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velvett-tearss · 3 years ago

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Black Tea & Blushes — L. Ackerman

summary: The two of you never got along, but there were times that even fire and ice made a perfect pair.

warnings: cursing, no spoilers for anything past early s1, Levi’s a little shit at first (surprise, surprise), mentions of blood (they’re fighting titans :-) lol) gn!reader (no pronouns mentioned)

genre: semi-canonverse, fluff, enemies to lovers (?)

word count: 3.3k

a/n: this was very self-indulgent lmao, sorry if it’s a bit messy 😭, <Hange, Connie & Sasha3 make an appearance bc I love them and you should too, hope you enjoy it <3

"Couldn't you have gotten a cadet to do this?"

You raised a sharp brow at the man, trying to keep yourself from flipping his desk over. "Would you have yelled at them like you just yelled at me?"

The man's grey eyes didn’t meet yours, but there was a scowl on his face. Despite his steely eyes, he didn't say anything back. Instead, he pursed his lips and turned back to continue his paperwork.

You huffed in an attempt to ground yourself after being yelled at for the past two minutes. You took a sip from your own cup of the tea you had prepared for him, letting yourself savor the taste.

"I don't understand." you said, tasting the earthy, black tea. "You said it was too cold last time, so I made sure it was extra warm. What's wrong with it? Is it too sour for you? I only added a few drops of lemon this time."

Levi remained silent, but you stood your ground, tapping your boot against the pavemented floor as you waited at his desk for an answer. You wouldn't let him win, not this time. Day after day, it seemed like he only grew ruder and ruder.

Your dislike for Levi Ackerman started the day you met him. He was still just a soldier when you joined the Survey Corp, and it wasn't long after that he become Captain.

He was mean, and he never seemed to care about anything, but God forbid you make a reckless move out in the field. It was as if all hell broke loose if you used a bit too much gas when slicing the nape of a Titan's neck.

"Not everyone is Humanity's Strongest." you had spat at him when he scolded you on the way back to the walls. That only earned you a glare, seeing as Hange managed to secure your safety. If it weren't for them, you were certain you would've gotten stuck with stable duty for a month's end.

You were glad he was nice to them, at least.

At some point, you got promoted to Captain as well. One would think that since you shared the same rank, he would grow warmer to you, but that was another one of your mistakes.

Everything about him rubbed you the wrong way, from his disagreeable manners to his awful way of speaking to soldiers. And, it was your disdain for him that got you stuck in this mess.

"A cadet could've done this." Levi stated again; you felt like you were being patronized. He raised a brow at you, holding the teacup in his hand. "A cadet could’ve made better tea than you.”

"Obviously not, Captain." you threw back sourly, snatching the cup from his hand. "A cadet could not have done this because if I hadn't interfered two weeks ago, who knows what you would've done to the poor man. And, all he did was make your tea wrong!”

Levi blinked at you, appearing bored with your conversation. "If you hadn't interfered, that soldier would be back with those good for nothing Military Police Officers doing what they're best at."

You gritted your teeth. "And, what are they good for, Captain Ackerman?”

His brow twitched slightly. “Absolutely nothing."

You let out a bitter laugh, placing the white ceramic teacups back on the tray you had brought in. "Now that you say it out loud, that reminds me a lot of someone I know."

"What an awful way to talk about yourself.” Levi threw back with ease.

The urge to roll your eyes at him was weighing on you, but you were stronger than the immaturity he seemed to bring out in you. "Captain, you must be growing old if you've already forgotten we're the same rank."

Your decision of keeping yourself calm in his presence payed to be of use when you noticed the slight pause in his pen strokes at your words.

But, you were well aware of how trustworthy Levi was in the sense that you knew he could always come back with something even worse than what he's told you before.

"If you were of any use, you would know what's wrong with your tea. I'm sure even King Fritz could tell good tea from awful tea, and he's the most useless of them all." Levi told you, pen moving over the papers in front of him swiftly.

"He could probably also tell a grown man from a spoiled brat," you told him, taking the tray with you as you left his office. "But, you make even that task seem impossible."

You had to stop the triumphant grin from growing on your face when you heard his faint scoff from the other side of the wooden door.

Even if you managed to snag the last word of that argument, it didn’t feel as good as it usually did. The only reason you involved yourself in Levi Ackerman’s nightly tea was because 1) you didn’t like the way he spoke to the poor soldier who got stuck with job of handling it, and 2) Erwin asked that you try and be a bit nicer to your fellow captain.

You only did it to keep your job, really, and you would never let your Commander think less of you, even if he did favor Levi. Even Hange had tried to coax you into not letting The Ackerman’s sharp tongue get to you, but that didn’t seem to work.

Levi and you would never be friends, if that’s what Erwin meant when he pulled you aside at supper a few nights before. It was a lie to say you didn’t admire the man’s impressive skills, because you did.

But, admiration and respect were two separate things.

The two of you were jagged edges of broken glass that didn’t fit together, and that was perfectly fine. You didn’t mind being Levi being a sharp piece of glass, just as long as he kept his corners to himself and far from you.

Erwin, as observant as usual, caught on to the solution to your problem, and he even made sure you and Levi would rarely ever cross paths when the Scouts were out on an expedition. The two of you worked on opposite sides of the formation.

The only time you would ever work together would be if there were no other options, but both of you were reliable in your own senses: him with his... whatever he called it, and you with your wits.

You didn't mind being farthest from him, and if it were up to you, you'd go even farther.

“Hey, you got new glasses.” you stated, noticing the new pair of brown frames that Hange wore the morning as the Scouts waited for the signal to begin the expedition.

“Oh, don’t remind me.” they said with a frown, holding the glasses in their hands. “Last night, Moblit and I were doing some research, and someone must’ve stolen my glasses because I couldn’t find them this morning.”

“Stole? Isn’t that a big accusation?”

They let out a hearty laugh. “It is! That’s why I’m saying it!” Hange replied, golden eyes widened at you in exasperation. “I’ve been stuck with these, and they’re too big for my face. All they do is fall off.”

“So maybe don’t wear them?” you wondered as you caught a glimpse of the dark head of hair you knew too well. “What’ll you do if you lose them out in the field? Better safe than sorry.”

“I wish, but I’m as blind as a bat without them.” Hange reasoned with a sigh before quickly composing themselves. “But, now that you mention it, I never did mind a challenge.”

The smirk growing on their face was one you didn’t quite like. Before you could talk some sense into them (if that were even possible) the signal went off to begin the mission.

They gave a wide smile and a thumbs up as a good luck token. "Don’t do anything crazy!” you called out when the two of you parted ways, taking your squad with you. “I mean it, Hange!”

Hange waved you off, charging in faster in their horse. It was up to poor Moblit to chase right after them.

Your squad remained close together for the majority of the mission. There wasn't much to do on your end of things, which was a relief. At some point, you decided to stop for a quick break before pushing forward.

If you were able to see five mintues into the future, you would never have let your squad talk you into taking a lunch break. Just as you were relaxing a bit, there was an Abnormal coming from the thick trees.

Your sense of smell wasn't as skilled as Miche, and if it weren't for one of the younger cadets on your squad who had a keen sense of hearing, you all would've been Titan food.

It didn't take long for you to spring into action, your squad following suit. You made sure to use the plans Erwin had issued out on previous Scout meetings.

When the Abnormal finally made it to where you and your squad stopped, the beastly creature managed to catch one of your soldiers in midair. As the young boy was raised in the air, his stomach couldn't contain his recent lunch.

Gravity works in wonders, you thought when his earlier lunch fell onto you with a splat! You couldn't blame the poor boy; it was better upstairs than downstairs. As terrible a feeling it was to have chunky vomit all over you, you knew it would be as even worse feeling if the boy died under your care.

Your squad got to him before any damage was permanent, at least physically. When the killing blow was done, you tended to your soldier. He muttered out apologies for having thrown up on you, but you were merely in the line of fire.

"It's okay, Connie." you reassured him after pulling off your green cape that had been soiled in aid to shield you. “I’d rather it be your lunch on me than your organs.”

You ordered that he ride with your other cadet, Sasha. He let out a pained laugh at your words, leaning against her on her horse. She scolded him for “wasting so much food,” to which lead to their silly banter, which you didn’t mind as long as they were safe.

As unfortunate as it was, that incident wasn't the last of it. There wasn't much time between Connie getting his ribs crushed by a Titan and the numerous amount of red flares that were being shot into the air. The amount of red powder in the sky was enough to cast a shadow of worry over you.

By the time your squad made it to where the red flares had been signaled, it was a mess. Abnormal and Pure Titans were ambushing the rest of whatever was left of the Survey Corp. Your squad wasted no time in following your orders as you made a beeline for the trees where a group of Abnormals were huddled together.

When you finally got a good look at the scene in the forest, your sight was met with Titan smoke and blood of fallen comrades. It was a disaster, as it always was. But you knew, where there was smoke, there was definitely fire.

And, that fire was Humanity’s Strongest Soldier.

He looked ablaze, nothing but a flash in the distance. Slicing Titan limbs as if they were merely flowers in his way, Levi Ackerman was kicking ass. It was in moments like this — where he looked like the answer to all the prayers of the people inside the walls — that you wondered if you truly hated him all along.

“Section Commander!” Moblit cried, chasing after Hange as they swung on the highest tree of the forest. It seemed as though they forgot all about how loose their glasses were as they did a number of twirls in the air. His voice was enough to snap you out of your trance and assist your fellow comrades.

You managed to fight off three Pure Titans and two Abnormals for what seemed like forever. It might’ve been even worse if not for Connie Springer’s lunch all over you that acted as Titan Repellant.

Perhaps you would tell Hange of your new discovery, but every time you managed to get close to them while fighting off the Titans, all they did was badger you with questions upon questions.

“Are you sure you haven’t you seen them?!” Hange cried for the fifth time, eyes squinted at you from their branch opposite you. Moblit was fighting off a creepy Abnormal with ugly teeth a few feet from you.

“No, I haven’t! And, didn’t I tell you your glasses would fall if you took them with you?!” you shouted back from your place on the tree before taking a breath to try to slice the neck of your second Pure Titan. “Go back to the wagon, Hange, before you get yourself killed!”

They huffed and puffed, but they let Moblit guide them to the wagon to wait until the rest of the Scouts could find a moment to retreat back to the walls.

After finally slicing the nape of your final Titan, you looked over to where you had last seen Levi. Only, he was nowhere to be found. A panic set in when you couldn’t find any sight of him.

“Captain?” you called out from your place on a tree branch where you were catching your breath. You squinted your eyes to get a farther look, but it didn’t help that much. “Captain Ackerman, are you there? Do you—”

But, that’s when you felt a jostle of wind hit your back. You turned quickly to see the dark-haired man swinging through the trees, holding an unconscious Oluo.

You followed him, figuring if you took his squad member off his hands that Levi would have a better chance of taking down more Titans. Maybe even with a man who weighed far more than himself in his hands, Levi could still have a better chance than you.

“Captain, I’ve got him. I’ll take—”

But, Levi wouldn’t budge. It was like he wasn’t listening to you, and you didn’t know if it was by choice or coincidence. You huffed and rushed quicker to help him in carrying Oluo.

Maybe it was just your luck, or maybe it was just his, but right before you managed to reach him, a Titan’s jaw came from below him, wide and ready for lunchtime.

There was nothing for him to do, not with his hands full. Surely he knew that from the way his grey eyes finally broke through from that awful void he’d placed you in, the one where all you ever got from him was scoldings and insults and cold stares that often made you wonder if he actually did hate you.

And, for the first time, you saw panic flash through his grey eyes, his life flash before his eyes.

“Levi!” you cried, using the rest of your ODM gear’s gas to catch up to him. You knew if he were to survive such an event, he would scold you for wasting your gas on an old lump like him.

But, for once, Levi had something to say about you that didn’t regard your incompetence to make decent tea or your recklessness that spurred you to use all your gas just to save him and the bullheaded, baboon by the name of Oluo.

It was your astonishing speed.

You got to the two men right before the great wide jaws of the Titan could snap closed and swallow the three of you for its meal, which Levi had to admit (but probably never would) was quite impressive.

“Shit!” you hissed out when the three of you landed on another tree branch. As quick as you got to the branch was as quick as Miche was to come and ensure your safety, slicing the Titan’s nape with ease.

Oluo was still unconscious and a little bloodied up and battered, but he was safe.

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Levi yelled, voice slightly hoarse from everything that had just happened. His hair was a mess, and you held back a laugh at the sight of him. “Why— why would you? I mean, what— and, why do you smell like—”

“A thank you is perfectly fine, Ackerman.” you coughed out, catching your breath from the overexertion you just forced yourself through. Carrying two grown men was tough, especially when it was between life or death. “As for the smell, one of my soldiers threw up on me.”

Levi blinked at you, his expression consisting of disgust and confusion. “What?”

“My soldier. He threw up on me earlier.”

“I heard you the first time.” he told you, blinking quickly as if it were going to grant him some clarity. You didn’t know if his confusion was from your act of saving him and his squad member or from not knowing what to say to you after.

He looked funny, with his hair that of a bird’s nest and his cheeks flushed pink.

“Did you hit your head on the way down?”

“W-what?”

“Your head? Did you hit it?”

“No, I-I’m fine.” he scrambled upright, finding purchase on the unconscious Oluo’s shin. Your eyes flickered to where his hand was placed, and he snatched it right off immediately, burning a deeper shade of pink.

“Oh.” you muttered, holding back a chuckle. There was no way Levi was without a concussion, not with the way he was acting all of a sudden: stuttering and turning pink on you. It was a wonder you caught up to him before he collapsed.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Captain?” you asked again, fixing your uniform before getting to your feet. You wobbled a bit; Levi raised a brow at you. “You look sick. Why don’t you sit in the injury wagon for a bit on the way back? Just in case.”

He waved you off, standing on his two feet as well. You didn’t want to cause a fight, not right after what had just happened and not outside the walls, so you decided to say nothing about his seeming concussion.

The two of you lifted Oluo off the ground, blood seeping from the side of the man’s mouth. “Is it his ribs? Was it an Abnormal? They were awful today.” you questioned, looking to Levi for answers.

“He bit his tongue, again, before ramming into a tree.” Levi told you, averting his gaze from you as he shifted the man against his shoulder for a better grip. “He said something f-fell from the sky.”

You nodded, letting yourself chuckle. “What could it’ve been? Bird shit?”

Levi shrugged at your words.

He was far too quiet for your liking. Maybe he did have a concussion. It wouldn’t be good if he rode back like that. Perhaps if you spoke to Erwin or Hange about it, one of them could convince Levi to get checked out once you got back to the walls.

The two of you managed to get back to the rest of the Scouts safely. You helped Levi placing Oluo in the wagon with the wounded and the fallen while everyone else was getting accounted for.

All the while, Hange was trying to persuade Erwin into letting them form a search party for their glasses that had fallen while they were swinging on the trees.

Though you were straining to listen to their conversation, you were more than certain that Erwin would never allow such a thing, but you had to admire Hange’s efforts, as fruitless as they were.

“Thank you.”

You snapped your head to Levi.

He refused to meet your gaze again, busying himself with readjusting his soldier’s cape. If not for the obvious step into uncharted territory between the two of you, you would’ve commented on the rosy blush he adorned.

Suddenly, you were overcome with a laughter, waving him off with your hand quickly. “I was just joking about that, Captain. Sorry, I don’t mean to laugh, but I’m just surprised you actually—”

He scoffed, the expression on his face shifting to one of impatience. “Don’t be a brat. Just take the compliment.” Levi huffed out, visibly annoyed with your chatter.

A look of shock overtook your face. “Oh, so you’re complimenting me? Why didn’t you just say so, then?”

“Oi, that’s not what I meant—”

“No, it’s fine. I heard you, loud and clear.” you interrupted, smiling widely at him. “You’re oh-so very welcome, Captain Ackerman, and if you ever need me to save your ass again, you know where to find me.”

Levi opted to say nothing back, merely shaking his head at you when you gave a lazy salute and started back to the other side of the formation where your horse and squad awaited you.

“Besides,” you shrugged, turning back for a moment to catch him looking at you. “Who else would teach me how to make tea?”

note: I don’t think I specified it, but Oluo was knocked unconscious bc some object (Hange’s glasses) fell from the sky lmao 🐸

#snk x reader #attack on titan x reader #aot x reader #shingeki no kyojin #snk #aot #aot x you #levi ackerman x y/n #levi ackerman #levi ackerman x you #levi ackerman x reader #levi ackerman fluff #levi ackerman scenario #levi ackerman imagine #attack on Titan #snk x y/n

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disgustingtoast · 4 years ago

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my shitty, shitty minho fic that took ages [tmr minho]

I'm sick of rereading this so here is 3.5k words of shitty, self indulgent writing. The confession could have 100% been more heartfelt but I'm sick of looking this in my google docs. There is most definitely a ton of mistakes but idc <3

this isn't really enemies to lover but the whole dynamic minho and the reader have kinda wrote itself lmao

HERE YOU MFS- @agathallalongs @blanknamed

You were fine with the way you woke up. Hell, you preferred it over some snot-nosed kid coming in and waking you up. And as it turns out, having the same schedule for a little under a year makes for a great internal clock, the habit of getting up in time for your daily run already having been instilled in you for months. So when you’re pulled from the peaceful lulls of sleep because of the feeling of being flipped upside down and landing face-first into the dirt floor of the Glade, you were rightfully peeved.

