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dabihawksluvr · 8 months ago

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YES, people don't understand or utilize this enough! They think anything they see, they just have to comment on. But unless someone is holding them at gunpoint, they can simply block and scroll away. Then commenting on things shows they think the internet is meant to be specifically constructed solely for their own interests.

YES! Credit should be shared, and links should be freely given. I understand that, maybe at first, they do it to gauge interest for the fic/art and then post the link after. But gatekeeping that stuff is not cool, I'm glad there are people who go looking for these things regardless so they will eventually be found and shared by the right people...but it's still not good fandom etiquette.

This needs to be common sense, just PLEASE look at the tags/filters before reading! It's understandable that some authors may not do this correctly, but it doesn't mean y'all should ignore the tags already given and then complain when you were CLEARLY warned!

I'm 50/50 on this. Some people may want to read fics that are not their usual taste, but if they have certain triggers they should filter them out. And writers should ALWAYS properly tag their fics.

I understand this point, and it's why I write mainly on Quotev for my fics. On that site, I can write drafts all I want and it won't show up on my list until I actually start posting things. I wish sites did this more, because it is super helpful.

Ugh, I hate seeing the spams of 'update plz' and how toxic people can be with it. I remember when Reitanna Seishin had 'finished' Muffins, but people kept on spamming her to write more and she eventually did...then people complained about it. And I've seen this with a lot of SU AU comics, a few good ones were eventually just dropped because people couldn't stop themselves from harassing the artists for the next 'update'. It causes authors/artists to just quit what they're doing, because people feel entitled to their time and work.

I half agree with this. If an author says to not rate, then I understand that (I will respect their request because I know getting rated is a sensitive thing for some). But if it's posted on the internet, someone is going to 'rate' or 'review' it regardless.

I agree with this 100%. If it's not your fic, don't re-post it without the author's explicit permission.

I agree with this 100%. If you post a response/comment, expect to get feedback for it at some point.

This is why fanfic is so sacred, it's in a gray area because we are using already existing (copyrighted) characters for our own writing and not getting a penny for it. Those who fic bind and sell them are absolute trash, they don't care if the entirely of fandom (which is 90% fanfic/art) gets taken down over this.

I agree, but here is my point on it. I use AI Chat Bots to help give me ideas, I don't just copy and paste the text it gives me and say it's my own writing. It's the same as using bases or references in art, or like reading a book and getting a base idea for what you want to write from that. Anyone who just uses copy/paste for fanfic is not a writer, they are using the guise of being an 'author' to be part of a community they want to infiltrate.

This is a legit issue? I had personally never thought of asking another author to BETA for me, the most I do is ask my brother and his partner for advice. Or I ask another online friend to check and see if my fic sounds good to them.

Oh, this is 100% true. Every time I see any drama with a creator, it's always from a jealous 'hater' who wants their attention 24/7. And people will even dox these creators, which is even worse.

I agree. As I am personally ok with any (legal) ships, I have no issue seeing ships I may not initially like or think about. So it baffles me that so many just get so pissy about seeing ships they dislike getting any form of attention.

This is very true, especially for fics. Popularity does not always mean your writing is being received well, it just means a lot of eyes are on it. And it's just a lot of pressure to assume that every writer has to write a 'big fic' to be taken seriously.

I understand that there can be 'universal' fandom headcanons that the majority agree with, but if someone has a different idea about a character that's ok too! (I personally enjoy Trans Bakugo and Blasian Izuku headcanons but I know it's not a strict line to follow in fandom)

YES! Authors/artists are people, they are NOT their content. I understand that internet celebs are becoming more prominent in recent years, but this isn't Hollywood. A lot of the creators we follow are just like us, they just so happened to make something that a lot of people enjoy.

It really does feel like fandom is being invaded, and not in a good way. There is specific rules we all follow in fandom culture, but these new people coming in think they can do whatever they want and cause trouble for everyone else. They may be the loud minority, but it's causing everyone else to see us as 'bad'.

fanfic/fandom ettiquite guide

Okay, I've seen some things recently that make me think there is some need to make a master post of some general fandom and fic ettiquite just because some people may not know and I think there's a huge wave of fanfic becoming more mainstream especially on apps like tiktok.

If you don't like it, don't engage with it!! I think this above all, is the golden rule of fandom. The internet is made for you to be able to mute, hide, and censor things you don't like. DO THAT! don't make a career off of hating things. This goes along with the three laws of fandom, which u should check out FIRST OF ALL.

DON'T GATEKEEP!! If you're posting about a fic, art, ANYTHING link it, credit it! Don't post a tiktok about a fic and then refuse to give the name. Not only are you failing to credit the creators of this content, but you're taking away from the fact that fandom is a COMMUNITY where content is meant for everyone.

Ao3 is an archive. You're going to see things you might not like or even find offensive or uncomfortable. But fanfic is not meant to be censored. Ao3 is made to be unfiltered, people can post anything and everything. Posting fics on other sites simply to shame their content not only brings MORE attention to it, but it's pointless. If you want a website that is censored go to wattpad. And of course, if you don't like it DON'T READ. You can filter your tags and warnings on ao3 so it won't show you that content.

Along those lines LEARN HOW TO USE AO3. There is no algorithm, it is not tiktok. You don't need to censor words in your tags. Your fics are not magically getting pushed out to people. Make sure you're using "person 1/person 2" for romantic relationships and "person 1 & person 2" for non-romantic relationships. Make sure things like non-con and underage are tagged under the warnings. AND AS A READER, know how to filter ships and tags to find the content you want. You can filter by kudos, certain tags, exclude certain relationships or characters etc. USE IT.

Do not create placeholder fics or other "non fics" on ao3. This is against their terms of service. You can (and probably will) be reported, this annoys people endlessly. We don't want to find a fic and open it to see "I haven't written this yet, sorry!" JUST SAVE A DRAFT OR DO IT IN A DOCUMENT? this seems like way to rack up hits, and it comes across as disingenuous, I don't see a real valid reason to make placeholders.

HOW TO WRITE AN ACCEPTABLE COMMENT: long is not important. A simple "loved this!" will make an author happy. DO NOT say any variation of "update pls?" regardless of how nice you think it is. Authors update when they can.I'm not the only author I've seen unhappy with this. JUST WAIT, either it will be updated or it won't, and either way you will live. If you have nothing nice to say about a fic?? MOVE ON. Don't leave a hate comment.

Do not rate or publicly shit on fanfic! A lot of authors know many people, and the chances of that author seeing whatever you're saying about their work is very high. If you don't like it, click off and read something else. If it's still living rent-free in your mind, that sounds like fan behavior to me. And there is no standard fics are supposed to meet, don't rate them.

Don't cross-post fics. Don't put fics on other sites, don't put translation on other sites. DON'T DO ANYTHING with a fic without checking with the author first. On that note, also don't post fics on GoodReads etc. unless an author explicitly says it's okay.

IF YOU DO NOT MARK YOUR BOOKMARKS AS PRIVATE AUTHORS CAN SEE THEM!! If you're going to say anything that isn't positive, you better mark that as private or better yet, move on. Don't say anything on a public bookmark you wouldn't want the author to read.

YOU CANNOT PROFIT OFF OF FANFIC, don't sell bound fics! Don't bind fics if the intention is to sell them. You're potentially creating a lawsuit for the authors of these fics and putting the existence of fanfic in danger. I've seen multiple authors debating taking fics down because of binding issues, just don't do it. AND IF YOU'RE BUYING BOUND FICS YOU'RE PART OF THE PROBLEM. it's selfish and I wish bad karma upon you.

You wouldn't think I'd have to say this but don't plagiarize or use AI to create fics/art etc. firstly making ai write something IS a form of plagiarism. bUT ALSO just write your own content. If you can't, then writing fics etc. is just not for you. No shame about it!

DON'T ASK AUTHORS TO BETA FOR YOU!! You wouldn't believe how many people have asked me to beta their fics for them, I AM NOT A BETA. I HAVE a beta because my proofreading skills are shit. If someone wants to beta they will offer, or go find a blog or somewhere where people are looking to beta. Like @needabeta You can even make a post asking around for a beta, but don't go bug your favorite authors to proofread your fics.

Really just don't harass authors. Of course, don't be afraid to send nice dms, asks, or comments if their inbox is open, but don't spam them especially if they don't reply. Respect boundaries! Don't send nasty anons, everyone knows this is a sign of jealousy and obsession. You're only succeeding in making yourself look bad. Ask yourself why is this author living rent-free in your mind, hm??

If you don't like a ship, stay away from the content geared towards that ship. There's no reason for you to be in people's inbox harassing them over a ship. It's never that deep. If you truly hate it so much, go consume the content for ships you DO like.

Stay grounded. This goes to both fic authors and readers alike. Hits and popularity are not the mark of a good fic. Getting a lot of hits doesn't mean it's good and NOT getting many doesn't mean it's bad. I'm tired of seeing tiktoks asking "so what's the next big fic?" WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE A "BIG FIC"? go look through the ao3 tag and find something you like to read, it doesn't have to be what everyone else is reading.

Headcanons are not law. People can think whatever they want about the characters. If you disagree with someone's hc, just move on... and just because a headcanon is popular, doesn't mean everyone has to abide by it. Be creative!

Don't treat artists and authors like celebs! We're all in this together! We're all losers who like the same characters and ships. Of course, compliment and be kind to all creators because we put a lot of time and effort into creating fan content for you all, but don't worship anyone. Don't treat them weirdly or make a post like "omg x followed me!" that's a bit weird. If you want to be excited, dm your friends and giggle together, but acting like authors and artists etc. are celebs only creates the room for people to stop seeing them as normal people and start acting rude or entitled. And many people are uncomfortable with it!!

TLDR; stop creating so much negativity in fandom spaces. At least in MY fandom it's just constantly shitting on ships, fics, art. It's hate anons, antis, and constant fighting about every headcanon. I'M TIRED OF IT! Learn to filter out content you don't want to see, and move on with your life instead of spreading more negativity.

If you have anything you think I should add shoot me a comment or an ask and I will add it! I'm sure I didn't get everything :) this mostly applies to my own experience being in the hp/marauders fandom for a good 10+ years, and I'm sure it varies slightly from fandom to fandom.

