bloodied and bruised, asks Minor to make another copy of his letter. 

This is the only thing that Gavin had asked Minor to do so of course, he agreed. [Chapter 7-11]

Minor thinks the letter is a symbol of passion and fierce love due to the bloodstains and decides to keep the original. 

He writes “GAVIN” and places it on MC’s desk for her to see the next day. 

(In the Campus Date, the older MC is the one who finds him instead of Minor and treats him to his injuries. She ends up seeing the contents of the letter to find him later on.)

MC mistakes the letter as a threat and throws it away. 

That Weekend

Gavin sits for 14 hours in the library waiting for MC, scanning the library every now and then.

With a fingertip, he rubs “Byron’s Poetry Collection” and carefully sandwiches a dried and yellowed ginkgo leaf into the book. He suddenly felt a measure of self-deprecation.

He stands up, and leaves, his heart filled with regret that he didn’t give it to her personally. [CN Tilted Time Rumours and Secrets]

After Summer Break- July 

Minor never saw Gavin, and neither did MC. 

“We met often, but never passed by each other. I remember every moment I saw you in school. Time, location, weather, your expression, your clothes...

-I remember them all.”