“Rise and shine shank.”

Minho. Of course it was Minho.

“I’m gonna throw you off the Cliff the minute we’re far enough into the Maze.” Sitting up, you try to rub off the dirt that got on your face when you face planted, scowling at the stains that litter the front of your shirt. “This was a new shirt too.”

“Were you thinking of going running with me or do you plan on sitting in the dirt all day?” Despite him being out of sight you can practically see the smug look he’s wearing. “Hey, maybe you can convince Winston to let you get in the pig pen so you can take a nice mud bath.”

Groaning, you finally stand up and turn around to face him. He’s standing with his arms crossed, holding a paper bag which you presumed had your lunch in it on the other side of your hammock, your very, very twisted hammock.

“Why the hell did you wake me up? I get up fine on my own.”

He shrugs in response, “I just felt like it.”

“You just felt like waking me up or you just felt like getting the world record for ‘biggest pain in the ass’?”

“A bit of both, and seeing your face when you spat out that dirt made you so much more attractive.”

Heat crawls up your neck in embarrassment, “Slim it.” Furrowing your eyebrows in frustration, you gesture in front of you to the tangled mess that hangs between you, “Also you’re gonna fix that.”

“No. It’s your bed.”

“You’re the one who flipped me over! Fix it.”

He stares at you for a second before turning on his heel and jogging off. While he turns to leave you barely catch the way his lips quirk into a smirk. As you watch his retreating figure you can feel your fingers twitch, the urge to strangle him suddenly overwhelming.

“Hey! Get back here shuck-face!” As quickly as you can, you slip your shoes on, not bothering to tie them and pull the leather harness over your head. After one last disapproving glance at your pathetic hammock you’re off, racing after Minho in an effort not to let him get too far ahead. If he beat you to the Doors you’d never hear the end of it.

By the time you catch up with him you’re out of breath. Everytime you would get closer than a few feet behind him he’d run a little faster keeping you at a good few paces behind him, succeeding at prolonging your ever-growing exasperation.

Eventually though he lets you catch up until you’re running side by side, a few meters away from the Walls. “This prison wouldn’t be half as bad if the Creators had put anyone else in here other than you. Preferably someone cuter, without such a punchable face.” You don’t have to look at him to imagine the offended look on his face, one of his most punchable expressions actually.

“I am by far the most attractive guy here. The rest of these shanks look like klunk in cargo shorts.”

“Yeah no. You don’t even break the top 21 on my list.” Once you reach the wall, you lean against it, waiting for the doors to open. When you look at Minho he quirks an eyebrow.

“You have a list?” He pauses for a moment, “Wait there’s only 22 gladers. You included yourself on your own list?”

“Good job! I wasn’t sure if you knew how to count.”

“Slim it. So who’re the top 3?”

You pause for a moment pretending to mull it over. “Well, Gally’s got that whole tall and brooding thing going. And Nick, well I like a man who can take charge-”

“Yeah, yeah okay I get it.” He waves his hand in the air rather indignantly, dismissing what you said. After a minute of silence. the grating sound of rock being dragged against rock echoes through the Glade as the Doors finally start to open. As he tightens the straps of his harness, Minho glances down at the ground and pauses for a moment before he snickers, “You better tie your shoes if you don’t want to trip and ruin your pretty face. Might knock you down a few pegs on that list of yours.”

It had been hours since you’d left the Glade, running the familiar course of the Maze. The only entertainment being watching the way the back of Minho’s neck turns a lovely shade of red every time you make a particularly irritating comment.

“Hey it’s getting late. We should go back to the Glade.”

Minho shakes his head in disbelief. “It’s not that late. We still have plenty of time to get back.”

“But I finally convinced Fry to make bacon and there's no way that they’ll be any left unless we get there early.” You draw out the last syllable in a whine, knowing exactly how to get under his skin.

He pivots, still continuing to run just now facing backwards. “Is Frypans bacon really more important than finding a way out of this hell hole?”

“Yes!”

“...Fine-” His sigh of annoyance is cut off abruptly as he trips, falling backwards and landing with a loud huff as the air is knocked out of his lungs.

“Shit, Minho!” You kneel beside him as he lays still, “Are you okay?!” Your voice seems to ricochet off the walls.

It takes a moment before he groans, his eyes still closed. “Why are you so shucking loud?”

“Sorry. Are you okay?” Quieting your tone, you hover over him.

He finally opens his eyes, “M’ fine. I just tripped.” Pushing himself up, he tries to stand but the minute he puts pressure on his ankle he gasps in pain, stumbling into you as you stand to catch him.

“Shit. Okay, you just need to sit down.” You lead him over to the wall, letting him support himself against it before he slides down to sit. When he stretches his legs out in front of him you take to kneeling again, this time next to his feet. Rolling back the bottom of his pant leg you check to see how bad his ankle is and judging by the wincing and the gritting of his teeth you’re betting on not good.

It’s only been a minute but you feel your heart drop at the way it’s already swollen and starting to bruise. You frown as you press your finger against it lightly, snapping your hand back as Minho recoils, growling in pain.

“Don’t touch it!”

“Fine. Good luck finding someone else in here that’ll help you. I’m sure the Grievers would be happy to assist.”

“It just hurts asshole, no need to get snappy.”

“Yeah, yeah just stop your whining you big baby.”

He cringes as you begin to prod his ankle again and sets his head back to rest against the wall.

“Well I’d say it’s just a fracture, it doesn't look too messed up- Minho?” He doesn’t respond. “Hey! Minho!” You reach in front of his face and snap your fingers, “C’mon I need you to wake up!”

He moans as he opens his eyes, well squints his eyes. He can barely keep them open half way, “Why is it so bright in here?”

Furrowing your eyebrows you glance up, it really isn’t that bright, gray clouds float across the majority of the sky and cover most of the sun. Looking back at his face, you can’t stop the nauseating feeling of fear that gnaws in your stomach. “Here, move your head off the wall, I need to check something.”

The dark stain on the wall where he was resting against is enough evidence but some irrational, hopeful part of you checks anyways, reaching around him and pressing your fingers to the back of his head. When you bring your hand back, your fingers are covered in blood.

“Damn it.” You try your hardest to push down the anxiety thundering in your stomach as you grab Minho’s arm and wrap it around your shoulder. Now is not the time to panic. “We need to get you back to the Glade.”

You’re not surprised he’s heavy, almost a year of running almost everyday tends to build up a lot of muscle however that doesn't make it any easier for you to carry him. You had to have been stumbling around for hours before you had to fully set him down to catch your breath.

“You really need to lay off Fry’s cooking. I’m telling him that you’re going on a diet the minute we get back.”

You only get silence in response, prompting you to look over and make sure he hadn’t passed out again. His eyes were open but his mind seemed to be elsewhere, his eyebrows furrowed and eyes focusing on something on the wall across from the one you were leaning against. You raise your hand and rest it against his shoulder, “Minho?”

“You need to leave me behind.”

The nauseous feeling returns, “What? No way I’m leaving you here to be Griever food.”

His face twists in frustration as he turns to look at you. “We’ll both be killed if you don’t get the hell out!”

“We still have time! I can carry you the rest of the way just fine.” Grabbing his wrist you pull his arm across your shoulders, tightening your grip when you feel him try to tug his arm back. “We’re going.” You wrap your arm around his waist to support him as you force him to stand.

He tries to pull away, “Why are you being so shucking stubborn! I can barely walk! There’s no way you’ll make it time before the Doors close.”

“Well that’s tough for me I guess.” You begin to walk forward, trying to adjust the way his body weight rested against you.

He begins to say your name but you interrupt him, “No! I’m not leaving you and that’s final.” Cursing the slight waver in your voice you continue to look ahead, choosing to ignore the frustrated look on his face.

It doesn’t take long for exhaustion to set in, Minho seeming to weigh even more every ten minutes. As you drag your feet across the uneven floor, the toe of your shoe catches on a crack, sending you both stumbling forward for what seems like the fiftieth time. The only difference is that this time you aren’t able to catch yourself, fatigue catching up with you and sending both you and Minho careening forward.

Stabbing pain shoots through your legs as you fall to your knees, the sound of Minho groaning in pain causes waves of guilt to wash over you. The sudden realization of just how dire your situation seems to suffocate you.

This was all your fault, if you hadn’t been so annoying Minho never would have tripped. If you were strong enough you would have been able to carry him all the way. Why weren’t you strong enough?

The soft call of your name shakes you out of your stupor, it’s followed by a hand pressed against the side of your face. It’s only when his thumb swipes against your cheek that you realize you’re crying.

“I’m sorry.” You shift slightly until you’re sitting down, knees pulled up to your chest. He follows and sits next you with his legs stretched out, hissing as he accidentally drags his ankle across the ground. “This is my fault.” Staring at the exposed part of his ankle, your stomach swirls at the dark purple bruising.

When he notices you staring he’s quick to pull his pant leg down, “This isn’t your fault. I shouldn’t have been running backwards.” He watches you for a second, contemplating, before he speaks again, “You can still leave now and make it.”

“I’m not talking about this again.”

“Why not-”

“I just can’t leave you behind okay! It would kill me knowing that I got us into this mess and I couldn’t get both of us out alive.”

“So you’re just going to kill yourself because you would feel bad if you didn’t?” At his harsh words you whip your head to look at him, surprised to find him angry, his nose flaring and teeth gritting.

“Why are you getting so mad?! And you know it’s more than that! I’m not leaving you here, you can yell all you want but it’s not going to change anything.”

He throws his hands up in the air in indignation, “Why?! Why do you have to be so stubborn!” His tone is harsh and he practically spits his words at you.

A flurry of emotions lodges in your throat and a burning, hot anger ignites in the deepest pits of your stomach. Your lips are moving faster than your brain can process, “Because I love you, you idiot! I can’t just leave you behind because you're the reason I haven’t jumped the shucking Cliff yet!” Your heart is beating impossible fast and for a split second you wonder if it’s going to beat right out of your chest. You watch as Minho’s face morphs into an expression of shock and before you can identify the emotion swirling in his eyes you swear you can hear someone's footsteps.

You scramble to your feet, straining your ears in hopes that you weren’t imagining it. In the distance you hear the rushed strides of someone running in your direction and you swear you feel your heart skip a beat. It was far too late for another runner to be out in the Maze.

“Hey!” Cupping your hands around your mouth you hope they hear you. You hear Minho grunt and the sound of him dragging against the stone wall as he stands.

His voice rings through Maze as he calls out.

After a moment of tense silence you hear the quick foot falls of another runner getting closer before you spot his familiar blond hair turning the corner.

“Ben! Oh my god!”

He comes to a stop in front of you, his expression worried, “What are you guys still doing here? The Doors are closing soon!”

“Minho got hurt and I wasn’t able to carry him all the way back. Why are you out so late?”

“I figured I’d stay out later than usual. Had a bad feeling.” He glances over your shoulder to look at Minho. “We need to get going if we want to make it in time.”

Nodding your head, you turn around and make your way over to where Minho is leaning against the wall. You can feel his eyes on you, pleading for you to look at him but you’re adamant at avoiding eye contact. Out of the corner of your eye, you notice Ben glancing back and forth between you, no doubt feeling the tension.

Having someone else there to help made carrying Minho infinitely easier and the three of you stumbled through the doors just as they began to groan, closing behind you.

“What took you so bloody long?” The familiar accent of Newt floats across the Glade but you’re too exhausted to even look in his direction. It isn’t until he’s standing right in front of you that you tear your eyes from Ben and Minho as they make their way to the Med-Jack hut.

“Minho fractured his ankle and got a concussion.” Your hands clench in anger as you speak, “If it hadn’t been for Ben we wouldn’t have made it out.”

“Aren’t you going to go check on him?” Newt frowns at you.

The thought of being in the same room with Minho after you practically dumped your heart out on him made your stomach churn. “No, I think- I think I’m just going to let him rest for now.”

Newt opens his mouth to comment, no doubt going to point out that you never left Minho’s side but you’re quick to interrupt him. “I’m exhausted. I’m going to go shower and get some rest.” You force a smile and begin to walk in the direction of the showers before he’s able to speak.

It seems to take ages to get to the bathrooms. Fatigue makes your limbs feel sluggish and the adrenaline of being in the Maze ebbs away, leaving aching muscles in its wake. You can’t seem to shake the thoughts of Minho as you scrub yourself clean. He probably wanted nothing to do with you and your big fat mouth. If you’d only bitten your tongue for another minute you wouldn’t have this looming air of regret suffocating you.

The regret seems to pull tighter against your throat when you notice your hammock, still twisted from this morning. Tears gather at your waterline, threatening to spill over. The view in front of you is distorted and watery and your fingers fumble with the twisted strings before you give up, whining in frustration.

You pause for a moment before turning in the direction of the Med-Jack hut, your heart desperately yearning to see him. Before you have time to think, you’re wiping your teary eyes with the back of your hand and practically jogging to the little run down shack, ignoring the throbbing pain in your legs.

Hesitating at the door you take a deep breath, steadying yourself before you’re pushing against it. The room is silent, both Clint and Jeff having left and gone to bed. Scanning the room you notice a bed in the corner, Minho sleeping peacefully under it’s covers. His face slack as he rests, his forehead covered by a thin, white bandage that stretches around his head. As you silently pull up a chair to his bedside you study him, it isn’t often you get to see his face when it isn’t creased with stress or in any expression other than a smirk.

Smiling softly. you reach up and pull his blanket up a little higher until it covers his shoulders, the night had a cold edge to it despite it being well into summer. After sitting there for a few minutes your eyelids begin to get heavy, like something was weighing them down. For a moment the idea of walking back to your hammock crosses your mind but you immediately dismiss it, just thinking about getting up is exhausting. You cross your arms on the side of his bed and rest your head against them. It doesn’t take long before the comfort of sleep consumes you.

Garbled words and the feeling of something brushing against your face is what wakes you this time. Opening your eyes, the first thing you notice are Minho’s pretty brown ones staring back at you, the next thing you notice are the hushed snickers from behind you. Shooting up straight you feel the warm rush of embarrassment flood your cheeks.

“It was about time you woke up!” Clint pipes up, “Lover boy here hasn’t stopped staring at you since we came in here to check on him.”

This time, pink begins to tint Minho’s cheeks and creep up his neck, “Slim it! Get outta here would ya?”

“Okay! We’re going!” You turn around just in time to see Clint pushing Jeff out the door and throwing you a wink before shutting the door.

The awkwardness is palpable as you stare down at your lap. The bed creaks as Minho shifts to sit up against the headboard, the sound seeming incredibly loud in the silence. Mustering up your courage you finally speak.

“I’m sor-”

“I love you too!’

Your head shoots up as he interrupts you, eyes wide as you take in his expression that mirrors your own.

“What?”

His body language tells you that he had most definitely not meant to say that, his mouth moving up and down as he tries to figure out what to say.

Your heart catches in your throat as you process his words, “You love me?”

At the slow nod of his head, a beaming smile splits your face, and before you can stop yourself you're pulling him into a crushing hug. Caught off guard, he stiffens for a moment as you wrap your arms around him but as soon as you let out a shaky breath against his neck he winds his arms around you.

“Is this okay?”

At your hushed tone he pulls you tighter against him, “This is more than okay.”

#I told myself I wouldn't tag this but just out of curiosity-#the maze runner x reader #tmr x reader #tmr minho x reader #if any kpoppies get this- sorry ig lmao

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honey-hippie-harper · 3 years ago

Text

Infrangible

AFGHSAGHJS THIS IS SO LATE IS NOT EVEN FUNNY ANYMORE LMAO

In my defense, I stopped being a person long ago and now, in all the ways except physical, I happen to be a potato. BUT ANYWAY :’) This is for the Renegades Ship Week hosted by @greasicookies <3 (Thanks again!), for day 5, which is Maxpie. The prompt is “secrets”! <3

I had a tough time writing this because I’m going through a lot of stuff rn :’) still, I hope you can enjoy it x’ddd.

Tag list: @healing-winston-pratt @obsidianfr3sk @the-wee-woo-rita and afsghagshja @all-weather-is-bad (because this is a very...me fic lol and I think you’re already used to my sad attempt at humor haahahaah i’M SORRY AGSHJAKL) AND @lackadae because agshjs I made a reference to one of your drawings, hon :’) (I promise once again, to catch up with your content once I feel better afsghjak).

And that’s it. I hope you like it <3

When Max turned nine, he reached the conclusion that everybody forgot their early years at some point. Before, Adrian had already explained to him that wasn’t quite true, because he misunderstood Max’s statement and thought he was feeling bad about himself for not being able to recall certain things. He told him that, unlike what he thought –which was false because that’s not what Max meant- people usually couldn’t store those memories from when they were younger than three.

“Some people do.” He said. “But it’s normal if you don’t remember anything from when you were…I don’t know. Two.”

“Do you remember anything from when you were two?” Max asked him.

From the other side of the glass, Adrian scrunched up his nose. And then, obviously, he saw himself in the need to adjust his glasses.

“I’m not quite sure whether I was two or not. But I do know I was younger than five.” He started. “There was a small canal on the way to the apartment. When it rained, it would grow a lot. It didn’t have big torrents or anything, but it did grow a lot. The water usually went higher than my ankles. But the thing was…that every time it grew, it became infested with turtles.”

He paused for a second.