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chryblossomjjk · 2 years ago

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bts fic recommendations | 03.07.23

→ hi friends! this is a little segment i do every tuesday (reviewsday get it, aren’t i funny, pls tell me how funny i am) where i read and review two-three fics. as a content creator, i know how big of a role other creators play in your growth, therefore, i want to do my part in making sure everyone gets the recognition they deserve! so with that being said, please check out the amazing fics listed below. make sure to like, reblog, and leave feedback! ♡ #reviewsday #kikirecs

stardust - @euphoricfilter (jjk x reader | fluff, smut, f2l)

summary: if jungkook would have known an unintentional orgasm would have led to this, then he would have begged you to work out with him sooner.

naur bby when i tell you i loved this from the first paragraph...

"If every living being’s foundation is made of stardust, scattered when born, then Jungkook thinks the two of you were made from the same star."

and the way you continued the analogy throughout was pure literature gold (or should i say diamond teehee). its stuff like this that i read and im like damn, the moots are really out here posting fics that could easily be published best sellers for fucking free!! how lucky are we!!!

OOF AND THE PILLOW PRINCESS COMMENT HAD ME LOOKING AROUND THE ROOM BLUSHING BC HOW DOES HE KNOW ME LIKE THAT I FELT CALLED OUT LMAO

and the whole workout scene hits even better after his workout live like i legit was able to visual everything... and sex in the mirror will never not be top tier :')

i love this jungkook dearly. this is how i imagine irl jk yk? just that hopeless romantic vibe, feeling that he has someone on this earth that is meant for him and he's meant for them. thats encapsulated so beautifully in this fic. such beautiful writing, thank you for blessing us with this fucking masterpiece!!

knee high socks - @minniesvenus (jjk x reader | smut, college au)

summary: after being obsessed with you and your knee high socks for forever, jungkook can't believe that you finally notice him.

okay so do you ever just hear a song or smell a smell that feels so incredibly nostalgic and fills your head with dreamy thoughts and stars and stuff... that's exactly how i felt while reading this! like i just kept thinking of the arctic monkeys song and the way you characterized jungkook's crush is just so authentic. its just that pure school crush feeling where you anticpate seeing this person and the more time you see them you pick up on little things and it makes you fall even deeper oof. there's just something so fimilair about the way you wrote this and it's probably one of the most realistic depictions i've seen of the natural progression of a crush like uGH THE FUCKING TALENT !!!

and it makes you root for him so much like i was internally cheering for him when she asked him to sit next to him. it was so fucking wholesome and sweet i screamed

and then shit got unwholesome real quick whew

her giving him praise actually made me so happy though! like you definitely inspired me to write more of that bc its so refreshing and cute!! and the smut was saur naughty but so sweet bc she was just guiding him through the motions and once again it just felt so natural which is no easy feet!! like you really hit the nail on the head with this one and it will be added to my comfort fic list asap!! so so so lovely!!

in the seom: love for dummies - @thvhoe (jjk x reader | smut, fluff, angst, fwb, college au, camping au)

summary: always the friend, never the girlfriend. jeon jungkook doesn't date. at least that's what he thought until he met you, a chemistry student who seemed to have it all—except for love. meeting at a mutual friends frat party, you hit it off right away. however, due to both of your stubbornness, it has never progressed beyond being friends with benefits. the annual camping trip with your friend group was supposed to be the turning point in your relationship with jungkook. but what happens when your best friend of 18 years unexpectedly comes back from busan and confesses to you, further complicating matters?

OoF WHAT A FUCKING OPENING SCENE LMAO!! i was horny from fucking JUMP!!! and kook juggling between pet names and not knowing what to call her made me giggle but always made me extremely soft like aw :') <3

and y/n really whipped that fuckboy into shape we love to see it!! he better buy gifts n work for the coochie!!! >:(

"Pookie🩶: Can't sleep. Send me a pic of your boobies?"

this had me cackling bc this behavior is saur... annoyingly endearing like he legit is a big baby and i love him lmao even though unholy he is extremely cute.

^y/n and i both having immaculate taste and listening to ditto

and i am so thankful things turned out well for this pairing. i felt so sad for him like ugh the protectiveness and worry over her. he was generally just so wholesome throughout this entire fic. def a fav protrayal of jungkook. thank you so much for sharing this beautiful peice with us my love!

#reviewsday #kikirecs #jungkook #bts jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkook smut #jungkook x reader #jungkook imagine #jungkook scenario #jungkook au #bts fanfic #bts fic recs #bts #bangtan #jungkook x y/n

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oggysonart · 2 years ago

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PSA real quick: Don’t buy art advice

I’m not talking about art tutorials or like supporting a tier on someone’s patreon to get feedback or stuff like that, that’s a different thing. This is also not about going to art school.

What I am talking about is stuff like online courses and books that people sell on topics like secrets to growing your art instagram, making loads of passive money off your work, stuff like that. It’s fake.

I’ve seen a disturbing amount of them appear which is why I’m making this PSA. There is no secret to growing your art instagram or making passive money off your art or kickstarting your freelance carreer. If the tips are legit, it’s out there for free if you look for it. We are already talking about it because we’re already doing it. People making these courses and selling these books are only sharing stuff you can already google yourself. These people are rarely making their livings as artists themselves, instead they’re just doing the art world version of get rich quick schemes, they’re praying on your passions and selling you advice that is either already publicly available, unhelpful or even just false.

I’ll give you some advice for free, kay?

Improving your art:

First and foremost working on improving your art should always be priority and you can find tutorials on any subject matter for free pretty much anywhere if you just google stuff like “how to draw a cloud”. Your art is what people will want to buy/see so keep improving it and keep making it if your goals is to build a carreer or an audience, there is no way around it.

Growing your audience

Straight up just engage with whichever app/site you’re using. Post good art yourself, but be a cheerleader for others first and foremost. Post consistently, not constantly, use appropriate tags, talk about your work in your descriptions and engage with people who engage with you. That stuff is in your control, the rest is honestly just luck. For some people it takes a long time, for others it’s a faster progress, there is no secret here, no one knows how to please the algorithm, we’re all just throwing crumbs out and hoping it gets eaten. Bots and promo bots will do more harm than good and spamming other people’s accounts asking them to check you out or tagging someone in your art that’s completely unrelated to them is just annoying. Just chill and post your art and have fun. Remember that social media should ‘t be a popularity contest, it should be social.

Making money

There are so many ways! I don’t even know half the ways and it depends what you want to achieve really. You can make money selling commissions, you can try to get a job at some sort of company, at which there are many who’d want to employ artists, games, films, animation, marketing, marketing departments in companies that otherwise do completely unrelated stuff, I’ve heard of an artist working fulltime at a science lab. There is room for you, you just need to find your industry. You can also license your work which is where the passive income comes in and there are a bunch of ways to do this too google it. You can be an illustrator for books or magazines, you can be a cartoonist for a paper, you can do logos or t-shirt designs and you can work freelance as pretty much whatever you want. It’s not going to be easy finding these jobs and most people do several jobs at once. It takes time to build up clientell and find your opportunities but a good place to start is straight up just googling “how to license my art” or “how to become a concept artist” or just straight up “how to make money as an artist.” It’s all out here.

I don’t have all the answers at hand and I’m too busy looking for all the resources for you. I bet other people will happily provide links and stuff, so feel free to share resources! My point id just this:

Everything is out there for free, google it.

#art #art industry #art advice #how to art #art tutorial #artist #work as an artist #make money as an artist #freelancing

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justabigassnerd · 3 years ago

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Wedding fears

Pairing - TASM!Peter Parker x sister!reader

Word count - 4,020

Warnings - mentions of Gwen, mostly sibling fluff

Summary - when planning your wedding, you only had one person in your head you wanted to walk you down the aisle

A/N - so this is an odd idea, isn't it?? This idea popped into my head in the dead of night and I legit had to get out of bed to write it down on my phone. This wasn't meant to be that long I just got carried away (as per). Anyways I won't ramble so as per y'all please send in requests, feedback and enjoy!

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“y/n! It’s lovely to see you, sweetheart!” May greeted you happily as she opened the door, greeting you with a large hug as you buried your face in her shoulder, an unconscious habit from your childhood that never left you even in your adulthood.

“Hey May.” You greet happily, savouring the embrace until May begins to pull away.

“You ready to wedding plan?” May asks excitedly, pulling you into the house as you laugh, allowing her to tug you into the living room and sit you down on the sofa in front of the coffee table.

You had recently been proposed to by your boyfriend of three years and May was bouncing off the walls in joy for you when you told her despite the fact she already knew of your now fiancé’s plan to propose. She offered to help pay for it despite your adamant refusal and implored that she got to be part of the planning process. Little did she know that she was the only person you wanted to help you with this. She was your mother figure growing up when she took you and your older brother, Peter in so you couldn’t imagine anyone else filling her role and helping you wedding plan.

Your fiance, Charlie, was someone both Peter and May approved of. He had spent a lot of time getting to know your family, wanting to know the people you held dearest in your heart and he even asked both of them if he could propose to you, conspiring with them on the perfect proposal for you.

“Okay, what do you want to start with? I was thinking maybe just getting seating plans out of the way. I have a list of everyone who’s said they’re coming so we can figure out who’s sat where at the reception. Also, I think Charlie is a little too intimidated to do it himself. I think he’s worried he’ll upset someone by seating them in the wrong place.” You say, putting the folder you had brought with you on the coffee table, holding back a laugh as your aunt snatches it up almost the second it leaves your hand. She extracts the guest list and her eyes scan it. The wedding nor the reception were going to be huge ceremonies due to the fact both you and Charlie had relatively small families and only wanted to invite your close friends on top of that. You take the folder from May and pull out the seating chart, placing it down on the coffee table and grabbing a pencil so you and your aunt could make the seating plan. As you watch your aunt scribble something down on the seating plan as you discuss who could sit where a question kept running through your head and before you knew it, your mouth was opening.

“May, could I ask you something?” You ask, quickly glancing at your aunt who smiles.

“You already did.” She replies, chuckling slightly as you laugh too, easing your awkwardness a tad.

“Something else then.” You elaborate.

“Of course, you can y/n.” She says, putting the seating plan down and turning to you, giving you her full attention.

“If… if I asked Peter to- if I asked him to walk me down the aisle, do you think he’d say yes?” You ask, eyes falling to your hands as you fiddle with your fingers.

“Oh, sweetheart. I know he’d love to.” You look up to see May with happy tears welling in her eyes. Without warning she pulled you into a hug, wrapping her arms around your shoulders and holding you close.

“When you’re finished here I think you should head to Peter’s and ask him.” May says, an emotional smile on her face as you nod slightly.

“Yeah, I’ll do that.” You agree, pulling away and turning your attention back to the wedding planning.

When you finished what you wanted to plan with Aunt May, you said goodbye to her and left your childhood house, heading to your brother's flat to ask him if he’d want to walk you down the aisle on your wedding day. As you got off the stuffy subway train and returned overground, you rehearsed how to ask Peter the question and what to do if he reacted badly. You reached the building Peter’s flat was in and headed inside, getting in the lift and going up to the correct floor. When you reached his flat, you knocked on his door and took a step back.

“y/n, what a pleasure!” Peter’s boyfriend MJ greets you happily, pulling you in for a hug as you laugh.

“The pleasure is all mine MJ.” You reply happily, returning the hug with a smile.

“What brings you here?” MJ asks as he pulls away, opening the door wider for you to enter.

“I’m here to talk to Peter. Is he in or is he too busy being an idiot?” You ask as you enter the flat, smiling at the pictures on the wall as you head towards the living room.

“If by being an idiot you mean swinging around New York in spandex then yes. He is being an idiot.” MJ says with a chuckle. You and MJ were the only people aware of Peter’s alter ego. He was adamant about keeping MJ in the dark when they first started dating but you encouraged him to be honest, knowing it would kill them both for him to keep this a secret. You knew Peter was heavily scarred from what happened to Gwen, which caused him to avoid dating for as long as possible. However, when he met MJ things changed and when you saw the way he looked at MJ after he introduced you to him you immediately told Peter to go for it. It made you happy to see your brother so happy again after all the shit the world had thrown at him in the past and you were grateful for MJ, loving how happy they made each other.

“You don’t mind if I hang around until he gets back, do you?” You ask, glancing from the sofa to MJ who shakes his head and gestures to the sofa.

“Be my guest. I think Pete would kill me if he found out I kicked you out or something, you know what he’s like.” MJ says as you sit down, moving to sit next to you. You sit making small talk with MJ until you hear that all too familiar sound of the window sliding open and Peter announcing his return. MJ calls back to him, letting Peter know he’s in but not announcing that you were here. You hear Peter disappear into the shower, his normal routine after returning from patrol and you continue to chat with MJ until Peter enters, in sweatpants and a t-shirt, just throwing a hoodie on as he walked in.

“Hey, babe.” Peter says as MJ crosses to him, kissing him quickly and hugging him tightly. As he hugged MJ he saw you on the sofa with a smile and released his boyfriend.

“Hey y/n/n, you okay?” He asks, moving over to you as you stand up, allowing him to trap you in a tight hug.

“All good Pete. I just needed to talk to you.” You say, the nervousness seeping back into your tone. Peter looks back over his shoulder and silently asks MJ to give the two of you some privacy and sits you down on the sofa again.

“What’s up?” He asks softly, watching you with gentle yet worried eyes. He doesn’t force you to speak, he wants you to tell him whatever it is in your own time. You open and close your mouth a few times, trying to force yourself to get the words out. The rehearsals in your head clearly letting you down.

“I was wondering, if well- only if you want to of course I’m not forcing you. I was wondering if you want to, maybe, walk me down the aisle at my wedding?” You mumble quickly, eyes falling to the rug under the coffee table. The corner of the rug closest to you was fraying and you studied each individual fray as Peter remained deadly silent. Just as you opened your mouth to reiterated the point that he didn’t have to, he trapped you in a bone-crushing hug, squeezing you so tight and burying his face in your shoulder.

“I would love to. It would be an honour.” You heard his small voice say against your shoulder, his voice slightly muffled from being buried in your shoulder and his voice was also thick with tears but you heard him well enough.

“Really?” You ask as he moves away, holding you lightly by the shoulders and you could see the large grin on his face as well as the tears that had made their way down his cheeks.

“Yes, really. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this.” Peter says, eyes dropping slightly as you frown slightly at his words.

“I never really had a dad, Pete. In fact, I don’t remember anything about him at all. The closest I got to a father was Uncle Ben. But, you’ve always been there for me Pete. There’s no one else I know who I would want walking me down the aisle on my wedding day.” You say firmly yet gently, ducking your head slightly so you were in Peter’s eyeline, smiling softly when he finally looks at you. Peter opened his mouth to respond but instead found himself wrapping his arms around you once more and tugging you into his chest.

“God, you’re amazing.” You hear Peter mutter. You wanted to be snarky and agree with what he was saying about you but you knew he was saying it to himself so you let him have his moment to himself.

When the time came for your wedding you were terrified to say the least. You were sat in your dressing room, your maid of honour, Grace was in the room with you. She was constantly reassuring you that you looked gorgeous and that Charlie was a lucky man. Despite her words of comfort, you couldn’t stop your racing heart and nervous leg bouncing as you sat at the dressing table. You were so focused on staring at your own reflection before a knock on the door shook you out of your stupor. You used the reflection in the mirror to see who came in and you couldn’t stop the smile covering your face when you locked eyes with Peter. You quickly stood up and turned to face him.

“y/n, you look gorgeous. May’s going to sob buckets when she sees you.” Peter says as he approaches, tears shining in his own eyes.

“She cried the day I tried this dress on for the first time. She’s seen it before.” You laugh weakly, eyes flicking to the floor.

“She’ll still cry anyway.” Peter says as he glances over his shoulder when he hears the door slam, indicating to him that Grace had let herself out to give you and Peter a bit of privacy.

“I could hear your heart pounding from outside the building. Are you okay?” He asks worriedly, making you look up at him as you take a breath.

“I’m terrified, Pete. I shouldn’t be scared. This is supposed to be the happiest day of my life.” You state, tears building in your eyes as your voice shakes.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay. Come here.” Peter says quickly, bringing you into a hug. He wanted to be mindful of your makeup so didn’t hug you too tight or smush your face against his suit.

“It’s okay to be scared. Why don’t you tell me what it is that’s scaring you and I’ll help you as best I can.” Peter offers gently, guiding you to the dressing table once more and sitting you down on the chair, grabbing a spare chair nearby and pulling it alongside your chair, sitting next to you.

“I’m scared of leaving May. I don’t want her to feel like I’m leaving her behind for Charlie. And I’m terrified of the idea of marriage. It’s such a big step and what if Charlie stops loving me? I don’t want to lose him.” You ramble, Peter listening intently and understanding your point of view.

“I can tell you straight off the bat that you would never leave May behind. Okay, married life might get hectic but she’d understand, she loves you so much and all she wants is for you to be happy.” Peter starts, his words giving you the courage to look up at him as he smiles softly.

“For your second point. Marriage is a terrifying concept. I think everyone on earth could agree with that. As you said, it’s a big step, especially in a relationship and it’s bound to terrify anyone.” He continues, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and tugging you neatly against his side as you smile.

“And, Charlie loves you so much, I’ve seen the way he looks at you. But, if Charlie were to stop loving you, he would be a dumbass because anyone would be lucky to have you. He’d also maybe get a little visit from you know who as well.” Peter says, cracking a little joke at the end to make you laugh and beaming with pride when he gets the laugh he wanted. Before you could respond to Peter’s joke the door opened and Grace stuck her head in, smiling widely.

“They’re ready, come on.” She says excitedly, closing the door once she’s passed the message on so she can finish getting herself ready.

“Are you ready?” Peter asks, his eyes searching yours, the worry not even slightly hidden.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” You say with a sigh, nodding at his question.

“If you’re not ready we can take a minute to breathe and calm down, you don’t have to go out right now.” Peter assures, grabbing your wrist lightly as you begin to stand up.

“I’m okay, Pete.” You reply softly, smiling at him to put him at ease as he lets go of your wrist, standing up himself. Once you’ve given yourself a final check in the mirror, you let Peter lead you out of the dressing room and to the large double doors that your soon to be husband was on the other side of.

“We’ve got this, right Peter?” You ask, quickly glancing up at your brother as he nods before glancing down at you confidently. His exerting confidence filling you with confidence of your own.

“You’re damn right we got this. Let’s get you married.”

Your wedding went by without a hitch, you didn’t trip or embarrass yourself. You got through your vows without stammering, although you did tear up seeing the happy tears in Charlie’s eyes, only letting the tears fall when Charlie read you his own vows.

Now you were at your reception, you had the dinner and your first dance with Charlie and now the dance floor was open to everyone who wanted to dance as music blared over the speakers. People who weren’t in the mood to dance were sitting at tables around the edge sipping away at their drinks or engaging in conversation with each other. While Peter was chatting animatedly with MJ and Charlie’s best man, Luke, a familiar song starts playing and you move away from where you were standing with May and approached Peter.

“MJ, you don’t mind if I steal your boyfriend for a brother-sister dance do you?” You ask MJ as you hold your hand out to Peter, smiling at the three men at the table.

“Go for it.” MJ gestures, laughing as Peter accepts your hand and lets you haul him to his feet. You lead Peter to the dance floor and take Peter’s right hand in your left one, resting your right hand on his shoulder as his left hand rested on your middle, sniggering when you squirm after receiving a poke to the side.

“All these years and you’re still ticklish?” He teases as you sway side to side in time with the music.

“Laugh it up, Peter. I’ll just be sure to show MJ my absolute favourite baby picture of you.” You retort, laughing as Peter’s jaw drops in mock shock and offense.

“You wouldn’t dare.” He says with a laugh.

“Only if you force my hand.” You reply, smiling widely as the laughter between you quietened down.

“You know I’m so proud of you, right?” Peter’s gentle voice had your head shooting up to look at him.

“What?” You ask quietly, wondering to yourself if you misheard him.

“I’m so proud of you. You’ve achieved so much and I’m just so proud of you, you’re awesome.” He says, a proud smile on his face as you smile, tears filling your eyes.

“I’m proud of you too. You’ve dealt with way too much shit in your life and you’ve kept pushing and helping people around you without expecting anything in return. People always say their hero is Spider-Man. But I’ve always said my hero is Peter Parker.” You reply, smiling as Peter pulls you against his chest suddenly, wrapping your arms around him for a hug as he presses a kiss to the top of your head. You let Peter hug you for as long as he needed and when he pulled away you looked up to see the large smile on his face and happy tears in his eyes. Just then, the song played its final chord and ended as you laughed wetly.