“I really liked turtles.” He continued, shrugging. “My mother used to let me walk down to the water, as long as she was right behind me, obviously; one day, when we were coming back from the city, she stopped to attend a call. I got too impatient and went down alone when she wasn’t looking. The next thing I remember is that, just when I was getting up after catching a turtle, I felt her tugging me by the back of my shirt. The turtle fell on its shell.”

At that point, Max realized he had been staring at how he kept on fidgeting with his pen instead of looking him in the eye, but he continued doing so, because he didn’t like it when Adrian’s voice turned that serious.

“…She had never screamed at me like that.” He said, as if he were talking to himself and then, to erase the tension, he tried to scoff. “I don’t remember what she said, but I remember that she said it so loud I told her she was scaring the turtle. Then I started crying. Like, a lot. I think she was terrified too.”

In the end, everything turned too quiet for his liking, and Max did something his dad had advised him to do for times like these, when he just didn’t know what came next: Improvise.

“I didn’t know you liked turtles.”

“…Well, I did. I really liked turtles when I was younger.”

Max had seen a couple of turtles in his life, but not as many as Adrian had seen, he supposed, because Max had never stepped outside, except when he was a baby.

Which was exactly the point.

He didn’t have memories from when he was a baby, or a toddler. Most of the people who had come to talk to him had said they remembered events that were either too sad (like Adrian) or meaningful in their lives. Max didn’t have anything like that. In fact, his first –very blurry- memory was standing on the edge of the quarantine, with his hands pressed against the crystal, and then licking it.

According to his dads, he was between three and four (“He was three, Simon. What are you talking about?” “He was born in November.” “It wasn’t November yet.” “We had just celebrated his birthday. He was four.” “HE WASN’T FOUR, SIMON! HE WAS THREE! THREE! We were celebrating that his quarantine had just been built!” “IT WAS THE SAME EVENT, HUGH!”) and Aunt Tamaya, plus the both of them, were in the hallway. For some reason, the fact that his eyes were so huge (they were still big. But they were bigger when he was a baby) came off as odd to Tamaya. And the moment they made eye contact, he licked the glass.

Nobody knew why. Not even himself. The adults remembered it better than he did, of course, but none of them had ever been able to guess the reasoning behind it. They often expressed Max had been a very strange baby, mostly because of his lack of social skills. It’s not like he had chosen that, and it’s not like his fathers would’ve allowed it to happen if they had had any other option. But Max wasn’t willing to stand there and pretend that he knew what he was doing, either.

Most of the time, he didn’t.

He barely held any memories of the nurses that had ever been in charge of his care, but, for obvious reasons, he remembered Dad. It was always easier to remember the person who had taken care of you the most, he supposed. And Max knew, among a lot of things, that it wasn’t his other dad’s fault. Though, sometimes, he couldn’t help but blame him.

Again, he didn’t know why, but there were those days, when he needed he the most, where a voice inside of his head told him that, if Simon loved him enough, he would just sacrifice his powers to be with him. His powers weren’t that useful for combat anyway.

“Okay, but that’s kinda mean.” Adrian told him the first time he opened up about it, the night before he attended the Trials to choose the members of his patrolling team. “Pops might not have combat powers, but they’re as important as the rest of the members’. That’s why they work so well as a team, you know? Every power can be extremely helpful during a battle, as long as you know how to use it.”

Max wasn’t doing anything in particular that day. Nothing besides listening to Adrian and sitting on the floor , at least.

“But if every power is useful…” He said, tilting his head to the side. “…Why are you allowed to reject certain aspirants?”

Adrian frowned a little, not in the sense that he looked angry at Max. Rather, he was confused by the question and was trying to word the answer in a way that sounded rational.

“Because…” He gulped and clicked his tongue. “…Like I said…uhm…the Council is an extremely good team. They’ve been doing this for a while. Us, the patrolling leaders are…allowed to reject certain prodigies because we don’t have as much experience as them. And…we might not know how to use somebody’s powers, and that’s very dangerous. We don’t want people dying, do we?”

When he said that, something clicked inside Max’s brain, and he nodded in automatic. Obviously, a few years ago, a non-prodigy teacher had taught him how to read, and the moment Adrian notified him it was his year to be in the Trials, he managed to read the manual and the rules for the event, from a booklet and a pamphlet (respectively) he had asked his dad to bring for him. He didn’t get much new information, different from the one he heard on TV or the one presented in the posters. However, amongst the rules, there was a section that talked about banned powers, which contained only two categories:

-Complete telekinesis.

-Stardust modelling.

“Yeah.” Dad told him. He was bathing him in the quarantine’s bathroom (Of course. Where else?). “Stardust catchers…which….are able to model stardust, are extremely dangerous and there’s not much research about them. Nobody really knows how they work, and it would be pretty difficult for us to… handle a prodigy like that.”

“Like me.”

Dad had always had a pretty specific routine he had to follow when bathing him. If he missed or misplaced a step, he acted like would explode or something. Also, Max didn’t understand why, but ever since he started growing thicker hair, Dad became pretty strict on the fact they should take care of it so it would grow healthy. Hence why they had a full hair routine that they did in the bathtub. That day, the statement caught him so off-guard he grabbed the wrong bottle, and then, when he realized it, he was already pouring the dense liquid (that looked more like a paste to him) on Max’s head. Cursing under his breath, he placed his other hand in the middle so it would fall over his palm, washed Max’s head and started the routine all over again, before changing the subject:

“About complete telekinesis…there’s obviously a lot of research about that power. We know how to manage with that. But telekinetic prodigies are not …very accepted in our society. They’re pointed at…Frowned upon. In the worst of cases, other prodigies hunt them down and then kill them.”

In that moment, Max came to the conclusion that all that changing the subject thing had been in vain.

Because, from his part, the answer was exactly the same:

“Like me.”

And Dad didn’t like that, for he started scratching his scalp harder, accidentally.

“No. It’s nothing like you.” He said. “You’re not like that, Max. Society hates telekinesis because some evil dude decided to use his powers, his telekinesis, for awful reasons and stained prodigy’s names. You’re not like that. You’re not abusive, or selfish or evil. And I don’t want to hear you comparing yourself to him ever again. Understood?”

To this day, that was the most aggressive form of validation someone had ever given him, but Max took it anyway, because he trusted Dad, and if he had said something like that, then there had to be a clear reason behind it.

“Understood.” He whispered.

And he tried, he really tried, to believe it. But, like many other things, no matter how hard Max tried, he was still severely confused. Not that he didn’t know about the Age of Anarchy, or the parties involved in the Age of Anarchy.

The quarantine, needless to say, could get pretty boring most of the time. Max had to do a lot of things to kill time, and some of those activities involved reading books that children shouldn’t be reading. He did read some children’s books, but then he would find himself looking through history articles and books, and reading the chapters that interested him the most. For instance, he was confident he knew about the Age of Anarchy, but one thing was knowing about it, and another, different thing, was having an opinion about in regards to it.

Max didn’t know if he had something to say about the topic. If he did, it was a very incomplete idea, and it was very likely he wouldn’t be able to phrase it correctly.

The group of people Max talked the most to were adults, and those adults, especially the ones who had experienced the Age of Anarchy and somehow managed to make it out alive, refused to talk about it. As for the few children he had talked to…

Well, about them…

Long story short, they had lives.

They all had lives outside of a glass, unlike Max. Maybe they weren’t the most interesting of lives, but at least they for sure had to be more interesting than his’. They didn’t have a pre-established schedule, where a designated person would come in to feed him or extract blood samples from his body, to then take them to the laboratory. They didn’t have to hear a total of seven alarms to remind him what he had to do: Wake up and get dressed, have breakfast and brush his teeth, enter the virtual sessions with his teachers, take a shower, have his blood samples taken, start doing his homework –if he had any- and do whatever he wanted once he was finished, have dinner, brush his teeth and go to bed, and then start all over again.

That moment, when he had spare time, would be the same one normal kids used to go out with their friends, like Adrian did. To go to the park and get themselves a scarily huge wound at the center of their knee. To live. To breathe air. To do…literally anything that wasn’t this.

Because Max was different from the many children he hadn’t yet gotten the opportunity to meet or talk to, because, obviously, they wouldn’t want to spend the whole day hanging out with a person…like him.

The only way Max could see two out of the three people in his family was through a crystal wall. And he couldn’t kiss them, he couldn’t touch them… sometimes he even wondered if he knew how their voices sounded, because, after all, Dad’s voice sounded the tiniest bit different once he crossed that infamous glass door.

He couldn’t walk through the streets of Gatlon, because, for starters, he didn’t know them. And if he dared to go out there, he would get killed on spot for having accidentally neutralized a prodigy who didn’t want to be neutralized.

Other kids had nannies whom they complained about when their parents couldn’t look after them (at least that’s the kind of things he saw on the TV shows he watched) but Max had patrol units that would move from one corner of the room to another, ready to attack anyone who came closer than necessary to him, because the only one who could take care of him in person, was Hugh.

Other kids could go out freely, without being scared of anything at all. They could get hurt while having fun with their friends and family. They could laugh until they cried with them. They could hug them, sleep in the same bed as them. They could walk their pets, go on road trips, go to amusement stores, water parks…

They could experience the current world; watch all the new events that were happening every day, in first hand.

They didn’t have to read about the past, or the people from the past to keep themselves entertained. They didn’t have the need to do that. At all.

They were living the lives Max couldn’t have, because he was too dangerous for that.

And obviously, that’s why he couldn’t just…go around asking other kids about what was their favorite bug, their favorite planet…or their opinions about Ace Anarchy, and if Pops (Simon) saying “Alec, with an A as in Abusive Swine” made them laugh.

Besides, he hadn’t even met that many kids his age. Or kids, for that matter.

He was aware Adrian wasn’t exactly a grown up, but he wasn’t a kid either, so, he usually didn’t make it into that list.

In fact, just like the banned powers in that manual, there were only two kids in Max’s list of acquaintances.

Aunt Tamaya’s first baby was born without powers, when Max was like four years old, and his dads were way too excited about it (Weird thing to brag about out loud, honestly, because all the recruits in the Headquarters were betting ridiculous amounts of money on which powers the Thunderbaby would have –Max could hear them- and one day they just heard The Dread Warden storming into the hallway, euphorically screaming “GUESS WHAT, MY LITTLE CHERUB BABY? YOUR COUSIN IS ABSOLUTELY FREAKING POWERLESS!”), for they thought Max would finally be able to have a friend who was more or less his age. Dad was the one who brought him in, two weeks after he was born. He was still tiny, red and chubby, and wrapped in his three different blankets that way, he looked like a bloated marshmallow.

Aunt Tamaya, her husband, Pops, Adrian, Aunt Kasumi and Uncle Evander were outside (as always) waiting to see what happened…and, it was extremely odd for Max to admit it, but he couldn’t remember much about that moment, even though he was already older than three. There was, however, a video taken by Uncle Evander where, if you narrowed your eyes hard enough, you could see the moment Max burst into tears right after kissing the baby’s cheek.

Neil was his friend.

At least, Max considered him to be his friend. Still, they had an age gap of four whole years, and a part of him was waiting until he was a little older so they could be on the same page. Because sometimes, when Neil couldn’t comprehend something semi-important that Max had just said, things could get pretty awkward, because there were occasions when, if Neil got too frustrated over anything, he would start crying, and his sobs often summoned his mother all the way from across the building. She never particularly tried to put the blame on Max. In fact, she hadn’t even glared at him not once, ever.

But she did choose to take him with her, into her office, or ask Adrian to babysit him while he calmed down. Afterwards, he usually didn’t come back to the quarantine.

“It’s not your fault, Max.” Pops would tell him, always. “It’s just that…Neil...he’s younger than you. There are things that might be…easy to you, but that are super complicated to him. And you might be able to do things that he can’t, and he can’t understand why he can’t, so he gets super confused and angry and that’s why he cries and Tamaya has to come and comfort him.”

“That, and because she’s like a...very freaky bird mom who hears her children cry and comes around with her super sonic enhanced sense of hea—“

“Hugh, don’t be rude.”

Every time they had that discussion in front of him, Max could never understand why Pops said Dad was being rude. He was right, to a certain extent. Aunt Tamaya was just…being a mom.

And that’s what moms did.

At least, that’s what Max had read and seen on TV because families like his’ were…super rare to find in his cartoons or favorite books. In fact, the times when he had seen himself represented in any of the things were so few that, for the longest time, Max had this weird, messed up idea that biological men could give birth. He thought that Adrian, apart from the fact that he was the closest to him, looked more similar to Simon, and that had to mean he had given birth to him, while Hugh had been the one to give birth to Max.

One year, when Max was six, they finished Lady Indomitable’s gigantic golden statue, placed downtown. It was late June, and though the city had previously looked covered in colors, that day it just looked…white and golden. That’s the best way Max could find to put it into words.

According to Max’s weather application, the heat was unbearable that day (good thing he couldn’t feel anything because the temperature in the quarantine was always regulated) yet, according to what he was seeing in one of his screens, a great percentage of the citizens of Gatlon were marching in the streets carrying floating lanterns, headed towards downtown where the event was being held.

The Council was standing in front of the covered statue. All of them except Blacklight, who had stayed to take care of the Headquarters, and Max could see him from where he was. They gave a speech about Lady Indomitable together, and as they started revealing the statue, Tsunami sang a song that was supposed to be one of Lady Indomitable’s favorite ones, and that Max was too young to recognize (he supposed). In his opinion, it was a cute event, but he would be lying if he said he wasn’t utterly confused the moment he saw Adrian taking one step ahead to be the first one to let go of his floating lantern, which was different from the other ones, because his’ was bigger, and it had a big “I”. Besides, people waited a couple of seconds until it was stable above their heads to let go of their own floating lanterns.

It still looked cute to him, but now it looked weird as well. So he got up from his chair, and walked towards the edge, pressing his hands against the glass. He hoped that would be enough to magically catch Evander’s attention, who was, at the moment, using his chair as a swing, as he typed a number in his computer, copying it from his calculator and eating from his salad every now and then. Obviously, Max’s telepathic call wasn’t enough, and he had to knock on the glass a couple of times, loudly. Even then, Uncle Evander didn’t look up in his direction.

But he did hear him, because he did respond.

“It’s not gonna work, Maximus. I’m not getting you out.”

As a side note, Max considered telling him his full name was Maximilian and not Maximus, because that was way before he realized it was a nickname. Nevertheless, he just let it pass, for the simple reason he had better things to ask. That’s why he proceeded to knock again, instead of speaking.

“What is it?”

“I wanna ask you something.”

Evander tried to steady himself in the chair without falling on his back, and once he succeeded, he came closer to the quarantine, with his arms over his hips.

“Why is Adrian doing that?” He asked, just because he wasn’t able to find another way to phrase it, while pointing at the screen behind him; Evander narrowed his eyes following his finger, as if he hadn’t been watching the event himself from a livestream on his phone. A few seconds later, he seemed to realize what he was talking about, and bit his upper lip, before pouting barely a little.

Then, he clicked his tongue.

“Because that’s his mom. And today’s her birthday.”

And it’s not that Max was insensitive enough not to recognize that it was very sad, but at the same time those single words were enough to make the idea he had of his life fall apart. All the things he thought he had already managed to understand felt fake and incorrect, and it was so fast it almost made him feel dizzy.

“She’s not his mom.” He declared.

Evander opened his eyes very widely and, next thing he knew, was that, for some reason, he looked nervous. Which, to say the least, was very…unlike Evander. He was usually super…confident, and, in Dad’s words: “He walks with his back too straight for a person who says some dumb shit every time he opens his mouth”.

At that moment, his back wasn’t straight at all, and he kept on wiping the sweat off his palms in the suit.

“…I mean…she’s not…alive anymore. But… that doesn’t mean that…”

“Noooo. I didn’t mean that.” Max cut him off. “She’s not her mom, because Adrian already has a mom.”

He stopped suddenly. Max could almost see his brain working at full speed, trying to process the data he had just received. Then, he blinked, arching his eyebrow.

“Who’s…who’s his mom?” He asked, getting closer to the crystal, and crouching down to be at Max’s height (Evander was almost too tall for his own sake). “Do Simon or Hugh…?”

“No. I mean she’s not his mom because Simon’s his mom.” Max stated, confident enough to move a mountain with his raw determination and his bare hands, which, needless to say, did nothing but make Evander even more confused.

Not that Max couldn’t understand why.

He was a brand new, redeemed person now.

But back then he wasn’t.

“…Simon is what, you said?”

“Adrian’s mom.” Max reaffirmed.

Still bewildered, Evander gawked. Perhaps he understood where that confusion was coming from but, at the same time, maybe he was too disturbed to ask for additional information. Max didn’t know which one of the two would make him feel more embarrassed, especially taking into account the next thing Evander said:

“That is the weirdest shit somebody has ever said to me, and I’ve talked to the Puppeteer an unhealthy amount of times.”

He wasn’t the one who explained to him the way his own family worked. On the contrary, he immediately told his dads about it, and next time the both of them came to talk to him, they tried to make him understand the concept of homosexual couples.

And they failed.

Miserably.

And he was using that term, because after that talk, Max went through life for a while saying that his ethnicity was Gay, because both of his dads were gay. Over and over again, they tried to correct him, but nothing seemed to work, and Max kept on spreading the information that he was gay (something he didn’t know yet) until Aunt Kasumi decided to intervene and, for his birthday, she got him a children’s book called All in Rainbow, which, according to the information in the first page, was actually a translation from a Latin American book written by two lesbians (one of them non-binary) and illustrated by the same woman who had made the Anarchists’ and the Renegades’ graphic novels and was also a Latina.

That book was something similar to a gay encyclopedia. It was narrated by this girl named Phoenix, because it followed her throughout her school and her daily life, where she came across different people and families. After every short story, there was an informative section explaining everything in regards to the new person’s identity, including their flag, the meaning of said flag, and the explanation of certain terms. Max really enjoyed it, and, in fact, he ended up going through it more than once. When he tried to persuade Adrian into reading it too, he admitted he already had, when he was younger, and proceeded to make a comment about how pretty the name “Phoenix” was.

It was only then that Max was able to understand how his own family worked, and how freaking inept he had sounded when he decided it was a great idea to use it as an ethnicity.

That book was, in fact, the cue for all the grown ups in his life to start buying books for him, which he was grateful for, except for the one that he, ironically enough, had gotten from Uncle Evander. Sure, he appreciated that he had spent money on that, but Max didn’t appreciate the fact that the plot was about a dog that was sent away to a school for dogs but made everyone believe he was in jail so he could escape. The drawings were cute, but he just couldn’t find the moral of the story and he didn’t like that.

His dads, from their part, got him a book about two frogs that, at least to Max, acted as if they were a couple; Aunt Tamaya was the one of the short books without drawings.

As for Aunt Kasumi…she usually brought a lot of educational books; every time she overheard him expressing something that was making him confused, she brought him a book about it, including that time she heard him asking Ruby Tucker “So, are you always bleeding?” completely out of context.

Max supposed that it had a lot to do with the fact that Aunt Kasumi was in charge of Child Services, and she spent a lot of time with children, especially because she liked to volunteer in orphanages, having been in one herself when she was a little girl. She usually moved in prodigy orphanages, for she was one to know the poor conditions they sometimes presented.

And…to say the least, she wasn’t a woman of many words. She was very reserved with everything she did. And, besides, it was none of Max’s business. After all, he was just a kid.

But, in this case, it kind of involved him.

Kind of.

For the simple reason that there were two names in the list of people his age Max had talked to. The first one was Neil (who wasn’t even his age. He was just close to that) and the second one…

The second one involved Aunt Kasumi.

Just like people were able to overhear his conversations through the quarantine, Max was able to overhear the conversations they were having on the outside, especially when he was trying to do it on purpose.

Every time he was too bored, in other words.

Some of the things older people said were confusing, but, over time, Max had learned to store that information, so he could comprehend it better in the future. He didn’t know at what level that was healthy, yet he still did it because, literally, he didn’t have anything better to do.

During extremely busy days, the Council chose to spend the night in the Headquarters, just in case, and while they could sleep in the common room, if Pops was too insistent on wanting to be close to the quarantine, they slept in the hallway.

In Max’s hallway.

Of course, Dad would sleep with him inside the quarantine but, in order to make it feel more like a pajama party, they slept close to the edge of the “room” (if it could be called that way), so close to the Councils’ inflatable beds, they could’ve touched them if there hadn’t been a wall in between.

When they were sleeping in that hallway, there wasn’t a patrol looking over Max, because they were the patrol and, every two hours, they changed turns to stay awake. All of them except Dad, who stayed the entire night with Max. The others often got up and started walking around the quarantine according to their ages. That is, Aunt Tamaya went first, followed by Pops, then Aunt Kasumi, and Uncle Evander at the end. However, since it wasn’t like they were too used to having many hours of sleep, Kasumi and Evander usually got up at the same time and patrolled together.

That night, Max was having trouble sleeping. Dad was hugging him, which made him feel very comfortable, but, at the same time, before he wrapped his arms around him, he had been moving way too much, and that had made Max feel uneasy, because a part of him, though he knew it was highly possible it wasn’t true, was feeding the annoying worm at the back of his brain that told him he was the one making Dad uneasy. That Dad was moving and couldn’t sleep because he didn’t want to be anywhere near him. Perhaps he would’ve preferred to be with Pops. Perhaps he would’ve preferred to be with Adrian, even. Anyone but Max.

Which, again, he knew things…weren’t like that. But that little, nameless, uninvited worm was always telling him that, over and over again, determined to repeat those awful words until they made so much noise they made him cry.

And even then, when he was already crying, the worm ate deeper into his brain and told him to stop because, in the end, who was he crying for anyway?

Who was he crying for, if nobody was here to see or hear him?

That night, of course, he didn’t cry, for the simple reason that…well, he did have somebody who would hear him cry, and maybe comfort him like Aunt Tamaya comforted Neil when he was crying…

But he didn’t want Dad to do that.

Not today.

Not because he were mad at him, but because he feared that, if he did, then Dad would be the one who would get mad.

Besides, that night he got extremely busy trying to overhear the conversation between Kasumi and Evander who, the moment they got up, started talking as they walked, first at a volume so low their voices could’ve been considered murmurs, but then, with every second, the issue started escalating.

And it wasn’t that they were arguing, it was that they weren’t exactly happy with each other, nor did they seem to manage to get to a mutual agreement.

Max felt like that time he was watching a movie with his earphones on, and instead of paying attention to the plot, he kept trying to identify which sounds were dominant in his left ear, and which ones were dominant in his right ear, because Uncle Evander and Aunt Kasumi were walking around the quarantine, and the echoes of their voices were floating right behind them, making it almost impossible for Max to decipher their messages word by word.

At least, until they stopped in front of him. That is, very close to the inflatable mattresses, too. And with just one eye open, he was able to tell Aunt Kasumi wasn’t amused, with her arms so tight across her chest that way, and with Uncle Evander standing more straight than necessary (because, yes, Dad was right about that...sometimes... because Max had read somewhere that tall people had to be really careful with their posture to avoid spine deformities or have less complications when they were older) waving his –as Aunt Tamaya would’ve called them- Hot Cheeto fingers right in front of her face, in a way so aggressive she sometimes had to lean backwards not to get one of her eyes poked out.

“…and it won’t look good for the organization. It won’t look good, Kasumi. You know why?”

“Yes, Vandy. I know why. I already knew before, yet you took the time to explain it to me another seven times. I mean, thank you, I guess, but—“

“If I kept on explaining it to you, it’s because I didn’t…and I don’t know what’s not clicking.”

“What do you mean with what’s not clicking?” And she tilted her head to the side. “…Are you still talking to me?”

“Don’t play dumb, Kasumi. Especially not in front of me, because I know you.”

“Right. But I still don’t get what you’re referring to. What’s not clicking about what, exactly?”

Evander laughed in a way Max would’ve just…understood if she had decided to punch him in the face so he would stop.

“We’re a big organization, Kasumi. People talk.”

“Of course that people talk. I mean, our citizens support our cause and our government system. In fact, statistically, more than half of the population do, but sometimes there are things that… are for their own good but they will refuse to understand and accept them anyway. And that’s normal. We might be the law, but we can’t control how the masses think, you know?”

“For their own good, you say. Beneficial.”

“Exactly.”

“Beneficial for who, if you’d be so kind?” Evander laughed again. “As far as I understand, we’re talking about one single problem, from a single person. It won’t bring anything beneficial, as you call it, for our organization, or for our system…if anything, it will damage it and make us lose credibility.”

“…Why?”

As a response, he started flapping his arms around, as if he were trying to point at something invisible. Or at something that wasn’t really there.

And this time, Aunt Kasumi didn’t try to pretend she was seeing it, and remained silent until Evander realized he would have to make himself understood.

“Because…” He clenched his fists, sighing loudly, almost like he was certain he was right and Aunt Kasumi wasn’t. “Our policy. Remember that? You know, a thing that actually exists and you helped write?”

She didn’t respond.

“Our policy as Renegades, it’s that we shall keep our people safe, and that includes prodigy and non-prodigy citizens. We shall preserve their lives no matter the cost, and create a safe environment where all can coexist and protect each other. That means that no prodigy individual with questionable reasons is to be allowed to cross that gate and disturb the peace or, worse, put somebody’s life at risk.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“Yes, you should be, because we wrote it, for fuck’s sake.”

“Evander, please. There’s no need to curse or—“

“…But you know what that means? It means that we can’t just…go against that policy and expect our citizens, our recruits, even, to still take us seriously.”

“Oh, but I’m following that policy because, as you might remember, we also pledged to assist anyone whose life was at risk, and people who, day by day, have to live under very vulnerable circumstances. It is our job to intervene and take them to a safer place, where their quality of life can improve, isn’t it?”

“It is, but that applies for people who aren’t dangerous to society.”

At that point, Max had both his eyes open, and he was seeing the scene more clearly.

In fact, everything was so clear, that he was able to read the confusion in Aunt Kasumi’s expression, even before she said:

“…This is a kid we’re talking about.”

“She is dangerous.”

“She’s not dangerous, Evander. She's a kid. Sure, her behavior has caused her to go bouncing from orphanage to orphanage like a rubber ball but that doesn’t mean she shouldn’t be helped, that doesn’t mean we should just turn our backs at her, and that doesn’t mean she’s dangerous.”

“You know damn well her behavior’s not what I’m talking about.”

“Well, I am, because that’s the only thing that should concern us at the moment.”

“No, it’s not?”

“It is. Because she’s a kid…and, honestly, Vandy…” Aunt Kasumi sighed. “… I know we were raised thinking life is war, but… the truth is, people are not born evil. Or dangerous, for that matter. Take your time and think about it, and you can talk to me again once you’ve calmed down, because you must be pretty much aware I don't appreciate this tone. Besides, it’s not like this little argument is going to stop me anyway.” She shrugged.

“…after all, I already talked to Hugh.”

“…And what did he say?”

“It’s not my place to tell you that. Ask him.”

Max never knew whether he had taken that suggestion or not but, knowing Evander, he just assumed he hadn’t. And, to be honest, he never asked Dad about it either. He just stood and watched how everything proceeded to go down and chaos unleashed.

Though, he had to admit, unlike what had happened with other “big” events, this one specific chaos was rather discrete. A kind of well-kept secret.

In fact, the only explicit hint that something would happen in the next few days, was the little disturbance caused by Team Frostbite (it was always Team Frostbite. Max had no idea why everyone was so…willing to put up with their…issues so much, and without hesitation) when it was their turn to patrol around the quarantine and Evander came around, holding his notepad, and muttered something to them.

“Whom?!” Genissa Clark, Frostbite, snapped immediately.

Evander frowned and, judging by the way his moustache moved, he also pouted, before turning at Mack Baxter, Aftershock, to start talking to him instead.

“Do you have any idea of what she’s talking about?” He clicked his tongue. “Like…okay, nevermind…”

When Max looked up, he saw the exact moment when Evander realized he was listening to the conversation, so he lowered his tone once again. Yet, Max was still able to see the million ways in which Genissa Clark's face contorted and, in the end, the first second Evander shut his mouth, she declared:

“We’re not available for that. Perhaps that task should be assigned to Team Sketch or Team Peregrine. They’re always lollygagging around, it’s about time they get some real responsibi—“

“That’s a no, then. Alright. Thanks for your cooperation, Team Frostbite. Or, lack of, more likely. Do better next time, okay?”

If Max wanted to be honest with himself, it hadn’t taken him much time to realize he wasn’t fond of any of the members in Team Frostbite. Or Frostbite herself. In fact, he considered her to be almost insufferable, and, again, he couldn’t quite understand why they were allowed to boss everybody around. To a certain extent, they reminded him of the popular kids (who were also bullies) in every movie he had ever watched. They weren’t nice. Not even likeable.

Maybe Max was just very specific on the type of people he liked.

Or maybe he liked everyone and their mom, except Team Frostbite, because he didn’t know any better than that, while at the same time he knew better than liking Team Frostbite.

But he didn’t know better than liking Margaret White, because…well…

She hadn’t done anything particularly awful for him to have an opinion as strong as Uncle Evander’s about her.

She came on a Friday.

Not that she exclusively came to talk to him.

She, in fact, arrived alongside Aunt Kasumi, who was wearing her civilian clothes –High-waisted jeans and a baby blue shirt, damp with sweat because it was hot outside- and kept leaving her car key on every table that came across her, before coming back to it to grab them.

At first, Max wasn’t able to see Margaret very well, mostly because he was distracted with his online classes, and she was taken straight to Dad’s office, along with Adrian’s entire team. And though Max didn’t see much, he was able to catch a glimpse on how Adrian kept on trying to grab her hand, and she insisted on pulling away.

At some point, he had read about that too.

The Renegades accepted recruits from ages 14 and up, talking about patrolling. However, they had a child protection program, where, basically, they assisted orphan prodigy children with behavioral issues or, though only few people liked to admit it, potential to be a part of the organization when they were older. Adrian didn’t like it and, strangely enough, out of everyone, Evander didn’t like it either. Nevertheless, Evander was one to get more aggressive when it came to child recruitment, which, thankfully, wasn’t common at all.

In fact, those cases were so rare, that they referred to them as “exceptions”. After all, children were not allowed into the Trials. As far as Max knew, they weren’t placed in patrol units. On the contrary, they were given small positions in the organization, and their paychecks were directed to their respective savings account, something that Pops was in charge of. However, they could use that money for their personal needs or something they wanted to buy, as the few children recruits resided in orphanages around Gatlon and went back there after their shift was over. Max supposed that sometimes their caretakers refused to buy them something because it wasn’t good for their health and it must be very satisfying to tell them it was their money (That’s what Adrian always did when Dad refused to buy something for him).

(That, or he went and asked Pops for that same thing).

Usually, they could have cash withdrawals just by presenting their Renegade Recruit ID because, obviously, they didn’t have an official ID yet.

And not only that. The children recruits were assigned a patrol unit with older members to look after them, or help them with anything they needed. Taking into account the conversation he had overheard, he supposed that duty had fallen on Adrian’s team (A theory that was later confirmed to be true by Adrian himself).

They were never left unsupervised, just like Max.

The day Margaret arrived, for a couple of minutes, maybe hours, Max was submerged in his own little world, and in the assignment his last teacher had told him to do. It was just him, his colored pencils, his paper sheets, his notes, his head, his hands, and the miniature planet Earth that his quarantine supposed, against the real world that he had never stepped on.

But every now and then, a little piece of the unknown, mysterious real world came running to his encounter and talked to him, sometimes in the most sudden, unsolicited way.

Sometimes it was Dad opening the door without calling. Sometimes it was Adrian pressing a new drawing against the crystal. Sometimes it was Pops, making a little “Psst” sound to get his attention.

Sometimes it was three little knocks, and the girl that was producing them with her knuckles.

Back then, Margaret’s hair was longer, to the point where she could tie it in a high ponytail, decorated with a blue bow, which combined with his orphanage uniform: A white polo, with the institution’s symbol by the right side of her chest, beneath a cobalt blue skirt with suspenders, long white socks and black scholar shoes.

He saw her and recognized she was real the first time, but Max still gave himself a couple of seconds to grasp the fact that she was really there.

Well, not there-there.

That she was there, as in, through the glass.

And she was calling him, even if she wasn’t saying anything. In fact, she was just there, eating from a chocolate bar with puffed rice. Her free hand was still over the glass.

And she was waiting.

So, he figured he didn’t want to keep her waiting anymore, and leaving his task and his tools behind, Max walked in her direction. And like it always happened, he stopped right before bumping his forehead against the hard, translucent surface.

Margaret took another bite from her chocolate, with an arched eyebrow, but she said nothing. From afar, Max hadn’t been able to really appreciate her features, but now that he was closer, he realized she was taller than him; her small, brown eyes were making her lashes look bigger; her black hair looked thicker and he was able to conclude that her skin tone was more or less like Pops’, maybe a little darker. She had a mark over her cheek, and at first Max thought it was a mole or a birthmark…until, of course, he realized that moles weren’t (or, at least, shouldn’t be) purple, and realized it was a bruise.

He didn’t ask her about it. Adrian had once told him that there were people who might not want to talk about their bruises or open wounds, not because the stories behind them were painful to tell, but because they were too embarrassing and telling embarrassing stories was an inconvenience.

“…well… now that I think about it…” He said right after. “…That’s not it. No. Not really. Sometimes your wounds’ backstories are painful. Or sometimes…you just want to keep them a secret, you know? And secrets are…sort of important.”

He believed every word.

Hence why, instead of saying something too nosy about that bruise, a little slowly at first, Max started lifting his hand up, until he reached the spot where Margaret’s was, and pressed his palm there. When she stared at his palm in confusion, Max clarified:

“Hugh five. You know?" Max giggled a little." As in… the Captain? Hugh? ...No?"

She didn’t laugh. And that was odd because Adrian would’ve.

Margaret wasn’t Adrian, sadly. And, it seemed to be, she hadn’t had an older sibling to tell her that some things just…weren’t adequate as icebreakers to start a conversation. Because, like Adrian had said, there were certain things other people might not want to talk about.

“Are you sick?” She directly asked.

Max was still “pressing” his hand against hers.

Gulping hard, he felt his throat boiling hot, almost as if it were growing blisters.

“No.” He said in a hoarse voice. “Why?”

Not pulling away either, Margaret said:

“The other day, Sister Malinda brought a very tiny baby into the orphanage. They were so small they had to take them to the medical wing.” She took another bite from her chocolate, and kept on speaking with her mouth full. “I sneaked out of my room to see them, and they were inside this little glass box that helped keeping them alive. Sister Tam told me so.”

Max kept quiet for a while. He would’ve been lying if he said he didn’t have a little curiosity about the name, but Margaret solved everything that had to be solved even if he didn’t ask her to.