“I’ll let you get back to your boyfriend now.” You say, stepping away from Peter. He nods slightly, glancing over his shoulder at where MJ was before looking back at you, eyes flicking to look over your shoulder and smiling to himself as he notices Charlie coming over.

“I’ll leave you in the care of your husband then, shall I?” He says, nodding his head towards Charlie as he wraps an arm around your waist, making you jump slightly. Peter gives you one last quick hug before heading over to MJ while you remain on the dance floor with Charlie, his hands on your waist as you dance lightly to the music.

After the wedding came the day Peter was dreading the most. The honeymoon. You were going to be gone for a whole painful week. He hadn’t gone a day in his life since you were born without seeing you. It had been drilled into him from a young age that he always had to look out for his little sister and keep her safe. Now all he could do was stand in the airport with May one side of him and MJ the other as you and Charlie stood in front of them, starting to say your goodbyes.

“Enjoy yourself my sweet girl. Take lots of photos for me. I want to be jealous once you’re back.” May says as she brings you into a tight hug, with you burying your face in her shoulder unconsciously as per usual.

“Of course I’ll take pictures for you May.” You say as you lift your head from her shoulder. You then release May from the hug and turn to MJ, smiling as he approaches you for a hug.

“I’m going to miss my favourite Parker.” He chuckles as he wraps you up in a hug, sniggering when you see Peter roll his eyes behind MJ’s back.

“Technically I’m not a Parker anymore.” You say as you reciprocate the hug.

“You’ll always be a Parker to me.” MJ then says dismissively as you laugh lightly.

“Look after him for me.” You whisper to MJ. Peter knew it was only meant for MJ’s ears but he couldn’t control what his superhearing picked up on. His emotions were already running all over the place but hearing your words made tears well in his eyes. When MJ moved away, nodding at your words as he stepped back and Peter stepped forward after a brief moment.

“It’s going to be weird not seeing you every day.” Peter starts, a weak attempt at a joke escaping his mouth because he didn’t know how to manage the bubbling emotions within him.

“The resort has Wi-Fi, Peter. I’ll only be a call or text away.” You say reassuringly, knowing how Peter can get when things are out of his control. He gets anxious, especially when its someone he cares about going away. He doesn’t want to control anyones life. He’s just terrified there will be a day Spider-Man won’t be around to save his loved ones. And that fear is excentuated right now because you weren’t going to be in the same country as him for a week.

“I’ll update you as often as I can, yeah?” You continue when Peter remains silent, shaking him out of his thoughts and making him nod with a small smile before he turns to Charlie.

“Look after her.” He says, trying his best not to let his overprotectiveness take over too much but also failing miserably.

“Of course I will Peter. I promised you that the day we told you we were dating and I don’t intend on breaking that promise now.” Charlie assures, smiling at your brother who nods.

“Bring it in Pete.” You then say, pulling Peter into a hug and allowing him to bury his face in your shoulder as his shoulders shake from trying to hold in his tears.

“I’ll be fine. I’ll be back and annoying you in a weeks time and you’ll find yourself missing the time I was gone.” You tease, making Peter laugh weakly as he pulls away, the tears gleaming under the bright airport lights. Before Peter could respond, Charlie whispers your name.

“y/n, love. We should probably make a move, that security queue isn’t looking short.” He says, glancing over at the queue that was slowly gaining more and more people. You nod at his words before turning back to Peter, wrapping him up into a final quick hug.

“We’ll see you guys in a week.” You say brightly, taking Charlies hand in yours and your free hand grabbed your suitcase and both you and Charlie said one final farewell to your family before turning to follow the other airport attendees into the security queue.

Peter kept his eyes trained on you as you disappeared into the crowd of eager travellers, his ears picking up your heartbeat and listening to it intently until it blended into the sea of other heartbeats as you rounded a corner. Only then did he allow his tears to flow, allowing MJ to bring him into a hug as he wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s middle.

“I’m gonna miss her so much.” He whispers against MJ’s shoulder, his face buried as he tries to slow his tears at least a little.

“I know you will, love. But she’ll be back soon enough.” MJ replies sweetly, lifting a hand to run it through the hair at the nape of Peter’s neck, messing with it gently to try and ground Peter and calm him down.

“She’ll be back before you even know she’s gone, sweetheart.” May adds on gently, rubbing a hand on Peter’s shoulder as he lifts his head to meet her gaze. He nods his head slightly, digging his chin into MJ’s shoulder with each downwards motion. Once Peter had calmed down enough to leave the airport, he cast one last glance in the direction you had gone in with your husband, a teary smile on his face. Peter was so happy for you, you met the man of your dreams and now you officially tied the knot. He was the proudest big brother in the world and he was more than willing to fight people for the title because in his eyes he had the best sister who was finally getting all the good things she had always deserved.

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thatonebirdwrites · 5 months ago

Text

I will be blunt and honest here. First I want to address how I Feel in general: I'm tired.

I am legit tired of everything in society being coded as male or female. I can't even find a bathroom that isn't binary coded, and so I'm left flipping a coin as to which one is safer to enter. If I enter the wrong one, I could have my life threatened or worse.

I'm legit tired of people misgendering me, of people erasing nonbinary genders, of people telling me I don't understand my own mind and need to "choose a gender already."

I'm legit exhausted by getting death threats if I dare to exist too long in binary-gender spaces or if I give a presentation on trans topics. (Time for an annual bonfire to burn the death threats I guess? How I'm still alive is a mystery for another day. I guess Death and I got a pact now.)

I'm tired of publishers sending back my story with notes that read: "I don't understand why your protagonist must be nonbinary. It's not essential to the plot. Please choose either male or female and resubmit." (Yes, this is legit feedback I've gotten before. Because apparently, people like me aren't allowed to exist in stories unless our gender is crucial to the plot. Which is transphobia and is emotional violence by the way.)

Secondly, I want to address how people, even those in the trans community, treat nonbinary people.

Many people don't believe me when I say nonbinary. Sure, they say they accept me. They say they will use my "preferred pronouns" most of the time. But the moment the think I'm out of earshot? When they don't think I can hear them? They default to whatever gender they assigned me -- either male or female. If they knew me before I came out nonbinary, this will always be female. If they new me after I started Testosterone, they will default to male.

How do I know it's not a mistake?

when they slip up in front of me, they turn it into a drama production. This is unnecessary. Just correct and move on please. I don't need a 62 apology pick-up please.

When they think I'm out of earshot, they, without fail, revert to the binary pronoun they have assigned to me. They won't use my correct pronouns once. Even if someone corrects them.

And that's how I know they don't believe I am nonbinary and don't actually care about me as a person.

It doesn't matter that I have not once in my life ever been male. It doesn't matter that I'm not female. Sure, I have had the doctor, when I was a baby, look at my genitalia and slap an F on my birth certificate.

When I write it like that, it sounds horrible, doesn't it? But that's the fucked up system we use to assign binary genders. It doesn't matter that doctors are not infallible and can be wrong, and hell, they will even force unnecessary surgeries on babies in order to force ambiguous genitalia to fit a binary gender (this horrendous practice is still allowed in some places on intersex people).

Society wraps everything we do, wear, say, and how we look into gender. I am still on that unlearning journey myself, and if we truly wish to be allies for each other, we need to unlearn that shit. So when I say I'm nonbinary? When I try to switch up how I present myself?

I get what feels like a pat on the head. Or some people whispering of how I'm still figuring things out.

No, I am, the fuck, not.

Nonbinary is not some transitional state between the binary genders, and yet I encounter people who think this -- even within the trans community! Please exorcise that from your thinking.

Nonbinary is a diverse galaxy of other genders that are not male or female.

In fact, gender itself is a galaxy of infinite potential. The gender binary doesn't exist.

It doesn't even exist within our biology. There are up to six possible chromosome combinations, and when you pair that with the primary and secondary sex characteristics, you can end up with more than fifty possible combinations. So our biology is highly diverse.

Yet our society tries to take these complex and diverse systems and shove it into a very narrow binary. This causes harm to all of us, and it's something we need to unlearn.

Unlearning will be messy. We will make mistakes, and that's okay. Give yourself some grace. Just correct yourself, listen to others, do your research, and most of all do better.

Be accepting of nonbinary people who may not present the way you were taught they "ought" to present.

"Androgyny" is often presented by our culture as skinny, someone with little to no body or facial hair, hair cut short, masculine dress, and pitch that's an low alto. Not all nonbinary people will present that way, nor should nonbinary people be forced to present that way.

There is no one way to present your nonbinary gender. Wear whatever the fuck you want. Wear makeup or not. Wear your hair long or not. Wear your hair in whatever style you want.

Nonbinary people can present in any way. Body hair, facial hair (or no), shape of face, pitch of voice, length of hair, shape of body, genitals, etc. -- none of these parts of our bodies are male or female.

Our culture tries to take body parts and shove it into these binary categories, then our culture socializes us to automatically gender people by looking for these body parts (an unconscious thing by the time we become adults).

So we must actively unlearn these problematic associations with body parts.

My body is nonbinary. Yet people will look at me, see specific body parts or hear my voice, and assign me a binary gender against my will. Then one of three things happen:

1. either they try to undo that mentally by verifying my gender and respecting it OR

2. pretend like they give a fuck by using correct pronouns to my face, only to stab me in the back when they think I'm out of earshot by misgendering me to others. OR

3. they refuse to acknowledge nonbinary genders are real and just use whatever binary pronouns they decided to assign to me thus misgendering me to my face.

I used to just joke about it, but the more I think about it?

The more I want to call out this form of emotional violence. I shouldn't have to put up with it all the time. I shouldn't have to joke to ease the pain of it.

Misgendering me and/or not accepting I'm nonbinary is like taking a piece of who I am and putting it through a shredder, then wondering why I'm hurting afterward.

I specifically say 'emotional violence' because negating who a person is? That's harmful. That cuts deep. And when it keeps happening over and over and over and over and over?

Now I'm riddled with a thousand cuts, all of them bleeding, and I can't bandage them fast enough. So I slowly start to bleed out over time. That emotional and psychological burden weighs heavy, and no amount of "positivity" is going to erase the trauma from the endless negation of who I am as a person.

Misgender is negating who a person is, and that is violence. Do not misgender anyone. Always do your best to verify pronouns and use those for that person.

So what if the person turns out to be evil? Do Not Misgender Them.

The Collateral violence of misgendering doesn't just affect the person you are misgendering -- it affects all trans people and people questioning their gender. Misgendering cuts them up inside too, and makes them less likely to trust you. It creates a less safe world, one predicated on continuing a cycle of violence.

So let's stop that cycle.

Firstly, don't misgender people. Not even as a joke against whoever you decided is evil.

Secondly, unlearn associating gender with every single attribute, okay? It will be better over all for all of us.

Not every body part needs to be associated with gender. Not every pitch of voice. Not every style of clothing. Not every like or dislike.

We must decouple gender from everything known to humanity. This isn't to say we need a genderless world. Instead, let's build a world where we allow gender to be a galaxy of diversity, where we no longer classify people based on strict, problematic binary tropes invented by our society.

Unlearn that cultural bias. Unlearn this need to automatically shove people into binary genders against their will.

I am going to yell this bit because even trans people don't seem to get this sometimes:

You Cannot Tell Someone's Gender By Looking At Them.

You simply can't. The moment you do? You are engaging in unconscious bias and could be misgendering them.

The only way to ever determine someone's gender is by asking them.

Then verify their pronouns and use the pronouns they give you.

And no, these are not "preferred" pronouns either. These are our pronouns period. They are not an opt-in pronouns for when you feel kind enough to throw us a bone. They are our pronouns, and not using them is misgendering us. And that is emotional violence.

I know folks don't like it when I am this blunt, but I'm fucking tired.

I'm tired of dealing with this for years on end, even from my own community.

How I present myself does not give anyone the right to shove me into a binary gender and misgender me.

I'm nonbinary.

I use they/them/their or vi/vem/vir pronouns.

These are not optional pronouns.

Please respect nonbinary people. Do your best to use our correct pronouns, and if you feel yourself slip up, correct yourself and move on.

We will make mistakes as we unlearn the shitty transphobia that society forced on us.

And it's okay to make mistakes!

Just don't dig in and refuse to do better.

Consider this your invitation to join me on this rocky path of unlearning genderification (what I call the societal process of putting everything that exists into gender binary boxes.)

Embrace instead the wonders of diversity. Where gender is a galaxy of wonder that is just one attribute of our diverse selves. Where we accept people's gender identities, and do our best to respect their name and pronouns. This builds up safety and trust.

But also, allow one another grace to mess up. To learn and do better. No is perfect. Do not expect perfection.

We are all messy, imperfect, and absolutely beautiful human beings. We are all worthy of love, respect, dignity, and acceptance. Don't settle for any less.

❗️❗️ This is asked entirely in good faith. This post is intended to open dialogue and help with solidarity and understanding. ❗️❗️

I would like to hear specifically from nonbinary people how the system of exorsexism/enbyphobia uniquely targets and affects you. Things that you feel other demographics do not experience. Reblogs and replies are very encouraged! If you would prefer, you could dm or send an ask to be added anonymously by me.

This is in the spirit of wanting to understand. I am listening. I encourage all binary trans people to not speak on this topic and let nonbinary people do the talking here. Reblog the post to spread it, but please say nothing.

Any and all people who identify as nonbinary are encouraged to participate. This is not agab-locked. If you are agender, trans neutral/neutrois, genderfluid, bigender, trigender, multigender, xenogender, genderqueer, third gender, two spirit, or any other gender not wholey contained within the strict binary of "man" or "woman", this post is for you. Even if you have already posted on the trans fem or trans masc versions, if you are nonbinary, you are welcome here.

This is not bait to start a fight. I will block without hesitation anyone who is actively being a shithead on this post. I want to hear and uplift your voices by getting it directly from you.

Click this to access the trans fem and trans women version of this post.

Click this to access the trans masc and trans men version of this post.

#nonbinary #a rant of sorts #whoops I wrote an essay #i'm just so tired y'all #tired of being misgendered #tired of people treating me like I don't understand my own gender or mind #tired of people seeing nonbinary erasure #tired of the misgendering #tired of not being able to find a bathroom because everything is coded as male or female #tired of not being able to go out in public for fear of transphobes threatening my life #I'm tired

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dumplinshee · 3 years ago

Text

Maid Cafe (Frankie Morales x Reader)

character: Frankie Morales - Triple Frontier

summary : There's a new maid cafe in town, and Frankie and his friends had to check it out!

word count : 1.2k

warnings : the reader wears a maid outfit, reader is thick :3 , implied age gap (not specified), no use of y/n, reader uses they/them, slight fluff!

comments : i actually wrote this for someone else, but since i don’t write for them anymore, i revamped it to fit Frankie! theres another old one that i would like to fit into one of Pedro’s characters but i’m still debating on who hehe lil sneek peek of it, picnic date! (also ill fix the divider thing at the end later sorry!)

Masterlist // Taglist

Ben learned of a maid cafe that had recently opened, and that it had already received positive feedback the first week it was open, with customers stating that the cafe is pleasant, has great food, and the maids themselves are all pretty. So it was only natural for Benny to invite the guys to the intriguing cafe.

The moment they enter, two maids welcomed them, adressing them as ‘masters’. One of the two approached them with a welcoming smile, escorting them to their seats, dismissing themself after giving them the menu.

They paused to take in their surroundings. The walls are painted light pink, while the floor and ceiling are white. Surprisingly, despite the bright colors, the room feels welcoming and pleasant. The cream chairs and tables also help to pull the space together. There's also a showcase of delectable desserts, including a variety of cakes and ice cream flavors. The waitresses themselves are dressed in different pastel colored maid outfits.

After a few moments, you approached them and introduced yourself as their maid. You go on to describe the cafe's set norms as well as the various amusements guests can order, such as a photograph with a maid of their choice. After you'd finished talking, you asked the guys whether they were ready to order, and you took it when they said yes.

“This place is pretty legit, huh. I feel out of place here.” Will states, the others nodding in agreement. As the guys conversed, Frankie eyed you from across the room. The light blue outfit you wore fitting your form to a T. You were chubbier than the rest of the maids, but to Frankie, that just made it better.

"Quit it, you know you're not allowed to make moves on the maids," the others said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“What? "All I'm doing is staring."

"We all know you're going to flirt with them as soon as they come back."

"I'm not going to, but it wouldn't hurt to look."

"Suure, suure, oh wait! Isn't there a way to request a photo with them? Why don't you get one?"

"That's a little excessive."

"Oh, come on, it's just a photo, what could possibly go wrong?"

The conversation came to a halt as they notice your figure approaching their table, laying their orders on the table. Every meal was cutely adorned, with sauces drawn in the shape of animals while the drinks sprinkled with edible glitter. “Wait, before you go, we’d like to request a pic with you.”

Frankie glares at Will, perplexed. “Of course, you can! One of each, yes?”

“Nope, only one, with him.” He triumphantly declares, pointing to a flustered Frankie. You smile lightly, informing them that the picture will be taken after payment is made.

“You. Are. Welcome.” Frankie looks at him, puzzled and slightly enraged. “For what? Embarrasing me?”

“Oh please! It’s a good chance to woo them.”

“Did you forget the fact that i’m not allowed to?”

“Forget the rules! They could be the one or something.”

“When did you get all sappy.”

“Relax, Fish. Just take the damn pic, Will’s paying anyway.” Santi suggests. “Wait, what do you mean im paying?!”

"It's only fair; it was your idea, and you're forcing him to carry it out."

Will sighs, “Fine.”

As they ultimately delved into their meal, the topic faded from their minds. Frankie can't help but be nervous. He hasn't dated anyone in a long time, let alone someone like you. Innocent, young and cute, a mere opposite of him.

You visit the four men's table after they've finished their meals, asking how their food tastes and offering them the check while you lay the empty dishes on the tray. You nod gratefully as you accept their pleasant responses and the check, remembering to smile as you depart from their table.

While waiting for their payment to be processed, your gaze is drawn to the man with whom you are about to take a picture. You take note of his features; his cap, which had been off while he ate, had already been reapplied, concealing his dark brown curls. His mustache was neat, yet his scruff was uneven but rather appealing. But there's something about his dark brown eyes that draws you in. His looks appears rugged at first, but if you look into those eyes, you'll notice a gentleness radiating from him.

The ding of the register jolts you out of your reverie, and you compose yourself before returning to their table. "I apologize for the delay; we can take the picture now!"

You motion them to follow you to another room, where they will find a small studio. You explain how this will work to Frankie, "Before we shoot the picture, I'll let you pick out any props or accessories you'd like me or yourself to use. After the photo is taken, I'll personalize the photo for you using stickers and markers. If you let me of course!"

Frankie gives you a quiet nod and a little grin to put you at ease. He walks up to the table, which is laden with props and accessories, and the others follow. "Put these ears on!" Ben made a suggestion.

Ben removed his cap and clipped the dog ears into his hair before Frankie could even refuse, while Santi handed you the cat ears. "Do you want me to put the collar on as well?" "No!" Frankie screamed, eyes wide. " It's all right!" He averted his gaze to hide his blush.

"Is that all for the accessories?" you inquire, slightly adjusting your dress. Frankie nods once again, afraid that if he speaks, his words would betray him.

Nodding, you gesture him to the set, encouraging him to strike a pose. He hesitantly raises one hand to form a paw, smiling as the photographer takes the image, ignoring the guys' laughs. You dash to the photographer to get the photograph and present it to Frankie. "Is it all you'd like it to be?" "It looks all right." “Great! I'll go ahead and decorate it right now; don't worry, I'll be quick!" Before approaching the desk with the decorating supplies, give him a friendly grin.

You attach the light blue and light brown stickers to match both your clothing, as well as draw a few mini cats and dogs to fit the motif, returning your gaze at the men before you place something else on the back of the picture. You quickly dry the photo by fanning it, wrapping it in a protective film then placing it in a small envelope. Last but not least, you sign your name and a 'come back soon!' on the front of the letter.

“Here it is! I'll take you all to the entrance now!" You hand Frankie the envelope and head for the door as he takes it. "Thank you very much for taking the time to come by! We look forward to seeing you again soon!" You smile as you wave at them and watch them fade away.

He finally arrives at his own house after dropping off his pals at their homes. He took out the letter and opened it, sighing as he sat on his couch, appreciating your gorgeous self as well as your pretty writing and decoration. He was about to put it back in the envelope when he finally noticed the back.