“Sister Tam was named after Thunderbird. She’s younger than the other nuns.”

He guessed so.

Aunt Tamaya’s real name had been revealed to the general public on the 13th year into the Age of Anarchy, when she reappeared after being away for months thanks to an accident that involved Queen Bee and a cliff or something like that (Max couldn’t quite understand it, and Aunt Tamaya couldn’t remember much about it either. If she did, then she just didn’t desire to talk about it). It wasn’t a fun anecdote or anything like that but, according to his dads, the name Tamaya topped the lists for the most female-assigned names for at least a year, and the same thing happened in the 20th year into the Age of Anarchy...however, by the time she was buried, the world didn’t know Lady Indomitable’s real name, and for an entire month, people used Regina instead of Georgia. When Max asked why, Dad answered that, when attending public events, Lady Indomitable used to wear a pair of shiny golden R-shaped earrings that caused everybody in Gatlon to develop mass hysteria and made themselves believe that those Rs meant Regina, when in reality, according to Lady Indomitable herself, one of them meant “Rawles”, and the other “Renegade”. In fact, Oscar Silva (Smokescreen, one of the members of Adrian’s team) had once said that one of his cousins, who lived in Mexico, had been named Renata Regina (Though nobody knew what the heck that first name was, and Oscar had a really peculiar way to pronounce Regina) because she was born a few days after Lady Indomitable’s decease.

“I knew that.” Max lied.

“Sure, buddy. I bet you did.” Margaret chuckled. And there, Max realized she thought she was too clever.

Which, he didn’t doubt she was. He wasn’t in the position to state that. At least, not yet.

But what he was in the position to state, was that, if she thought herself to be clever, then it was his opportunity to think of himself as clever too. After all, he had been reading his whole life because he didn’t have anything else to do.

If Margaret was clever, then so was he.

“You’re talking about an incubator.” He said.

Margaret looked up out of a sudden (Max hoped she hadn’t gotten dizzy). He could still see the chocolate, that at this point should’ve been mush, stored in the inside of her right cheek.

“Uh?” She asked, struggling to keep her mouth closed.

Max gulped, and tapped the surface with his fingers.

“The thing where they put the little baby. It’s called an incubator. That’s where they put pre-term babies, because they’re not ready to survive outside of their mother’s womb. Sometimes their lungs don’t work on their own, sometimes their hearts are too fast or too slow…”

“You look too old to be a baby.” She observed. “Are your powers something related to that? Like, are you a baby who doesn’t look like a baby?”

For a second, Max thought about quoting Evander that time he had boldly stated that Simon was Adrian’s mom, but he didn’t because he wasn’t in the mood to curse.

“…No. First, this is not an incubator. And second, I’m a kid.” He answered. “I’m not a baby.”

“Then why are you here?”

The short answer was that, honestly, that was none of her business. And the even shorter answer, was:

“I can’t tell you. It’s a secret. And secrets are sort of important.”

“A secret.” She repeated, as if tasting the word. “…You don’t look like you want to be here. Are you allowed to come out?”

The short answer was still that it was none of her business. But, if he wanted to be honest, for some reason, he didn’t want to give that answer. Because, to be fair, she would find out on her own sooner or later. Because, yes, people talked, and while his dads were kind of secretive about him, everyone in the headquarters knew him. Her being clueless was just a temporary event that would vanish into thin air in a blink.

And, for some reason, he wanted to enjoy it while it lasted.

Maybe tell her something that wasn’t real. Maybe… tell her something that wasn’t necessarily true but that he wanted it to be. Maybe something that was more interesting than what he was, in reality; maybe something that would make the worm in his brain go away for two weeks.

"I can't get out." He finally decided. "Because this glass is infrangible."

Then, he knocked on it three times.

"See?"

Margaret tilted her hair to the side, looking like a cat.

"What does that word mean?"

And dumb as it sounded, Max felt a twinge in his stomach along with a violent wave of pride. Because, even if it was hard for him to admit it, he was hoping she would ask that.

He wanted her to ask that.

"It means you can't break it."

Margaret's eyes seemed bigger. But just as she was separating her lips to speak, somebody behind her cleared their throat.

That's when Max spotted Aunt Kasumi leaned against a wall with her arms crossed. When Margaret looked over her shoulder, she found her there too. But while Max waved at her, Margaret remained inexpressive.

"You're very far from the restroom, Maggie." Kasumi said, in a serious tone. Afterwards, she massaged her temples.

"Please, darling. Just… help me here, okay? We have to go back to the office."

And she didn't seem mad, but rather disappointed.

When it came to Aunt Kasumi, that was enough. Max knew that, and Margaret knew that too. That's why they both removed their hands from the glass, and Margaret started going away.

However, before she was too far, Max asked:

"Why are you here?"

And Margaret turned around, smiling.

"If you're not telling me, I'm not telling you." She sentenced. Then, she proceeded to imitate his voice as she said:

"It's a secret."

And for a while, obviously, it remained that way. A secret. But it wasn't long before they both knew everything they needed to know.

Margaret was integrated into the janitorial team, but, for a while, people talked about her and her powers, and Max couldn’t help but remember what Dad had told him in the bathtub, and the conversation between Evander and Kasumi.

Yet, more than scared, Max felt… something he didn't know what it was. In fact, he wasn't scared of her. More likely, a part of him felt that he knew what it was like to be her, because maybe they weren't that different after all.

People were scared of them both.

But he wasn't scared of her. No, not really.

He hoped she wasn’t scared of him either.

Maybe they could've been very good friends, even through the infrangible glass that kept him from getting pointed at, frowned upon or killed.

#renegades trilogy #marissa meyer #Dawnie writes #renegades ship week #margaret white #magpie #max everthart-westwood #the bandit

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rogershoe · 4 years ago

Text

Lights, Camera, Action

Part One

Masterlist

Summary: You’re a production assistant on the set of Cursed. The night before your first day at work, you opened your laptop to shockingly realise you’d be working with Daniel Sharman (and a plethora of other amazing actors), someone you’d been watching on screen since you were a teenager. You kept your expectations low, the PAs rarely got to interact with the talent…what was your chance?

Word Count: 2.5k

Tag list: @sxperncturalimpala67 @mrsaaronkeener @tinygardensoul @disasterday @5am-cigarette @lancelotapricot @demoiselle-en-detresse00 @slytherlight @18somethingpsyche @ceruleanmusings @glxctt @cavillxhenry @lovelyapplessss @hereagainsstuff @linkpk88 @aliceperdida @weeping-redemption @magicalsaladnacho

(I’m so sorry, tumblr isn’t letting me properly tag some of these accounts ;(

Warnings: Age gap between reader and Daniel, slow burn? (Don’t know if that should be a warning haha)

Notes: I didn’t specify the reader’s age since I wasn’t sure what you guys would be comfortable with ;) Plzz lmk what the maximum age gap is that you all would be okay with or I’ll just decide on one myself haha (also lmk if you’d like to be in the tag list!!). This is my first Daniel x reader fic so plz leave ideas and suggestions! (I myself am not actually sure where exactly this fic is going lmao). Tysm for reading!!

p.s Huey Kerrigan is the actual name of one of the second assistant directors of Cursed :)

Sunday, January 6th 2019

10:16 pm

You opened your laptop nervously, your leg bouncing against your couch. It was your last night as a jobless woman and that both excited and scared you. You opened your email, scanning your mail quickly before your eyes landed on “Call Sheet”. You clicked on the email and saw that there were two documents attached. The second was labelled “Cast List”. Your eyes widened when you realised you would be finding out who you were working with tonight. Not tomorrow. Not at work. Tonight.

You forgot about the call sheet and quickly clicked on the one about the cast. As your eyes scanned the list, you gasped audibly as a name caught your attention.

“Daniel Sharman”

Daniel Sharman? The Daniel Sharman? The one you had been practically in love with when you were 17? (Not anymore of course).

Your heart beat faster as you scanned the rest of the list….”Katherine Langford”…….”Gustaf Skarsgard”..those were the only other two names you recognised so far. Now you couldn’t wait to get to work. You were even more eager but also increasingly anxious to wake up tomorrow. Would you even get to see the actors? If you did, would you be able to meet them? You had so many questions but no one to answer them. Trying to push all of the increasingly complicated thoughts out of your mind, you closed your laptop and got up off the couch to head into your room. You lived alone in your flat, full of piles of DVDs in a corner, two worn out but comfy couches, and your greatest purchase to this day….a large flat screen TV. You wouldn’t call your flat small, it was just…cozy. You looked around at the space admiringly before entering your bedroom and closing the door behind you

Monday, January 7th 2019

4:15 am

You woke up with a jolt, breathing heavily. You looked around for your phone grabbing it and swiping across the screen to turn your alarm off. You closed your eyes and laid down, breathing deeply.

The day was finally here. Your first day on set. You had to admit that by now most of the excitedness had been replaced with anxious thoughts. You attempted to ignore them as you opened your phone again to check your messages etc. Nope, nothing interesting.

At 4:25 you finally decided to muster up all the strength you had to pull yourself out of bed. You had to be at work by 5:30 meaning you should leave around 5:10.

You sat at the edge of your bed, rubbing your eyes. You hoped you wouldn’t fall asleep on set….you wouldn’t be surprised if you did.

You got up and walked into your bathroom. You looked into the mirror and immediately looked away. Waking up at 4:00 had only made your eye bags more prominent. Your hair was disheveled and eyes crusty. You tried not to look at yourself again until after you were dressed. You freshened up, washed your face, brushed your teeth etc before going back in your room to wear your clothes.

You had had an outfit ready since last week. They had told you to wear comfortable clothing and comfortable shoes. The most comfortable thing you had were sweatpants but you knew they didn’t mean those so instead you settled for a pair of your most comfortable jeans and a plain black t-shirt.

You changed and then went to your dresser. After some concealer, mascara, and tinted lip balm..you looked a bit more presentable. You could’ve gone completely barefaced but it was your first day and you wanted to look good.

The nerves could’ve killed you at this point. It was exactly 5:05 when you grabbed the call sheet you had printed this morning, your phone, your keys, and headed out of your apartment. You rode down the elevator and arrived at your car, a second hand red Fiat.

You fumbled with your keys before pressing a button and unlocking your car. You sat in the front seat and started the engine,

5:28 am

You pulled into the parking lot of the studio and parked your car in the “crew” area. You hoped this wasn’t the director’s spot or anyone else’s for that matter. As a production assistant, you were right at the bottom of the film crew ladder and answerable to any and everyone on set. Although that thought scared you, you were completely new so hopefully they would cut you some slack.

A week ago when you had gotten a call from the second assistant director (AD), he had told you to come into the building and find him. From there he would tell you what to do.

You walked around to the back of the building where there were six or seven people walking around with headsets, setting up chairs and tables. There were also several trailers set up in the parking lot, no doubt some for the actors. You nervously went up to one of them,

“Hi, where could I find the second assistant director?” you asked

“You’re new?” he replied ignoring your question.

“Yeah” you said smiling slightly

“PA I’m guessing?” he said and you nodded

“He’s in the studio, ask any of the crew inside, they’ll know” he said and smiled, opening a chair.

“Thanks” you said and quickly walked inside through the back door.

Inside it was exactly like what you had imagined. People bustling around, many sporting walkie talkies and headsets. Some held papers, some were talking to each other. You stood in a hallway lined with grey walls. As you walked through the halls you came upon what you guessed was the main studio. It was huge, you could barely see the roof through all of the lighting fixtures. There were multiple props on set but you could tell that the set hadn’t been completely set up yet. This wasn’t the only studio though of course. Judging by the size of the building, there were probably multiple sets. You were in awe for a few moments before realising you had to find the AD. You went up to someone who was setting up water bottles on a long white table.

“Hey, would you happen to know where the second AD is?” you asked

She looked over her shoulder, her short blonde hair tied into a small bun at the back of her head,

“Yeah he’s right over there”, she pointed towards a man who was holding a clipboard and also wore a headset. He had black hair and glasses and looked to be about in his 40s.

You smiled gratefully at her before turning around and walking towards the man. He was looking at his clipboard intently, chewing on his black pen. Your heart beat faster, you hoped he was the right guy. You walked up to him, keeping your distance..not wanting to disturb his thought process.

“Hi I’m Y/N’ you said quickly, waiting for his response. It didn’t come. After a few seconds he looked up at you and put his pen in his pocket.

“PA right?” he asked unconcerned.

“Yes” you said letting out a breath, at least he remembered you.

“I’m Huey Kerrigan”, he suddenly started past you, towards the hallway. You followed him not knowing what else to do. He pointed at the large white table the girl was setting bottles of water on,

“This is the snacks table, you’ll have to set it up in the morning and also restock it throughout the day”

“Got it” you said quickly, not wanting to seem like you were ignoring him

He walked in front of you passing through the hallway and swerving around the many other members of the crew. He walked through the back door you had just passed through a few minutes ago into the cool fresh air. You took a deep breath and followed him to what looked like a charging station beside the tall concrete walls of the studio.

“These are the batteries, aka hot and cold bricks” he pointed to two crates and a table on which there were multiple charging batteries. The “station” was covered by a large white canopy.

“Hot bricks are charged batteries and you must have one on you the entire time in case a crew member needs it. They’ll give you their dead battery aka a cold brick and you bring it here to charge” you were silent for a few seconds trying to process what he had just told you.

“Got it?” he asked

“Yeah…got it” you stuttered smiling nervously

He continued walking and took you right to where all the trailers were parked.

“This is the basecamp,” he said, waving his hand towards all the trailers.

“All the actors’ trailers, the hair and makeup trailers, they’re all here”

You felt a jolt of excitement before remembering to reply, “Okay, cool”

He nodded and continued walking throughout the several trailers, there had to be at least forty. You also scanned your eyes over the area, hoping to maybe get a glimpse of the actors or their trailers.

As if he read your mind he said, “The talent isn’t here yet. They arrive around 6:20 am, get their hair and makeup done and start shooting around 8:30 am….of course this all depends on the day”

You nodded, making sure he saw you.

For the next 20 minutes he showed you around the basecamp and exactly where the makeup and hair trailers were. He also told you about how you never talked to the talent unless you had something to tell them, they had to be somewhere, or if they talked to you. You couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed, you weren’t surprised but had still hoped you’d get a small chance to maybe have a chat with the actors.

When you went back inside you saw that the studio had completely transformed. There was one set which looked to be a room with three or four beds and wooden features. Another set opposite that was of what looked to be a marble room with shelves and a white bed. It all looked so realistic that if you were in the set area you wouldn’t have even realized you were in a studio.

“We’re shooting a scene today from episode three, these sets” he waved towards the area, “are from scenes taking place in an abbey”

He stuck a hand down his pocket, wiggling his fingers about before removing it holding a crumpled paper.

“This is the main cast in these scenes,” he said, handing it to me. I nodded quickly grabbing and unfolding the sheet.

Main cast list for abbey scenes

Katherine Langford

Peter Mullen

Daniel Sharman

Shalom Brune-Franklin

Emily Coates

Sophie Harkness

Caroline Lee Johnson

Gabriel Akuwudike

Your heart leapt inside of you when you realised you’d get to see all these actors today.

“You’re green so you won’t be needing the list today” he continued and you looked up from the paper, “but in a few days, you will”

You guessed green meant someone who was new.

He walked further into the studio, to the large snacks table and handed you four bottles of water. “You first task” he said smiling, “take these to the grips over there”. He pointed to four men on ladders adjusting the lighting above the wooden room set.

“Okay sure” you said grinning, happy you could start working.

“And then go over to the team of PAs and ask what else you can help with”

Before you could reply, he abruptly walked away and out of your sight. You took a deep breath and walked over to the set where the “grips” were. The set was amazing, the sheer detail of the beds and the door and the walls and the small trunks at the end of each bed were unbelievable. You took a few seconds to admire it before trotting over to the three men and one girl. You looked at your watch, it was 6:11 am.

“Yeah, just screw it a bit tighter” one guy said squinting at the light fixture from the ground.

A man on the ladder moved his hand, adjusting the light bulb.

“Hey, I got you guys some water” you said, hopeful they heard you

The girl grabbed the four bottles from you without a word handing one to the man beside her and putting the other two on the ground next to the ladder which the two men were currently on. She wore glasses and had long brown hair held back by a hairband.

“Thanks” she said glancing quickly at you and then getting back to work.

You smiled slightly, remembering that you really were on the very last rung of the ladder of crew members.

You walked away from the set and towards the snacks table, thinking of what to do next. You decided that you should go get a hot brick since that was something Huey said you should have on you at all times. After that you could come back inside and find the rest of the PAs.

You headed outside, having to be careful and not bump into anyone in the hallway. The fresh air was welcome after the several people brushing past you inside. You walked over to the canopy covered area to get a “hot brick”. You knelt down placing one knee on the ground to steady yourself. Before looking through the crate, you decided to tie your hair up since you saw that almost everyone on set had their hair somehow kept away from their face. As you were pulling your hair back, you saw a black car pull into the parking lot, a few spaces away from the crew parking. Your heart beat a bit faster as you tied your hair tie around your hair. Could it be…?

Although you knew getting starstruck was the worst thing that could happen to you as a PA, you couldn’t help but stay there as you tightened your hair, not wanting to remove your eyes from the car. It pulled into a parking space and you saw a man step out. As he locked the car and started walking towards the basecamp you realised it was exactly who you thought it was.

Daniel fucking Sharman.