Hi! Here’s my number! Call me! <3

#pedro pascal #pedro pascal fluff #frankie morales #frankie morales fluff #frankie morales x reader #frankie morales imagine #triple frontier #triple frontier imagine #triple frontier fluff #frankie morales triple frontier #catfish morales

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svchengss · 3 years ago

Text

king of hearts | d.sc

PAIRING. dong sicheng x reader

GENRE. high school!au, fluff, slight angst, kind of e2l

WARNINGS. none (lmk if i missed any!)

WORD COUNT. 6.7k

SUMMARY. sicheng’s subtle flirts are not working effectively but it only motivates him to try and woo you more. the devil sure works hard but dong sicheng works harder.

PLAYLIST. king of hearts

TAGLIST. @floraljae @clovdless @mashiihearts @ndr1271 @kunrengui (shoutout to mashi for being a major help in the process of writing this <3)

// just to let you guys know, reblogs and feedbacks are appreciated !! thank you for reading :D

music was blaring through the multiple loudspeakers scattered around the school grounds, booths of various interests that were set-up by the clubs being swarmed by visitors and ecstatic oohs and aahs from the ones playing games can be heard intermittently. the annual school festival of redlands high, an event that is looked forward to by every single student there. or maybe not, you’re quite unsure of the self-made data.

you immediately made a beeline to the dance club booth which is managed by yangyang, the president also holding the title of your best friend. a cartoonish grin crept up on his face when he spots you walking towards him.

“so, what do you think? looks legit, huh?” he crossed his arms together, observing the design of the booth with a proud smile. the set-up is definitely eye-catching, not much decorations going on, adding to the simplicity of the white theme with gold touch-ups. you browsed through the plastered posters on the board, inviting people to sign up for their upcoming audition. looking up to the signboard hanging outside, you showed a thumbs up towards him, muttering a quick ‘perfect’.

“so what exactly is your booth doing? there’s not much… activity going on?” you scratched the non-existent itch on your left eyebrow. the boy in front of you gave you an eye roll before explaining that there will be mini dance games - or just dance as he worded. an amused sound left your lips as you bent down, dropping your signature in the guestbook on the wooden table.

“are you coming to the stage shows tonight? i heard there’s a new band performing,” your ears perked up instinctively upon hearing the words. after your sister graduated high school, nobody paid any attention to keep the band going. the zikas, a trio that made the music club strive back then. either the newer batches were too lazy to make an effort or too scared if they weren’t up to the already high standards of the school.

“i’m going if you’re going,” you simply stated, which made yangyang flash you the same grin from before. you said your simple goodbyes when people started lining up to try the just dance game at his booth. after he reminded you to wait for him by the statue, you went off to check out the food sales, eager to fill your growling stomach since this morning.

you can do this, sicheng. you can do this.

he made sure to double check the tuning of his guitar for one last time before joining the rest of his bandmates on the stage. his tall and slim physique surely left an impact, seeing that some of the audience suddenly became more invested in the performance compared to the others. he’s wearing some band’s shirt - probably green day since it’s quite similar to your sister’s posters in her room, black leather jacket and his black hair middle parted. not to miss the silver pendant necklace on his neck, sparkling under the spotlight.

the moment he struck the pick through the strings of his electric guitar, the drummer and bassist followed after, producing a melody that is pleasing to your ears. he held the microphone closer to his mouth, singing the lyrics as you bobbed your head up and down to the covers they sang - american idiot and helena are the ones you recognized since you’ve heard the songs so often. yangyang on the other hand kept on sipping the chocolate milkshake in his hand, vibing with the music as well.

the next song was a sentimental one which you assumed is a self-composed one, since you’ve never heard this song before. before you know it, the performance is over and the audience have started packing up their belongings to hang out somewhere else or go home.

“good job everyone, we did well,” yuta, who played the bass earlier, high-fived the rest of the band with a sly grin on his face. guanheng chugged the mineral water down his throat before stashing his drumsticks into the bag while sicheng was lost in his thoughts. he doesn’t know why but you stood out from the crowd, only able to see you just now. he wouldn’t say it’s a crush, not knowing anything about you but it definitely made him feel something. a trigger in his heart, not knowing where it leads to. but what he does know is that you caught his attention.

“and you know what he said? i’ll come back crawling to him just like his other exes. what the heck is even that?” you took out the binders from your locker while listening to ningning rant about her love life. since you haven’t had any relationships before, you’re not really a professional in this aspect of life so you just kept your mouth shut to avoid giving useless advice.

“that sounds so rude, he’s such a jerk,” you commented, taking the first bite of your sandwich afterwards. the tea-spilling session eventually came to an end when she reached her class first and you kept walking to mrs. walker’s, english being your first period. nothing exciting really happened in that class except someone got their phone confiscated for texting in class - just the usual things. classes later, it’s finally recess when you met up with ningning and yangyang in the cafeteria.

“first of all, cut him off. block him. everywhere,” yangyang emphasized the last word, knowing how much of an idiot the guy can be. you just scrolled through your socials, double tapping on certain posts that caught your eye. owning a cat looks fun, you made a mental note to bring the idea to your parents later. the bell rang which signals that classes are starting back soon and the same cycle of events continues before it’s time to go home.

you observed yangyang’s sharp moves, following to the beat of the song echoing in the dance room. it’s currently half past seven and he’s still here, beads of sweat running through his hair. and why would he stay in school so late, you may ask? obviously, he’s here for a reason and it being an upcoming dance tournament is the most accurate one. while you’re here, sitting on the floor, back against the mirror and legs straightened out with your phone in your hand. it amazes you how the goofy boy transforms 360°, being all serious when he’s in his element.

“let’s go home, i’m tired already,” he panted out breathlessly, using a cloth nearby to wipe his sweaty forehead. you wait for him by the glass door as he packs up his things when the lights in the music studio also switched off. you wondered it must be the band guys so you paid no attention whatsoever. of course, your predictions were right when you saw two lads stepping out.

since yangyang is taking too much time tidying up the dance studio and the music studio seems unoccupied, you decided to check it out for a bit. it’s been a long time since you last entered the room, always accompanying your sister for her extra practice when you were younger. not much has changed, except some additions of instruments can be seen. not seeing anything in the dark condition as the room is only illuminated by the faint lights from the hallway, you pushed the switches down only to be met by a gasp.

“what are you doing here?” the tall boy approached you, a stern look visible on his fine features. your eyes scrambled around the room in an attempt to find any logical excuses for your ‘break-in’ but to no avail. your tongue was dry, not a sound escaping your throat when you heard yangyang’s voice, signalling your cue to exit the room and escape from the tension building between you and the boy. he just shook his head, the black hair bouncing left to right as he finally caught on.

it’s you, you’re the girl from the crowd. and your name is y/n.

the walk home was filled with one-sided conversations where yangyang kept on babbling about how he should improve the choreography he created earlier while you only added small comments. your mind is filled with embarrassment, too much that you feel slightly mad at yourself. why didn’t you say anything earlier? now, you look like a complete idiot with communication issues in front of that boy.

“yeah, and remember that pasta? we should definitely try it again, it’s like, so good,” yangyang said, earning a nod from you when you saw the boy from last night’s music studio tragedy approaching your table. you tried to look away but it was too late.

“dude, just wanna let you know that mr. park is seeing us after school,” your grip on your fork loosens up when you realized he wasn’t talking to you. maybe he forgot about the incident? you really hope so.

“yeah, totally. thanks sicheng,” yangyang playfully winked at the latter, earning a disgusted look from him who started walking away. he glanced back at you with a smug smile on his plump lips, making you freeze up again.

he didn’t.

“are you okay, y/n? feeling sick?” ningning furrowed her eyebrows upon seeing your sudden change of demeanor. you shrugged her off and continued to consume the macaroni placed on the tray in front of you, mentally cursing at yourself for the poor life choice you’d made. well, at least you know that his name is sicheng, right?

oh boy, you’re in for a long ride.

you can’t wait to go home and snuggle under the covers, today has been a long and tiring one for you. you had three pop quizzes as if all the three teachers intended so, your class had to run multiple laps during p.e. and so on. you’re already planning your routine in your head, trudging your way to the lockers when you saw him leaning against yours, scrolling down his phone.

“crap,” you muttered under your breath.

there it is, the smirk on his face returns when he spots your figure approaching. oh, how you wish you could wipe it off his face. he moved a couple steps backwards to give you some space to arrange your things before locking it, turning your head towards him.

“i’m sorry, why are you here again? and if it’s because of last night, then i’m sorry if it bothered you or anything,” you huffed out.

“what? i didn’t really care, it’s not like you were stealing anything, right?” he squinted his eyes, eyeing you up and down suspiciously, laughing shortly after seeing you get riled up.

“damn, you really need to learn how to take a joke. y/n, right? i’m sicheng, nice to meet you.”

“why exactly are we having this meet-and-greet or whatever this introduction is?” you crossed your arms, waiting for his response. but he didn’t, immediately turning on his heels and making his way towards the stairs, probably going to the studio.

“jerk,” you cursed under your breath, walking out the school building.

“what? you got accepted? seriously?” ningning’s voice echoed against the cafeteria walls, earning surprised and annoyed glances from other students who were either satisfying their grumbling stomach or simply having conversations. yangyang softly nudged her elbows using his, asking her to lower her voice down before telling you to go on. you were quite surprised as well, the acceptance email was not what you expected to receive. when you filled in the application form, it was just a mere shoot-your-shot agenda to see if you’d make the cut. although this is just a camp, you’re still unsure of what lies ahead.

“yeah, it starts next week. but i’m so nervous though,” you sipped the iced coffee in your hands. you’ve only watched videos of people producing their own music from scratch which you start to take an interest in. however, you’ve never done it hands-on before, only having basic music theory knowledge thanks to the piano lessons your parents signed you up for when you were young.

“you’ll do awesome, i promise,” yangyang gave you a reassuring smile, making you release some tension from the overthinking you’ve had since you received the email last night.

“thanks yang.”

now, here you are on the first day of attending the internship camp. you stood in front of the tall mirror hanging on the wall, straightening your cardigan and applying some makeup onto your face as touch-ups. it’s currently 7:40 in the morning, the earliest time you’ve ever woken up on a saturday. your siblings are still swallowed in their states of sleep. you double-checked the contents in your tote bag, making sure that no important things are left behind. you totally don’t intend on leaving a bad first impression on your first day.

after bidding a swift goodbye to your parents who just woke up, you drove your mother’s old honda to the completely new destination - mbyte studios. the tall building with light grey and blue painted walls definitely made it stand out, a futuristic look catching the eyes of the passersby. taking a deep breath, you entered the main lobby before being escorted to a room on the second floor. you assume it’s a waiting room for all participants of the camp, scanning that majority of the occupiers might be college students. you thanked god that the camp takes place on weekends so your high school senior life won’t be interrupted that much.

DAY 1

your eyes widened when you spot sicheng with the same white and blue tag you’re wearing, seated on the sofa. what the hell is he doing here? you avoided acknowledging his presence, trying to make yourself as unnoticed as possible heading over to occupy the seat farthest from his. after quite some time staring at the paintings hanging on the wall, a middle-aged lady with a petite figure entered the room, making you sit up straight.

“welcome to mbyte studios! i’m the assistant director, mrs. hwang. first and foremost, congratulations on being accepted. it’ a pleasure to witness the start of your musical journey embarking here. i believe that we should know each other first?” she gestured for any volunteers. sicheng stood up from his seat, charisma evident in his stance which left quite an impression on the others. the strong confidence in the way he speaks made the woman smile amusingly.

some names later, it was your turn to introduce yourself. the moment you stood up, he immediately recognized you and you were sure you caught him making some faces. the ice-breaking session went well thankfully, mrs. hwang elaborating on the social rules and the itinerary throughout the whole six days. one that caught your attention was assisting the producers on making a track from scratch, just like you had dreamed of.

when it was finally time for lunch break, you shot up from your seat to get away from sicheng as fast as possible but to your dismay, he beat you to it, jogging up towards your standing position.

“i didn’t know you were into music, what’s the sudden occasion?”

“it’s none of your business actually,” you sneered back, obviously not favouring his attention.

“woah, relax. you’ve got quite a temper, don’t you? by the way, we’re having lunch together,” he placed his phone onto a nearby table, pulling a chair for you.

“just eat on your own, i don’t have the appetite,” you flash a sarcastic grin before disappearing into the women’s restroom. he just laughed bitterly at your response before walking towards the food counter, joining his newly made friend, jaehyun. being the same age, they’re easy to click.

DAY 2

“today, we’ll be focusing on the recording process. you’ll be assigned into groups that will have a tour of the whole department. our staff will facilitate each group,” the manager said loud and clear. you remembered his name was johnny. the tattoo on his shoulder really stands out, considering the fact that he’s always wearing a sleeveless shirt.

but what are the odds when your groupmate is none other than the guy himself, sicheng. it’s like the universe truly resented you for having to be associated with him at any event. your group was escorted to the farthest recording studio on the floor. to say that this was a great experience is truly an understatement, making you observe the gears used in astonishment. you hate to admit it but sicheng has a handful of knowledge on this particular topic, always correctly answering the questions directed by the staff. maybe it wasn’t quite surprising upon knowing that his career choice is a singer, not that you care anyways.

again, nothing out of the ordinary happened today, except that you and sicheng had lunch on the same table. of course, it’s not that you accepted his offer but he welcomed himself to the spot. being the quickly favoured participant among the rest, obviously they welcomed him with open hands. he placed himself among the two guys sitting at the right corner, eyeing you whose eyes are still not leaving the article you were skimming through. with the last spoon of food shoved into your mouth, you quietly excused yourself from the group. sicheng just watched your movements in subtle signs of annoyance.

with the final task of doing microphone check-ups, day two of the camp ended with a breeze. you can’t wait to go home, get into a warm bath and spend the night watching netflix. it was a tiring one indeed but you’re not one to complain. pushing the car keys into the ignition slot, the sound of the engine starting is still nowhere to be heard even after a couple of retries. you rested your forehead onto the steering wheel, cursing silently in your head, having to get a taxi and call your mother about this incident. you’re sure to be receiving a handful from her, not to mention her soft but stingful remarks.

“hey, are you okay?” a deep voice interrupts your stressful state of mind. looking up, it’s sicheng with a concerned look on display. you hesitantly shared your problem, making him press his lips together probably thinking of a solution.

“you know, i don’t really know how to fix your broken engine or whatever but i know someone who can. let me just ring him for a sec. and you’re coming home with me.”

and that’s how you ended up in the front passenger seat, sicheng steering with one hand and the other rested on the windowsill. the faint music from the radio can be heard, probably a song by jon vinyl. you’d steal quick glances to see his other hand dancing in the air, enjoying the rhythm of the song playing. besides that, it was silent as both of you are preoccupied with your own things - sicheng on the road while you on your phone. he tried to make small talk but you would say it’s unrequited, only replying with short sentences. after a good ten minutes drive, the sight of your brown painted gate becomes a sign for him to stop the moving car.

“your car is safe with my friend so you shouldn’t worry about it or anything. also, what’s your number? it’ll be easier for, you know the car business of course,” he reached over to unbuckle your seatbelt, handing over his phone to you after. the close proximity made your breath hitch, the dewy scent of his perfume diffusing into your nose. not too strong, he has a good taste.

“thanks and um, i’ll buy you a drink later. just for today.”

“are you asking me on a date?” there it is, the significant tug on the side of his lips making its presence once again.

“stop being so narcissistic and move along please,” you rolled your eyes before giving him a small wave, stepping into your property. sicheng stared at the numerals on his phone screen, a small, proud grin etched on before driving off the lane.

“how was the camp? met any cute boys?” the first thing you hear in the hue of the blue monday morning is ningning’s chirpy voice. sometimes you wonder how she gets all boosted up at this hour of the day. yangyang is the polar opposite, his appearance as if he just got out of bed, the hood of his denim jacket resting on top of his auburn hair.

“it was good and no, no cute boys. but sicheng was there,” you replied nonchalantly, a mischievous grin crept onto her lips. you can almost predict the words that are going to spill out of her mouth.

“what’s up with her?” yangyang yawned, his eyes lazily gaze at you. you just lifted your shoulders, having no idea whatsoever. a ping sound was heard from your phone, notifying that a new message is received.

unknown: hey sicheng here

unknown: ur car may be ready tmr. want me to drive u there?

listening to your heart, you were about to type ‘no’ but remembering the fact that your parents will be busy the whole day tomorrow and yangyang is coming home late once again, you have no choice but to accept the lad’s help.

now you’re back in his vehicle, the same spot as before. you’ve only noticed now that a musical note charm is hung on the rearview mirror, a semiquaver to be exact. you’d say that it looks authentic, gold specks shining when sun rays hit the surface. observing the interior of his car, there are quite a number of small decorations.

“can we get coffee first? my treat for the car and the ride,” you suggested, looking at him whose eyes are focused onto the road. the traffic is quite pleasing today, nobody honking mindlessly at the other drivers and flipping each other off with the famous middle finger gesture. his side profile does look charming, some type of earrings dangling from his ears. if you’re going to be honest, his appearance does seem to be your type. you’re not one to say about his persona though, always managing to bother you at any time of the day.

“sure, wanna go to the new cafe? i heard it’s good,”. you just nodded while he skillfully steered the steering wheel, moving the car to the new destination. you turned your eyes to look outside from the car window, seeing the one hundred and one manners of the citizens. a mother struggling to take her child who’s having a tantrum out of the toy shop, a young couple having their romantic meal in the french cafe. the motion of the car stopping awakened you who was being distracted by your clouded mind.

from the moment you stepped into the place, the interior caught your attention. the light brown painted walls with black furniture complementing each other perfectly, making a retro-like appearance. the funky song playing faintly in the background surely is a mood-setter, just how you like it. even the barista serving you is being friendly, making a couple of small talk in the midst of operating the machines.

you would say that it was a pleasureful day for you. the exquisite taste of latte washing down your dry throat, getting your car back without too much babbling from your dear mother and the gap between you and sicheng closing in for a little.

the last sentence baffled you for a second.

DAY 3

sicheng’s eyes shot open from the short slumber he was trying to get - failing miserably even, upon spotting you enter through the door. he pulled the chair beside him in hopes for you to get his message and take the seat. a frown made its way onto his face when you just waved at him, making your way to another spot a few chairs to the front. he scoffed, head tilting slightly before approaching you instead. you shot him a puzzled look, roughly translating to ask him what he’s doing here.

“i just want to be close to you. now focus,” he redirected his eyes onto the muscular man who just entered the room. he’s a songwriter - the best one in this company to be exact. you were focused on each point he explained, making small notes on your laptop. it’s not always that you’ll get a chance to be guided by a four-time award winning songwriter, might as well gain some benefits from it.

“another tip i have is to use all types of chords. remember, do not stick to the same ones, you’ll lack creativity. for instance, use major, minor, dominant, diminished, and augmented. i promise you, more ideas will be flowing and better quality songs will be produced. you got me?” the questioned, earning buzzing sounds of positive responses from the hall.

DAY 4

another day of group work, you’re given the task to create a melody according to the themes given - for your group, it’s love. looking at sicheng, he’s already on his electric guitar, strumming mindlessly to find the perfect note to start on. the rest of you are now juicing out some thoughts on this particular sense of human nature.

“love gives us thrill, the feeling of excitement, the feeling when you’re uncertain about something but when you have that special someone with you, you’re sure to wing it all,” jaehyun suggests, earning nods of approval from the rest of your groupmates.

“you’re a pro at this, mr. romantic,” you teased him, earning a soft chuckle. a dimpled smile is etched onto his features, rosy cheeks and his eye smile making you fawn. prince-like visual and a sense of humour? a two in one package, totally.

“not really. i guess i’m a sucker for romance movies,” he rubbed the back of his neck. your small conversation came to a halt when you heard a crooked, loud sound coming from the rough strum on the guitar strings. you turned around to see sicheng gazing directly towards the both of you, a sharp one even. jaehyun just blinked his eyes before catching onto the situation unfolding in front of him while you’re still being completely oblivious. you tilted your head in confusion, unsure of what’s gotten into him.

it’s the day that yangyang has been looking forward to since the past few weeks, his dance tournament. you’re seated with ningning on the bleachers, music from the loudspeakers echoing through the walls. with the cheers of the bewatchers whenever someone captivated them with a trick or dance move, usually the risky ones, it truly is a loud atmosphere.