Now your heart was beating fast, threatening to leap out of your chest. He was wearing a grey shirt, jeans and sunglasses and was walking towards one of the trailers, probably his. He was far from you but still, his eye caught yours as he turned his head towards the battery station. Your cheeks heated up and you looked away quickly, mentally slapping yourself. You had practically been ogling your eyes at him..and he had seen you. You knew he knew that you were looking at him. After a few seconds, you pulled yourself together, looked back in his direction and saw that he was entering his trailer his head facing forward again…the the door closed behind him and you let out a deep breath.

You scolded yourself..you couldn’t get this starstruck whenever you saw him or any of the other actors..they were human after all not some sort of gods. You turned towards the crates and grabbed a charged battery, putting it into your jeans’ back pocket. Although you tried to convince yourself that he didn’t have any effect on you, you couldn’t help but be delighted about your luck that you would be working with him out of all the other actors in the world.

Plz plz plzzz comment how you liked this first part! I need some feedback 😂😭

Part two

345 notes · View notes

joon-ipersgirl · 4 years ago

Text

O7 - “the promising proposition”

genre: mafia!au, angst, fluff, slow burn, mystery-thriller

pairing: namjoon x reader (f)

word count: 5.1k

warnings: cursing (if i miss any, let me know!)

summary: charismatic. beautiful. fearless without question. the ambitious team of seven young men in charge of spiral, downtown district’s hottest new club go above and beyond to provide 100% satisfaction to their clients.

after an eventful night out, you have no choice but to join the team for property damages greater than your intern salary. challenging a series of events that can no longer be left to coincidence, secrets threaten to burst at the seams as your professional and private life collide, and another - more sinister - debt is added to your total.

how far are you willing to go to pay back your pound of flesh? remember, nothing is ever as it seems...

a/n: it’s been a minute but we’re back! winter break is here and i’m determined to write so here’s part 7 as i still work on my tae halloween fic (whew) and some more holiday related scenarios/oneshots. thank you all for being so patient and i hope you enjoy this next part. i only have one more pre-written part for this story so updates may be even slower lol. as always, send your reactions as they make me super happy lmao. thank you vi for beta-reading this and enjoy everyone!

full masterlist // series masterlist // previous // next

The four of you sit in Manager Kim’s office, tense. Well, three as Paul had ruined his chances during last week’s meeting but you know he can feel the heaviness in the air as you wait for Madeline’s decision. She sits comfortably behind her large desk after calling you in to tell you who’d be assisting her on the Cavallero project. Her large, black fedora is propped on her head at a dangerous angle as she has her feet kicked up on her desk, her signature steel toed boots accentuating her full black outfit. You’d spent the previous days in the breakroom trying to figure out what made this project a higher priority than the rest of the contracts you’d acquired and who would be the lucky winner.

“Lovely of you all to join me, though Paul you were not really needed.” He tries his best to hide behind Laura from Manager Kim’s disappointed stare, but to no avail. “I know you all have been eagerly anticipating which one of you lucky interns will have the privilege of working with me on the first part of the Cavallero contract. You’ll find out shortly as his assistant will be dropping off the final notes on what he expects to see at the event; I’ll send one of you down to fetch him. We’ll have a brief meeting afterwards and then get to work. The rest of you will work under that person, following their orders diligently. Now, I need updates on the rest of our projects. Where are we?”

You barely listen as James rattles off what he was able to accomplish with the Emmerson’s engagement party. You think his design is doable, chic for an event planned in spring, but lacking in some of the finer details you know the future Mrs. Emmerson would appreciate; she’s a woman after your own heart with her love for champagne, meals created by chefs with Michelin stars, and exquisite fine china. Of course Madeline would pit you against each other for this job though. Not that you mind, you’re more than capable of fighting for what you believe is mine. It’s just less work when it’s given to you nicely packaged. Like the gifts you’re sure future Mrs. Emmerson would like to receive from her future husband’s wealthy friends.

“Y/N?” You focus back on Manager Kim who’s waiting expectantly, her glasses slipping down her nose. “The Williams’? What’s going on there? Or have you not made any progress?”

“The Williams have signed off on the zoo theme for their son,” James interjets before you can gather your thoughts. “We’re looking into finding the best face painters in the city and we’ve almost secured a catering contract for the 150 vegan cupcakes Mrs. Williams ordered. The invitations are currently being designed based on the chosen theme and will be ready for client approval next week.��

“Very good, James. Please send me a copy of your notes to be added into the file. Y/N, I expect better from you. That’s everything I have for today. You’re all dismissed,” she finishes with a wave of her hand, her glasses sliding down her nose once again as she searches for one particular document on her desk.

You don’t wait for the rest of them to follow as you make your way back to the tiny cubicle-like room you share. Manager Kim normally never calls you out in front of the rest of them and you’re fuming. Tossing down your legal pad, you whirl around as the three of them enter the room.

“What the fuck, James?!” you hiss as he calmly sits behind his desk and resumes typing on his computer.

“Looks like the Princess is upset,” Paul stage-whispers to Laura as he too sits down. You ignore him. He’s just as irrelevant beforehand as he is now.

“What do you need, Y/N? I have to send the notes from the meeting to Manager Kim,” James responds, not looking up at you. Your face further sours.

“You read my fucking files?! That wasn’t your event to handle and you know that!” you yell.

“Well, you took too long to respond -”

“I had barely opened my mouth -”

“- and Manager Kim needed a response, so I responded,” he finishes, ignoring your outburst.

“Y/N, please calm down. We don’t want to make a scene,” Laura pleads.

“Calm down? Laura, he made me look incompetent,” you argue.

“But you are, Y/N.” You pause and turn to James once again. Disbelief is written across your face as you stare each other down. You were the imcompetent one? “You should be ready to answer any question about any event J&M has going on whether it’s your’s or someone else’s. It’s not my fault that you were never taught the basics of efficiency in a company. The job has to get done and I completed the task. Simple,” he finishes. His incessant typing is all you hear as you stare at him. James had never been this bold before. Especially not with you.

“Watch your mouth, James,” you tell him coolly.

“Furthermore, your failure in that meeting shows that you’re incapable of handling bigger projects. I mean, you couldn’t recall the most straightforward details of a birthday party for a six-year-old child. Why should Manager Kim trust you to work on the coveted Cavallero contract? You’ve given her no reason to. All you’ve done is eliminated yourself from the running, effectively leaving Laura and I. Which is no challenge because - no offense Laura - you’re not really competition. I just hope you guys can maange when my hands are full with this project.”

You laugh as Laura cowers. You weren’t sure whether it was from the sound or James’ particularly harsh words, but the atmosphere in the room was much worse than in the meeting. Biting back the words you really wanted to tell him, you heed Laura’s advice and decide to not cause a scene. This is a professional establishment and you need this job. There are goals you want to accomplish and you wouldn’t let a slimy bastard like James Carter distract you. He’d finally shown his true colors - what he really thought of you - and you’re only grateful the others had been around to witness it.

“Alright, James. It seems like you’ve been holding back on us. Just remember: a word once let out of a cage cannot be whistled back again,” you tell him as you resume your duties at your desk. Flipping open a new page of your legal pad, you write neatly at the top: Emmerson Engagement. If James thought he had bested you, he had another thing coming.

“Are you okay, Y/N?” Laura asks as she joins you in the staff room for lunch.

“Never better,” you reply, sipping on your iced coffee as you warm your leftover lasagna in the microwave. Gods bless your sweet, sweet roommate.

“What James said to you this morning was pretty harsh,” she says as she makes herself a steaming cup of green tea. Always the health conscious one that girl.

“James seems to be tired of our shit,” you chuckle. “I’ve heard worse though, Laura. Don’t worry about me. He said some pretty harsh things about you, too.”

She nods. “I didn’t think he could be so mean! And counting me out?! I worked really hard on my designs!” Laura’s voice doesn’t sound too sure, but you nod in agreeance.

“Your bridal party design last spring was very well done,” you tell her around a mouthful of lasagna.

“Exactly!” she says in a huff as she plops down across from you, nearly burning herself in the process. “And your event was really good too! The one you did a few months ago,” she trails off. You laugh.

“Which one was that?”

“You know, the one for the family with that really fancy theme? And lots of people came...”

“Oh, the Winter Wonderland scene on the ice rink?”

“Yes, that one!” she exclaims.

“That was Marie’s project before she got transferred to Jenson’s team,” you say with a laugh. Laura almost chokes on her tea as you wipe your mouth clean. “No need for you to try and make me feel better by pretending to remember something I’ve worked on. I’m honestly fine,” you chuckle again.

“Y/N, I’m so sorry -”

“Y/N?” James stands in the doorway looking quite displeased. You raise your eyebrows at him in response. “Manager Kim would like to see you in her office. Please make it quick as I’m going to get Mr. Cavallero’s assistant soon.” You laugh loudly.

“Of course, James. I’ll be sure to let Manager Kim know you’d like her to rush her meeting for your convenience.”

He scowls as you brush past him, your half-eaten lunch and coffee in hand. Mercury must be in retrograde for James to think that he can make demands of you any type of way. It seems that you need to put him back in his place; he’d gotten too comfortable with the little office jokes you all shared. Grabbing your legal pad and pen, you smooth down the little flyaway hairs and your white button down shirt; you couldn’t receive another lashing looking unkempt. Knocking on the door, you wait for Manager Kim to answer before you enter.

“You asked to see me, Manager Kim?”

“Yes. Please take a seat, Y/N. I’ll be with you in a second,” she replies as she finishes typing on her computer. You sit gingerly in the unoccupied chair as you’d done this morning and wait for her to rip into you. “Right. Let’s get to it. What was that this morning?” You inhale deeply.

“Honestly, I was thinking about James’ event and mentally noting changes I would make as possible suggestions to him when you called on me. I wasn’t dozing off because I was bored,” you answer.

“Hmm. And what changes would you have made?” she asks curiously as she gives you her undivided attention.

“Well, the future Mrs. Emmerson is a woman of prestige. Class. While roses are a classic choice, white tulips are pre-on-trend and I think she would enjoy being a part of that group. He also chose the Dom Perignon champagne, but I thought Veuve Clicquot would be the better option. High price doesn’t always mean high flavor. I do agree with his choice of venue though. The high ceilings will look great in the low afternoon light and the white lights in the evening will make for great photos,” I finished. “But of course, the client is always right and if this is her chosen design, we’ll go with that.”

Manager Kim stares at you until you start to feel slightly uncomfortable under her gaze. You know you hadn’t overstepped and she had asked for your honest opinion, but when sitting in front of one of the best event designers in the game, second guessing yourself is inevitable.

“You didn’t think to say anything earlier in the meeting?” she asks.

“I wasn’t aware that giving opinions on other people’s events was ideal during a regular updates meeting.”

“You should speak up more. Your ideas aren’t as bad as you think they are,” Madeline says as she leans back in her chair. “How else do you expect to lead any major project?”

Just as you’re going to respond, a knock sounds at the door. “Come in!” Manager Kim yells.

“Should I leave? James did say he was going to collect Mr. Cavallero’s assistant,” you trail off, getting ready to stand.

“No. No, you’re fine,” she says with a wave of her hand. “Ah, Mr. Carlisle - oh! And Mr. Cavallero! What a surprise! I didn’t know you would be joining us,” Manager Kim says as she stands and you follow suit.

“I happened to have some free time and decided to tag along as Lewis was dropping off the notes. I hope you don’t mind. I thought it would be helpful to have me here in case you had any questions that needed direct attention,” Mr. Cavallero responds. “And please, call me Jonas.”

Mr. Cavallero, or Jonas as he would like to be referred to, is dressed in his typical big spender suit: a deep navy blue suit with a pristine white buttoned-down shirt and pre-released Versace patent leather monk strap shoes. His aura fills the entire space, though he only stands in the doorway of Madeline’s office. You can practically feel the gel between your fingers as you look at his salt-and-pepper slicked back hair; the sheen is almost as bright as his shoes.

“And Miss Y/L/N, yes? What a pleasure to see you again. Will you be sitting in on this meeting as well? Lewis could only sing your praises after you left,” he asks. You struggle to keep your face neutral as James’ searing gaze washes over you. You know Manager Kim’s ears must be red as her secretive meeting is foiled by her best client.

“Actually, I was just -”

“- going to bring the file for the event as you were previously suggesting. Right, Y/N?” Manager Kim says as she turns to you with a stiff smile. “You are our chosen intern, afterall.” You can barely contain your gasp as she says the words. You had gotten the contract?! James does not try to hide his shock at her statement as his eyes widen and his mouth nearly falls open.

“It’ll be a pleasure working with you again, Miss Y/L/N,” Mr. Carlisle says with a smile.

“Of course,” you reply with a deep head nod. “I look forward to working with you both as well. I’ll be back with your file shortly.”

“Thank you, Y/N. And thank you James for going to get them. You may leave now,” Manager Kim adds as she turns her attention back to her guests, inviting them to sit and make themselves comfortable.

You walk calmly, though you feel anything but that, across the room as James holds the door open for you. Pleading with the gods to be on your side, you race ahead of him to the breakroom for fresh, new bottles of water - a sight to see in a knee length pencil skirt and the infamous 4-inch stilettos that are apparently still required in this day and age. Your office is filled with hushed whispers until you round the corner and enter the small room.

“You got the Cavallero project?!” Paul exclaims. “Holy shit! You’re better than I thought, Y/N!” You laugh as you search your desk for the copy of the previous plans you’d developed from that day’s secret meeting.

“Congratulations, Y/N!” Laura cheers, bouncing up and down. “Your first real major project. Isn’t that exciting, James?”

“Sure. If you can be happy for someone who fucked her way to get the position,” he says biterrly. “Lewis could only sing your praises after you left?” James scoffs. “Sounds like you worked really hard in that meeting.”

“James!” Laura gasps.

“Oh it’s fine, Laura. If you think that James, I can’t stop you,” you say with a shrug. “But I’ll be happy to discuss my scandalous sex life with you after I meet with our coveted client.”

You prance out of the office with a smug smile on your face. Of course James would resort to a low blow because he didn’t get what he wanted; he was worse than the six-year-old child he had reprimanded you about. Tucking the fake file under your arm as the real one is still in Madeline’s office, you carry the bottles of water back to the meeting. After passing the bottles to your clients, you stand diligently behind Manager Kim with your notepad at the ready.

“Please Miss Y/L/N, take my seat,” Jonas says, standing.

“Oh no, I couldn’t.”

“I insist. I do my best thinking standing up.”

“He does this often in his office,” Lewis agrees. Glancing at Manager Kim, you gingerly sit down on the end of the chair after thanking Jonas again.

“You had mentioned that you enjoyed the designs Y/N had developed, but as you know these are drafts and can be changed as you deem fit, Mr. Cavallero. Are there any things that come to mind or can we work on finalizing these details?” Madeline asks. You watch as Jonas strides around the office, seemingly in thought.

“You proposed hosting the event at one of the upscale hotels downtown, but I was wondering if you had any other options. We want the environment to feel lavish, but not over the top,” he replies. “I was actually thinking of something -” he pauses “ - more intimate.”

Writing down his wishes, you rack your brain for places that fit his description. Most clients of his caliber wanted something extravagant, but Jonas was proving to be a very different man. Quite the surprise that you were not expecting. “Would you like something with more modern architecture or classical?” you ask.

“I have always been a fan of French architecture; the European style also seems to be popular among our own clients. Most of them come from European backgrounds,” Jonas answers.

“They might find the interior design reminiscent,” Madeline thinks aloud and jots it down.

“It could be very good for signing contracts, sir,” Lewis adds.

“I may have a suggestion. Chateau’s is a little outside of the city, but the view is magnificent. It’s family owned so that may benefit you with your clients as well. It also has a rooftop that would look great in the afternoon sun as well as the late evening should the event last longer than expected,” you suggest. “I’ve also read great reviews saying that the food is well prepared too.”

“This could lower your costs for your first event and more money can be reserved for the benefit gala you’re also organizing,” Madeline sneaks in. She’s right, of course. A benefit gala planned by Madeline Kim would require much more than what Mr. Cavallero had said he was okay with spending, but he didn’t need to know that right now.

“Hmm,” he ponders turning around. “This sounds doable. I’d like to see what you can come up with for designs for this new place as well as scheduling a visit to see it for myself. All of this can be done before the initial deadline of securing a venue, yes?”

“Absolutely,” Madeline responds and you keep your composure as you review your mental calendar of events knowing this would be difficult to pull off. Brunch is scheduled a month and a half from today’s date meaning you had to somehow convince Chateau’s to take on your client, create an acceptable menu, and allow you to make any decorating changes within two weeks to make the deadline. Madeline is batshit crazy, but it would have to get done to secure the benefit gala - the whole reason for the company even accepting this contract.

“I can have all the details typed and sent to you within the next week. I’ll also keep the downtown hotel as an option if Chateau's is unavailable for your intended date. I’m sure we can use the rooftop of a hotel to create an intimate setting that your guests would enjoy,” you add. “I would also like to request the location of the benefit gala. I understand this is a very important event for your law firm and I would like to begin drafting plans for your approval at the earliest convenience.”

“Yes, of course. We use the Finca Corte as they have the best grand ballroom in the city. Lewis, please send Miss Y/L/N the past itineraries of the event so she may have a better understanding of the atmosphere we wish to create for our guests.” Lewis nods and makes his own notes, before his wrist watch alarms.

“Ah, Mr. Cavallero. Your 4pm meeting is on time this afternoon. We should leave now so you aren’t late,” Lewis warns. Jonas nods and you all stood to say your goodbyes.

“Please, if you need anything, reach out to Lewis and he’ll get in contact with me so I can answer any of your questions,” Jonas says with a smile as he shakes your hands.

“Of course, Mr. Cavallero. Please feel free to do the same,” Madeline replies though you can hear the tightness in her voice and for the third time, you wonder what her relationship is with Jonas. They had to have had some history for her to always seem on edge in his presence.

“Let me walk you both downstairs,” you offer. J&M isn’t as large as Hastings and Lewis, but there are many twists and turns on each floor that guests could get lost in.

You don’t turn your head as you pass your tiny office space and head for the elevator. You wouldn’t give any of those fuckers your attention in the presence of high quality clientele. It’s cramped inside but not uncomfortable as you ride down from the fourth floor. Jonas turns to you once again as you stand in the lobby.

“Again Miss Y/L/N, if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask. Lewis would be happy to answer any of your questions if you can’t get in contact with me,” he says and hands you his business card.

“I actually did have one question before you go. Well two actually. Finca Corte - it isn’t a chain, is it? Just one location?”

“Right. On 17th and Main near the Grande Theatre, but the next block over,” Jonas replies.

“And there’s no need to call and reserve the date? The notes Lewis had given us hadn’t mentioned anything about the date or a deposit,” you state.

“No, the firm takes care of those details. The benefit gala is always reserved for the third Saturday in May every year,” Lewis responds. Three months from now, you think.

“Oh, wonderful. I know you have to get going so I’ll email you any other questions, Lewis. Thank you again. Please return to the firm safely,” you say cheerly and wave. They return it and you wait for them to get into their sleek town car before you let your face fall into a frown. You’d never been to or heard of Finca Corte before, but why did the location seem so familiar? You try not to dwell on it too much as you head back upstairs. There are more pressing matters at hand, like putting James back into the roach-infested place he’d crawled out of. You grin as you head off the elevator.

Rosalia greets you as you enter the old two-bedroom apartment you share. Slipping off your heels that you’re sure has blood crusted into the toes from excessive wear, you scratch behind her ears as she purrs. She’s one of the better things to happen to you in your life and you’re grateful for her little pieces of affection even though you’re positive she had made some attempts to smother you in your sleep so she could have your bed.

“You’re home?” Amaya calls out from her hidden position on the couch.

“Yeah! Did you make dinner?” you ask as you follow your nose to the kitchen where a large pot stews on the stove.

“Of course I did. We all know you’d starve if I didn’t cook,” she says as she bumps you out of the way to check on the food. You mock her as you sit down at the antique metal table that you rarely ate at, choosing to have your meals in the much more comfortable living room on the sofa.

“I could survive!” you yell, trying to defend yourself, but Amaya isn’t having it.

“You couldn’t. Was the lasagna okay today, though?” she asks, changing the subject.

“The best. You should really consider opening a restaurant and forgetting all this computer engineer stuff,” you tell her seriously.

“Ha! As if that would pay off these loans. Either way, this is an investment. Once I’m done with this degree, I’ll be able to program computers to make these dishes for me and rake in a ton of money to get us out of this place,” she says with determination.

Amaya is a third year computer engineering student at Oberman University. Surprisingly smaller than you, she carries as much kick as you do, the two of you getting into numerous instances of mild misdemeanors. Amaya had actually hacked a few systems after she had found out that you weren’t really registered for classes at the University so you could get some credit; she’s a computer genius. Thanks to her, you technically have an Associates degree, but of course Oberman would never grant it to you unless you actually re-enroll. Amaya doesn’t take anyone’s shit though she looks like she’s 12 with her big green eyes and short blunt bob, the bangs a little too long and falling into her eyes.

“Thank you for including me in your plans for world domination, Aya,” you say while taking your hair out of your bun.

“Of course. You know you’re family to me, even though you leave your fucking dishes in the sink,” she replies while placing a piping bowl of beef stew and white rice in front of you. You thank the gods for her as you tuck in, burning your tongue in the process.

“I love you. So, so, so much.”

“Are you talking to me or the stew?” she asks with a laugh as she blows her food to cool it down. You laugh in response. “How was work? Oh my gosh, did you get the project?!”

You grin and nod. “I did!” She squeals in delight and claps her hands. “Though James was extremely displeased. He actually called me incompetent -”

“Hold on. He called you incompetent? Has he seen his progress report? And wasn’t he the one that forgot to submit his file that made that whole project you did a few months ago late?”

“Right. He was so shocked when Madeline announced it was me, even insinuated that I fucked my way to get the position. Kim was heated that Jonas mentioned our meeting while he was in the room though because it was supposed to be a secret,” you explain.

“Of course he would say something like that.” She rolls her eyes. “There seem to be a lot of secrets happening around you. Speaking of which, when do you head back to Spiral to snoop?” Amaya asks. “Do you think you can find anything in the hallway? Maybe you should break into Suga’s office or something,” she suggests.

“Friday night and I don’t think Suga would leave anything lying around like that for me to see again, not after I’m pretty sure he caught me reading his papers a few weeks ago,” you reply, pushing the rice around the plate. That had been extremely careless and might have killed a lead to your mini investigation before it had even begun.

“The one with all that information right? Gosh, I wish you had my photographic brain, that way you could have written down what you had seen and we could solve this whole mystery,” she groans.

“Oh no, Aya. I don’t want you getting involved with this. It seems way too dangerous and you -”

“- have my whole life ahead of me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. But I want to know where this guy went. Like what if he’s still out there and looking for you?” she questions.

“I know, I know. I don’t want you worrying about it though. I can handle it,” you promise. “I feel like I’ve seen the address before though, but I can’t figure out where.” You rub your forehead as if you could magically make the numbers appear in your mind again. Aya’s photographic memory really would have come in handy.

“What about the date?” Amaya asks. “Or the name? You said the name was weird, unusual.” You nod. What had it said?

“There was a date, a location, and a name with an amount of money. Like a contract or something,” you sigh. “It looked really similar to the ones we have at work. Fuck. I don’t know. Between this and planning the benefit gala, my brain feels like it’s going to explode.” Amaya laughs as she finishes her dinner.

“Please don’t hurt yourself. It’ll come to you,” she says, giving your shoulder a squeeze. “Well, I have Calc 3 homework to finish and these theorems won’t do themselves so I’ll see you in the morning. Wash your fucking plate,” she finishes and pointes her finger at you. You hold up your hands in surrender as she leaves hers in the sink for you to clean. It’s the least you can do as she made all your meals.

Grabbing your purse and lugging it behind you after washing the dishes, you head to your room, Rosalia following in tow. Surprisingly, your bed is still intact which means that Amaya had made sure Rosalia hadn’t gotten into your room. Bless her. Not that there was much to get into as you the minimum possessions a person could have: a bed, a few photos, and enough clothes to last you a few weeks without doing laundry. You place your files and notepads onto your bed, eager to go and take a shower before organizing your notes in preparation for the debrief you would no doubt have to give to the rest of your colleagues tomorrow.

“Was your day as long as mine, Rosalia?” You scratch her head as she hops up on your bed and makes herself at home between your papers, a few of them scattering to the floor. “Apparently not as you want to make mine even longer,” you murmur as you bend to pick up the loose sheets of today’s meeting notes from the Cavallero project. You pause.

Jonas. That was the name that was on top of the paper in Suga’s office. What would be the odds that the Jonas on the paper would be the Jonas Cavallero you were working for? If that Jonas was the same Jonas, then was the location on the paper one of the events you were working on? How would Suga have that information? You sit against the side of your bed. Unless -

Yanking your phone out your purse’s side pocket, you google “Hastings & Lewis benefit gala”. Just as you’d suspected, the information is public knowledge: the third Saturday of May at the Finca Corte. There is no way in hell that Spiral is catering that event; they weren’t ritzy enough to be hired by the likes of one of the most expensive hotels in the city for one of the biggest events on the city’s calendar. Something is going on and you just know all of this is connected somehow. You just need proof. Maybe Maya is right. You’d broken into a few places before. How hard could it be to get into Suga’s office?

full masterlist // series masterlist // previous // next

#bts fanfction #namjoon x reader #namjoon fanfic #bts mafia au #bts fanfic #fic: double entendre

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ashleyswrittenwords · 5 years ago

Note

Helloo Just read your Modern Au zelink where link is zeldas bodyguard and boiii is so sexy. Could you write more about this fic?? Like how Link and Zelda started their affair??

UHHH YEAH! I love that AU too. I’ll write a little prequel that I’m sure will end up being so much longer than intended.

Okay, so I made it much longer than intended. You asked where they started and this is it! It’s not M rated yet because their romance sparks a little more innocently before there’s a real fire.

I’m saying there’s a sequel to the prequel lmao.

If you want to read: The Queen and Her Bodyguard

—

It started with her most dreadful day of the year.

“My Queen! Your signature is required for the balloons.”

She feigned a polite smile.

“Your Majesty, please consider these final touches. It’s imperativethat the kitchen runs infallibly.”

“Queen Zelda, the press needs a statement regarding-”

Her cheeks held a pain only people who have been faking smilesall day could own. Hands massaged her jaw in a way that said, “Rest now, itwill surely be worse tomorrow.” With the weight of her head sinking down heavieronto her hands, the base of her elbows grew sore from biting into the mahogany desk.Vaguely she could hear Impa rattling off the press releases for this evening andtomorrow morning, but her eyes kept drawing to the corner of the room –continuously finding it empty. The idea of pulling off a disappearing act soundedmore and more handsome by the hour, although her fingers found the weighted penwaiting idly by her side and scribbled down shorthanded notes.

Impa was smiling in that motherly way of hers as she set downa copy of papers and a tumbler of hot tea. “If any of my words found their way toyou, then we are better off tomorrow than I thought.”

“What a relief.”

The woman bid her goodnight and left the door open as she spokehushed words to someone outside. They didn’t reach the queen and she didn’t care.The papers towering on her desk could may as well be an assassination attemptat this point. Without thinking, she grabbed the tumbler and took a sip of thetea inside, promptly burning her tongue. A sound that was between a his and acurse cut through.

“Are you alright, Your Majesty?” a voice came from the headof the room, leaving her to look up with panic.

Much to her relief, it wasn’t another advisor nor Impa. Linkstood at the door and closed it with hesitation. She nodded at his concern, helda hand to her mouth and held up the tumbler with the other for emphasis. “Yes,thank you,” she finally said, albeit numbly.

Zelda sank evermore into her hands and poured over the documentsfor some sense of organization. Daylight had long died in Castle Town, but thatdid not stop the nightlife that followed. Hylians found any excuse to party andthe eve of their queen’s birthday was far from an exception. There was plentyof sounds outside that drew her away from focusing.

“It’s just one thing after another today, isn’t it?” shemurmured to herself, looking up at her bodyguard who was taking turns about theroom. He hummed in agreement as he looked at the trinkets he has seen a thousandtimes before. Relenting to her distractions, she looked from her pile of papers,“How was the security briefing? I’m sorry I couldn’t be there.”

Tiredness had sunk into her words and along with it her bodyto the chair. It caught his attention. She could pretend everything was fine,that the late hours these last two weeks weren’t affecting her. It was somethingshe was good at, but even her best fronts were saw through by him. Link pulledaway from a picture from a charity event a year ago and caught his worn old notebookbetween the crook of his arm and his elbow. Inside it were her own plans for theweek alongside his, but he rarely deviated from her own.

He shrugged, shoving his hands into the pockets of his graydress pants. “It went smoothly. Everything is accounted for,” he offered a weaksmile, “Most of it technicalities you shouldn’t need to worry about.”

It made her roll her eyes. They both knew it was a five-hourmeeting discussing all possible security threats to herself and any of the nobility.He headed it himself, going over all sectors of defense and assuring protocolswere being adhered to. As he stepped closer, she could see the circles underhis eyes had darkened.

Zelda felt guilty.

“Have you considered my offer for the Gala?” she questioned,wondering if that suit were one she’s seen before. Drawing in the warmth of hertumbler and her knees into the seat, the woman attempted to look innocent.

He pursed his lips, looking from her to the window behind her.“Yes, and my answer is the same,” he paused on her curled form. Sleep deprivationsurely did not stifle the shocking blue of his eyes. Somehow without shame, itmade her want him to look at him more. He took another step across the room,fingers trailing the surface of her desk as he peered over, “Are those sweatpants?”

Like a gunshot, she dropped her legs from the chair and aflush crept up her neck, “Tell no one!”

Intrigue forced his lips to quirk upward as he rounded the desk,“Did you stuff them in your briefcase? What would Lady Impa think?”

“Yes, and she’llnever have to think because she won’t know,” she said indignantly up at him, “I’min this damned office all day. It makes no difference!” Although, changing underthe desk midday was a bit of a feat.

He snorted and she sat straighter, bracing the side of thechair to speak demandingly. “What if I double your pay? Come on, Link. I’masking you not to come to work!”

At this, the man grasped the back of her chair and smiledlazily down at her, “What kind of lousy bodyguard isn’t there during his charge’sbusiest days in public? Not to mention being a horrible friend for missing yourbirthday.”

It didn’t matter how valid his points were, she glowered atthe man. “You look exhausted.”

“And you,” he pulled the chair out despite her protests, “looklike you’re about to fall asleep.”

“I’m fine!”

“You almost started crying because you burned your tongue.”

“But-!”

Link reached around her for her tumbler and briefcase,stopping only to look her in the eyes, “Zelda, please. For your own wellbeing.”His face was stern and made her look away. Zelda stiffly nodded and followed himto the door where she took the lead. Her guard rarely said her name like that. Asthey began the long walk to the east wing, she turned slightly.

“Would you stay home if I threw in-”

“No,” he said before remembering where they were beforeadding, “Your Grace.”

She knew he was only worried, but that didn’t stop her fromdrawing her arms to her chest and feeling like a fool for arguing. “You know,”she started, “I wish you’d say my name more.”

He did his habitual scan of the halls and came to her with alook of confusion, “What do you mean?”

Their usual walk of comfortable silence felt tainted. “Youonly say it like that when you want me to do something,” Zelda frowned. She wasused to people using her for things. Only developing relationships for personalgain, and although she knew it wasn’t Link’s intention… it did bother her.

Link didn’t respond right away. He fell in behind her stepsas he usually did and it only churned the anxiety in her stomach. Nothing butone thing could go wrong tomorrow. The queen had three speeches prepared and theentire guest list in her back pocket.

“You’re not telling me something,are you?” he said it more like a statement than a question. They were coming upon her quarters now. Zelda thought about going through those doors and leavinghim without his answers. Instead, she stopped and turned to find him carefullywatching her.

“I have reason… to believe thatPrince Harrington will propose at the Gala,” the words spoken aloud made her nauseous.The only other person who had an inkling of what was going on was Impa, who wasalready writing up press statements for every possible scenario. Lady Midna hadcalled her last night to warn her and Zelda knew her sources were credible.

Link was carefully trying to readher. They’ve had many conversations about the man, mostly about his annoyinghabit of letting the media know his whereabouts whenever he visited the castle.He had proposed before in private and every time she let him down gently. But hewas also amongst her most viable suitors and a marriage like that would be verystrategic for Hyrule.

“Are you ready for something likethat?” his voice was calm, which differed greatly to her amassed concerns. Linkwatched her hand tighten around the other.

“It’s not the most ideal birthdaypresent,” Zelda tried to laugh.

He took her hand in his to stop itfrom prying the other off her wrist. The days felt like they were getting longerand summer brought along its own complications. They both knew that if she didget married there was no telling how different things would be. Zelda didn’tlike the thought of Link leaving her side and she entertained the thought thathe felt the same.

She stared down at their shoes, findinghim closer than she previously realized. Zelda wore fuzzy black slippers and hewore dark leather dress shoes.

He cracked into a smile, “How didI miss the slippers?”

“I have a charming disposition,”she jested, putting her hand on the door handle. “It’s distracting.”

“You do,” Link said in a tonethat drew her in all over again. “Makes it rather difficult to do my job.”

She smiled and felt her cheeksgrow warm.

“You deserve to be happy,” he suddenlyasserted, turning her hand over in his.

She expected him to pull away andleave her with a goodnight, but he didn’t. They stood together and she didn’t wantto leave quite yet. “I want you to be happy, Zelda,” Link’s grasp on her tightenedjust so she would notice. His eyes were gentle and genuine as he looked at her.If she weren’t what she was born into, she would let herself fall into that bluecolor. If that were true, she would give into whatever she was feeling rightnow and ask him to run away with her. If that were right, she would let him makeher happy.

But it wasn’t.

Even so, she let him pull herinto a hug. His arms encircled her and she met the collar of his gray jacket. Hesmelled like the musky scent of his cologne and something that was distinctlyLink. She wondered if his whole apartment smelled like this or if there was anyonewaiting for him. “Thank you,” she muttered against him, “but whatever decisionI make won’t be for myself.”

At that, his arms tightenedaround her and she wondered if she asked him to hold her like this every nighthe would do it. One night would be fine, she thought. One night would mean theworld. The thought made her chest tighten and her lip to tremble in a way a queen’slip should never. Zelda bit down on her lip and sniffed, burying her head deeperinto his chest.

“I’m sorry I’m keeping you up,”she said, pulling away despite her screaming want.

“Don’t be.” Blue eyes. All shecould see was blue. He brushed a tear from her cheek.