“now, welcoming contestant number 43 to take the stage,” the host announced, you and ningning clapped with all your might, shouting words of encouragement as well. yangyang took a deep breath before lifting his right hand up, cueing for the music to start playing. just then, there’s the sound of someone plopping down on the hard surface next to you - sicheng. he’s looking casual today, a light yellow hoodie replacing his usual dark clothings.

“what are you doing here?” you shout whispered while ningning raised her eyebrows at you.

“didn’t yangyang tell you? i’m here to watch him dance,” he countered your question before darting his eyes back to the boy who’s busy popping on the dance floor, tinashe’s song playing in the background. he ended his routine with a moonwalk, making his way to the end of the stage. you’re confident that he’s going to win the competition, looking at how precise and clean his moves were. all the late night practices he had eventually paid off when he’s announced as the second placer. nonetheless, he’s still proud of himself, not to mention you and ningning who have been with him throughout his whole journey.

“you did well,” sicheng welcomed him with a fist bump which he reciprocated back. you didn’t know that they were this good of friends.

“i’m starving,” he rubbed his hand onto his stomach, making you remember that your stomach has been rumbling since you only ate a cereal bar that morning. you were about to catch up to yangyang and ningning who were walking fast ahead when you felt a tug on your shirt, looking down to see sicheng crouching down to tie your loose shoelaces.

“you might fall,” he placed his hands into the pockets of his hoodies, waiting for you to come along.

“um, thanks,” you muttered out before catching the glances given by your friends, later teasing you about the scene.

roars of students can be heard coherently, filling the basketball court. the basketball captain, a tall one with black charcoal hair is shooting a three-pointer. the players are then called over to their respective sides for whatever strategy their coaches will be implementing in the third-quarter. the home team is currently leading by five points, knowing that the players wearing the significant red and black jersey have been training their asses off for a while now.

but why exactly did you come to the game tonight? besides from the main event happening in the moment, the other reason is now standing in his position, strumming his electric guitar producing a funky sound that vibrates through the walls - a cue for the start of another buzzing stage. sicheng has been bugging you about watching him perform tonight and after quite some time evaluating, why not? when he finally caught you among the crowd, he flashed you a flirtatious wink. right before the band bowed as gratitude to the audience, he gave you a gesture to wait for him at the back of the gym.

“you came! but seriously, thank you,” he rested the sparkly white guitar against the wall, enveloping you into a hug. this is new, you tried to hide the flustered state of yours as you reciprocated his movement. from the corner of your eyes, you can see a black-haired guy approaching the two of you, followed by one with long, white hair and a bandana nicely keeping the fluffy strands in tact.

“ooh, who’s this?” the first one wiggled his eyebrows, later introducing himself as guanheng, the latter named yuta. to your surprise, the bond between you and them are quick to form with guanheng piloting the conversation. not to mention his subtle jokes making you giggle at times.

“well y/n, your little boyfriend here is getting jealous so we’ll excuse ourselves for now. see you whenever,” guanheng banging his drumsticks into the air while yuta gave you a quick wave before disappearing into the store room of the gymnasium. the nickname they gave sicheng surely made you a bit shy.

boyfriend?

DAY 5

you’re seated in front of the computer screen, your chin resting on the palm of your hands and the tabs of different colours left untouched. you redirected your gaze onto the projector screen, the words ‘arrange, mix, edit and master like a pro’ on it. a long sigh leaving your lips, you try to remember what the producer said earlier.

don’t make the song sound too repetitive

a good buildup promises a good melody

you can have a certain instrument playing only on one part for cinematic impact

DAY 6

“i’m hyo and you’re,” she moved the wheels of her chair to the back a bit to take another look at the clipboard resting on the desk, “sicheng, y/n and jaehyun, right?” the three of you nodded in harmony, anticipating for the next order that will be given.

“okay cool, we’ll be brainstorming first,” and she proceeded to explain what the requirements for this project are. you mouthed out the important points she gave, soft rock, heartbreak and drums. you’re on a roll today, contributing your countless ideas during the first few minutes of the discussion. sicheng just looked at you discussing with hyo, your lips pursed slightly. his gaze seems full of adoration, even jaehyun said so.

“any objections?” hyo looked over to the rest.

“i think she made some great ones. i’m sure this project will come out fresh,” jaehyun voiced out his opinions, sicheng nodding after. he went straight to handling the instruments , you and jaehyun collaborating for the mixing process. hyo eventually chimed in on some times, giving small advice whenever you seem stuck in the brain. with the hours ticking by, you’re feeling more satisfied than ever with your earphones in, listening to the final product created.

all of the participants are then assembled in the hall again, waiting for a final speech by the director which formalizes the end of the camp. sure, you’ve earned worthy knowledge throughout the six days. but if you’re being brutally true to the sound of your heart, it would be how you came to learn sicheng’s true antics. he might be the cocky guy who thinks they have the power to do anything but in truth, he’s just some guy with an honest heart, honest intentions to know you better.

summer break, your most anticipated event for the past few weeks. the moment the last bell rang, that scene in high school musical 2 kept replaying in the back of your head, the students doing a parade in front of the lockers picturing how your little heart is doing backflips in your chest right now. all the beach trips ningning planned is making you feel dizzy. you turned around to a voice calling out your name from the end of the hallway, your eyes catching the sight of sicheng jogging towards your spot. he stopped in front of you, hands on his knees catching his breath.

“are you free tomorrow night? there’s a party at guanheng’s and you know, it would be really cool if you join,” his fingers tracing onto each other, waiting patiently for your response.

you didn’t even have the time to process his invitation when ningning crashed her body against yours, yangyang following suit.

“a party? y/n would totally love to come, right?” ningning nudged your arms softly while yangyang tried to stifle a giggle. you were about to mouth out a ‘what?’ before sicheng cut you off.

“cool, you guys should come too. tomorrow at 10,” he and yangyang exchanged finger guns gestures before leaving the three of you. you just stood there in disbelief, eyeing them up and down before ningning dragged you to the parking lot. a stringful of grumbles escaped your lips, making the guy laugh obnoxiously.

“i can’t believe you guys did that,” you extended the seat belt, buckling it to the slot beside you.

“please. but you do want it, right?” you can’t deny, what she said was true. plus, you should have some fun and distress before having to go back to the usual dull routine of yours.

“how do i look?” you turn around, revealing the baby pink crop top and flare pants on your legs. it’s not your best outfit but giving the cliche excuse - you have nothing to wear, the two articles totally complements each other

“you look hot, that’s all i gotta say. right, yang?” ningning lifted her head from the headboard, glancing over at yangyang who’s going over his messages.

“yeah totally,” he lifted his hands, giving you a thumbs up. you threw a jacket onto your shoulders and grabbed the black purse on your dresser, glancing at the wall mirror one last time.

from the moment you stepped into the venue - guanheng’s place, smells of alcohol lingered around your nose, a group of people cheering ever so loudly over a game of beer pong, some already passed out on the couch. not to mention a brownish stain on the carpet - probably from someone throwing up. the mess would take a whole day to get rid off, you note to yourself. your friends are no longer to be found, both of them getting affiliated with god knows what. your eyes scanned the living room for sicheng but his presence is still nowhere to be found.

you decided to step towards the kitchen bar, pouring a drink for yourself. the mixed sweet and sour taste of it remained on your tongue for a couple of seconds. looking over at the snacks served, you grabbed a strawberry flavoured lollipop from the clear bowl. the crowd is cheering loudly for some type of incident happening at the back of the room, the music has been turned up to be a little louder than the volume before and you’re suddenly getting a little bit overwhelmed. you grabbed your purse and stepped out, inhaling some fresh air and looking up to the starry night sky.

“y/n? where have you been?” sicheng approached you from behind, making you a bit startled.

“sorry, hanging out outside can calm me. where did you go?” you popped the lollipop into your mouth.

“some jerk decided to throw up in front of me,” you pinched your nose with a disgusted expression, making him roll his eyes.

“do you want me to accompany you out here?” he offered. you just nod your head, placing yourself on the patio with him following suit. the sweetening flavour empowering your senses. it’s definitely much more calm out here, allowing you to clear up your mind. it’s not that you hate the atmosphere in the house right now, you’re just not in the mood.

“you know, you look pretty,” you turned around to meet his face. his brown eyes brimming with unconfessed love.

“shut up, stop with the jokes,” you lightly land a smack on his arms.

“what if i say i’m not joking?” he looked straight into your eyes, trying to find any emotion inside you. the sudden seriousness is making you feel much more awkward so you forced out a laugh, turning your attention right back upwards. the stars are shining brightly tonight, you can almost spot a constellation.

“i know what you’re doing, dong sicheng. just stop it already, it’s not working on me.” denial, that’s what you’re experiencing in the hot minute.

a gentle tug can be felt on your wrist, his eyes still not leaving yours.

“didn’t anyone tell you before? you’re really pretty. like, i can’t even describe it to you. you’re just,” he leaned over to caress your cheeks, “pretty,”.

what jaehyun said on the other day is true, after all.

love gives us thrill, the feeling of excitement, the feeling when you’re uncertain about something but when you have that special someone with you, you’re sure to wing it all.

your heart is beating so fast, it could fall out of your chest at any moment now. even the faint music blasting through the speakers inside the house can’t flush down the sound of your heartbeat. you’re not used to this, the sudden need of the significant skin to skin contact that symbolizes love between two individuals.

“can i?” his face in a very near proximity from yours, whispering into your right ear with his honey-like voice. you pulled the candy away from your mouth and nod, giving him the approval he needed before he dived in. heat rose from your stomach to your chest. you could only focus on how soft his crimson lips felt on yours, invading your privacy by all senses. you felt the kiss expand beyond your bodies, whirling you round, swirling you into the stars. he pulled away with a soft smile, you thought you could melt right then and there.

“wow,” that was the only word escaping your throat. your jumping heart still hasn’t settled down yet, your very first kiss still feeling surreal. you could see that sicheng is very much mirroring your emotions, his slender fingers grazing over his lips - the one that has come in contact with yours.

“the strawberry lollipop is sweet,” he commented, making the both of you laugh.

a ping from your phone awakened you from the gushy eye contact with him, unlocking it only to find yangyang’s text message. the second part of it made you fluster.

yang: yo r u coming in or what? and congrats for the kiss, we thought we’d have to wait longer for this

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