She couldn’t make sense of it.Link was already so close and when she leaned onto the tips of her slippers, hemet her halfway. His lips moved against her and his hand found her shoulder. Hebreathed her in and her heart pounded in her chest. Link pulled back after acouple long moments, wide eyed and confounded.

Zelda’s lips stumbled in betweenan apology and a goodnight as she fumbled for the door. Not even bothering tograb her things at the door, she closed it behind her.

#ily anon #the queen and her bodyguard #ashleyswrittenwords #zelink #loz

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t0ngue-tech · 5 years ago

Text

Everything Means Nothing Without You

“Namjoon adjusted himself to bring his legs out from underneath the table to you had enough room to maneuver your arms. You stood right in between his knees as you delicately wrapped the silk underneath the collar of his shirt and tied it just right then tucked it behind his vest.

‘Well, well, sir. You’re looking quite dapper.’ You complimented.”

↠ slow burn, arranged marriage AU, friends-to-lovers AU ↞

word count: 3.8k

↠ series ↞

A/N: ah yes, i have arrived with another series LMAO SUE ME. i hope you don’t mind lol. enjoy huhu.

“Mr. Namjoon, I rearranged your schedule for this afternoon.”

“Thank you.”

“The following associates are still waiting for you to forward the building plans.”

“Please kindly tell them that they will be receiving the documents by five oclock.”

“Of course and dinner has been pushed back to eight instead, the location still needs to be decided.”

“Okay, thank you.”

“Oh, and sir?”

“Yes, Mr. Jae?”

“Have a good day.”

It was the same pattern every single day.

Kim Namjoon would wake up at seven in the morning to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and pastries rising from downstairs of his home. There would always be classical music playing softly just as he exits his bedroom after taking care of himself in the bathroom. As soon as he reaches the bottom of the stairs, two of the housemaids were on either side of the banister waiting to greet him.

“Good morning, sir.”

“Good morning.”

His place at the table was already set with his morning coffee ready; a splash of milk and two teaspoons of sugar. Breakfast always varied, but whenever pastries were prepared, he always had two chocolate danishes and a butter croissant. Namjoon would spend an hour eating and going over any instructions his father left for him on his business associated tablet. At this point, his assistant would walk through the corridor to fill him in with any other details Namjoon’s father may have missed in the documents.

This morning routine barely ever changed and just like any other aspect in his life, Namjoon just dealt with it.

Kim Namjoon was the next successor in Kim Corporation. His father, the president of the business, owned restaurants, supermarkets, and now with Namjoon working his way up in the business, music stores were now in the works. Kim Seokjin, Namjoon’s older brother, was in charge of multiple restaurants and had just recently opened up a restaurant of his own.

It was absolutely exhausting following Seokjin around like a lost puppy in the business world, but Seokjin encouraged him to express himself and make a name for himself rather than having their father decide everything for them. Namjoon knew what he meant, which was why he convinced his father to be open to owning music stores. Still unsure if Namjoon truly understood what he meant, Seokjin supported him nonetheless.

Despite being the son of the chairman who owned multiple business chains, receiving a degree in business was mandatory in their family. Their father could have easily taught them everything himself, but college was a must.

Namjoon had classes at a university from eleven in the morning to four in the afternoon with a one hour break between his third and fourth class. Going to class was just another routine that he went along with because it was what his father wanted and it was his duty to listen to his father.

“Hey, Namjoon. My dad wanted me to congratulate you on securing the bag on a location for a music store.” Min Yoongi, a long time friend, joined him during his break.

“Thanks, Yoongi. Give him my regards, but things aren’t really set in stone yet.”

Yoongi waved a hand in front of his face. “Stone, shmone. The developers are pretty much going to approve since it’s coming from Kim Corp.”

‘Coming from Kim Corp.’ A free one-way ticket.

“Anyway, you busy later? I’ve been wanting to try out your brother’s restaurant.”

“Sorry, I have dinner reservations at eight.” Namjoon replied flatly.

“Oh, so your dad finally found you a willing bride?”

As old school as it sounded, Namjoon’s father was keen on arranged marriages. He believed in knowing what was best for his sons, the business, and the future ahead of them in terms of family and class.

Seokjin was arranged to marry Bae Irene, whose family owned a law firm, and the two got married last spring. They lived together with Namjoon in a Kim family home and as corny as it was, their marriage was as sweet as can be despite being arranged. They were extremely compatible and gag-worthy-in-love, but Namjoon really liked Irene, she always treated him kindly and with respect.

Namjoon thought it was a waste of time. Why would he take out multiple hours of his day to go on dates with some girl his father picked out for him? It all seemed to be tiring. Being single was his best bet, but his father thought otherwise.

“Definitely not. Just dinner.” Namjoon shut his laptop. “I’ll text you when I’m free so we can go to the restaurant. I have to go to class.”

Swift, chic, and to the point.

Hours ticked on and Namjoon was now in his office of the main corporation building in a joined conference call with his father and another developer. Apparently things were smooth sailing and Namjoon needn’t worry about having his proposal rejected. This was how things usually went and it wasn’t a surprise. His father made such a name for himself that many businesses were eager to be working alongside Kim Corp.

“Did you forward the building plan?”

“Yes, father. I just sent them.” Namjoon touched the trinkets around his desk and spun a pen between his fingers.

“Perfect. Mr. Choi, we are delighted to do business with you.”

“Likewise sir. I’ll be taking my leave. Good day sir, Mr. Namjoon.” Mr. Choi spoke.

“Goodbye, sir.”

The line clicked dead and Namjoon sucked in a deep breath. He stared at his laptop screen barely reading the documents he promised himself to be familiar with. His eyes trailed from the screen, to his name placard, to a framed photograph of a sixteen year old Namjoon and his mother. He reminisced how his mother used to bring him snacks up to his room while he did schoolwork and talked about her day. She always made sure her sons had at least a few minutes of break time between any sort of work because she knew how hectic their father made their schedules. She reminded both Seokjin and Namjoon to relax before they overworked themselves to the grave at such a young age.

If only she followed her own advice.

“I hope you’re proud of me mother.”

Namjoon’s phone lit up on his desk.

“Hm?”

↠↞

“Next week?! I need the fabric by this weekend.”

“I know, Ms. y/n. Before you have a bird, I instructed them that you would take your business elsewhere if you don’t get it by Friday.”

“Thank you so much, Hye Jin. You know I hate acting that way, but Minzy is coming back from Paris on Sunday evening and I need her to approve the fabric and design herself.”

“It’s tough being a designer, but you’re doing great, y/n. Don’t be afraid to put your foot down. It’s your brand, honey. You’re in charge.”

“Thank you and you can leave for now, I’ll call you if anything comes up.”

The only reason why mornings were always so difficult for you was because you cherished sleep more than anything. You did love drinking a cup of coffee first thing in the morning, but the process of dragging yourself out of bed and exerting energy always pained you.

Mornings were never easy, but you enjoyed having your breakfast on the gazebo when the weather was right. You loved partaking in conversation with your family’s gardener and you always encouraged the other house workers to join you for a meal, but they usually declined due to their duties and you respected their decision.

Being the daughter of a famous beautician and a designer of high-end boutiques was always an adventure. Your mother found solace in trying out new hairstyles on you and dying your hair from time to time while your father always gives you access to new clothing he was going to release when the seasons rolled in. While you followed your father’s footsteps, your brother, Jung Hoseok, was your mother’s apprentice. Your parents never pressured you or Hoseok to follow in their footsteps, it just came naturally to the both of you.

Life was a roller coaster of traveling and fashion shows and you enjoyed every second of it no matter how stressed out it made you.

“Hey, you’re really not going to your classes today?” Hoseok walked up the steps of the gazebo with his fading red hair tousled in all sorts of directions.

“Yeah, it’s fine. Mom and dad are still in Milan, so they don’t have to know.” You offered him some of your breakfast, belgian waffles with an assortment of fruit. “Plus, I have a lot to do for your wedding.”

Your parents didn’t want to control either of your lives, but if there was something they had to control it was an arranged marriage. Your grandmother, your mother’s mother, was raised in that manner which was then passed down to your mother who was constantly encouraged (more like pressured) to raise both you and Hoseok the same way.

Five months ago, Hoseok became engaged to Gong Minzy who was a model for high end brands. Your father introduced them after a fashion show and they instantly clicked. Minzy also came from a family of money and reputation so her parents were more than happy to allow her to marry someone with a reputation like Hoseok.

You really loved Minzy for your brother. She always brought out the best in him and she also modeled any experimental design pieces you created. Due to how close you were with Minzy, she had personally asked you to design her wedding dress, the maid of honor and bride’s maids’ dresses. It was a huge honor. There was no way you could say no.

“Thank you again, by the way. Minzy is really elated that you agreed to do this for her.” Hoseok ruffled your hair.

“It’s my pleasure, dude.” You took a peek at your phone. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have silk samples I have to look at at the office.”

Unlike Hoseok, marriage was nowhere near your agenda. It wasn’t because you weren’t interested, but because you were pretty much married to your job and the last guy you went on a date on was a huge pervert. You didn’t have time for disgusting creeps. Your entire focus was on your well being.

Some of the employees were confused as to why you were in the office which you begged them not to say anything to your parents. Entering your office, your assistant, Hye Jin, was already laying out the silk fabric samples for you to take a look at. The fabric was for the ties of Hoseok and his groomsmen’s suits. He never asked you to do it, but it was a small wedding gift that you wanted to give him.

“Is this from the Italy shipment?” You fingered through the small stack of fabric.

“Yes and this,” Hye Jin laid out a sleek box with a deep royal blue tie tucked inside. “This is the sample design.”

Excellent, excellent.

You gently slipped it out of the box and carefully examined every stitch and fold of the tie. Hoseok was your dear brother and he deserves the best so you needed to make sure everything was perfect.

“Okay, I need this to be sampled on someone.” You carefully folded the tie back into the box. “Hye Jin, can you send a text from my phone. Let him know to meet me at our sushi restaurant, he’ll know what I mean.”

“Consider it sent.”

You were so indulged in sketching out the wedding dresses that you almost lost track of time; fortunately Hye Jin was a punctual person so she made sure she had your evening outfit ready for you on the couch in your office. Instead of a loose t-shirt and saggy mom-style jeans, you were now dressed in a pencil skirt and long sleeved blouse that flares out at your wrist.

The sushi restaurant was a high class place you frequented so you recognized a lot of the patrons inside once you walked in. They all greeted you politely as you made your way to one of the private sections. Waiting in one of the sections was a certain ashy-blue haired fellow who you could easily pick out of a line up if you were just given the shape of his shoulders. It was none other than--

“Hey Namu, sorry, I got caught up with my work.” You slid into the seat across from him and took a good look at his outfit. You instructed him to wear a light gray suit with a matching vest and a white button down shirt beneath. “Nice, you’re wearing everything down to a T.”

“It’s no problem. I took the liberty of ordering your favorites, so our food should be out soon.” Namjoon explained cooly.

You scrunch your nose. “You don’t have to talk all proper around me, you know? We went over this.”

He chuckled and flicked a few locks of his hairs out of his face. “Sorry, force of habit. Anyway, may I see the tie?”

“Nope, after dinner. If our food is coming out soon, I don’t want any uni or spicy mayo on it even if it’s just a sample.”

Namjoon didn’t protest. He humbly agreed to your decision and his politeness was something that bothered you since the two of you were in high school. Both Seokjin and Namjoon were childhood friends to you and Hoseok because your fathers were friends since college. Growing up as kids, it was natural to fight and play all the time but he changed when Namjoon turned sixteen. The both of you were just months apart in age and you always wondered why he stopped picking on you or gave you any sort of attitude. He later explained to you that it was because of how he was raised to act more proper as he got older and you thought that if you prodded at him a little while going through the motions of your high school years then maybe he would feel comfortable in acting more like a friend than a robot. It did make a small change in him, but he always still reverted back to his usual attitude.

You spoke to Namjoon about your brother’s wedding as he was one of Hoseok’s groomsmen and you expressed the stress you were dealing with because although your main worry was being a designer for the wedding, you were also working side by side with the wedding planner. This gave you a lot more work than you actually planned, but it was going to be rewarding at the end.

“Seokjin said he’s willing to do the catering or cooking for the wedding. It’s the least he could do.” Namjoon poured you another cup of tea.

“That’s so sweet. I’ll be sure to pass down the message to Hoseok. I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.”

“Well, how about you? Anymore creepy guys your parents have lined up for you?”

You laughed knowing that Namjoon wasn’t trying to insult you or anything. This was him being comfortable around you. It was a rare sight to witness so you soaked up the moment whenever it presented itself.

“Ugh, no. I absolutely don’t have enough time for that, but I have a feeling that when my parents get back, they’re going to give me a phone number of someone they met during the fashion show or some big meeting.” You scoffed.

Namjoon chuckled as he signed the receipt, paying for the meal. “Most girls would be excited for marriage and spending the rest of their lives with the one they love.”

“Yeah, but I’m not most girls, Mr. Kim.”

“I know that far too well.” Namjoon raised his cup and clinked it against yours. “Ah, y/n, the tie.”

You tanked your tea, completely forgetting how hot it was, and reached into your purse. Even if the tie was a prototype, you were still nervous showcasing it to Namjoon. You spent a lot of time being nitpicky about the design—it was a damn tie, but it had to be the perfect tie.

“Allow me.” You gestured.

Namjoon adjusted himself to bring his legs out from underneath the table to you had enough room to maneuver your arms. You stood right in between his knees as you delicately wrapped the silk underneath the collar of his shirt and tied it just right then tucked it behind his vest.

“Well, well, sir. You’re looking quite dapper.” You complimented.

Namjoon smiled then looked down at his chest. “Thank you. May I see it properly?”

You gave him room to stand before taking a head-to-toe photo of him on your phone. He examined the photo and hummed contentedly.

“You’re sure this is just a sample?” He questioned.

You laughed and straightened out the fabric against his chest. “I’m sure. I still have to finalize the fabric. This particular fabric is no good for long term use and I want all of the groomsmen and my brother to use it normally rather than just for the wedding.”

Thank goodness the design looked decent on the chosen colors and thank goodness Namjoon was always available to be one of your male dress up dolls. You stepped back to take one more look at him and nodded your head.

“How about you keep this tie for keepsakes, Joon? I’m changing my label once I get all of the ties and dresses finalized, so this is the only item in the world with this label.” You plucked the tie out and pointed at a small cotton tag that had “Yours.” embroidered in cursive. “I was thinking of changing out the cursive to a typewriter kind of font and making the base color black instead of white.”

Namjoon touched the silk and thumbed the tiny tag that you pointed out. “Thank you. I’ll gladly accept this. I’ll be sure to return the favor.”

He flashed you a warm grin that made you wish you could take a picture of. This expression was rare and just like a lot of his less serious emotions, you soaked it all in.

“There’s no need, Joonie. We haven’t seen each other in a while, so I guess it’s also an apology for being so busy.” You brushed off his shoulders and straightened out his tie once more.

“I also apologize. I guess work and school keeps getting in the way.” Namjoon stroked your hair. “I’ll walk you to your car.”

↠↞

“Let’s have dinner again soon, okay?”

Namjoon opened your car door and gave you a tight hug before helping you settle inside.

“Of course. I’ll text you when I’m free. We can go to the steakhouse in the hills.” He shut your door and waited for you to roll down your window. “Drive safe.”

Just like that, you drove out of the parking lot and Namjoon let out a long sigh.

I guess that’s two dinners I have to fit into my schedule at some point.

The drive home felt a lot shorter than usual and it made him wish he took the long way home because it meant being away from any work related duties. He wanted the world to stop for a second to take a breather. It seemed like no matter what, he couldn’t escape the grimy clutches of work. Even during his dinner with you, the conversation ended up leading towards his floor plans of his music store. A break seemed like a dream that he couldn’t grasp with his own fingers.

Pulling into the driveway, there was a plain black sedan parked out front and it only meant one thing.

“Ah, Namjoon. Welcome home. Join us for tea.”

Sitting in the living room was Irene, Seokjin, and none other than their father.

“Good evening. I apologize, I already had some during dinner. Please excuse me.”

He quickly said his greetings to a few of the housemaids that were on his way to his room and flopped down onto his bed once he reached his destination.

Floor plans, item arrangements, item shipments, mock proposal for business, notes for economics, dinner with yoongi and y/n.

Namjoon’s hands flew to his face. He could already hear his mother’s voice nagging at him to take a vacation somewhere. Oh, how he wished he could erase his schedule at the snap of his fingers, but that only existed in a realm inside his mind.

He sat up and strode across his room to take a look at himself in the mirror. If it wasn’t for Irene’s holy grail skincare recommendations he would be looking like a 50 year old man. His eyes traveled to the tie you gifted him and again, he let out a sigh.

Your schedule and hardships weren’t a secret to Namjoon. You usually vented to him about everything that’s anything and even with the weight of the world on your shoulders, you still managed to smile. Your personality was completely different from his and he was a bit envious. While he moped around and kept to himself most of the time, you usually walked with a pep in your step and smiled as if you just won the lottery. It was appalling how you could easily make the decision to drop whatever you were doing to take a spontaneous two hour drive and have coffee at a random coffee shop.

Your personality clashed with his in a positive way. You encouraged him to put himself first and you always made time to have dinner with him whenever you had the chance because it meant distracting him from work. Taking personal breaks was barely ever an option, but he always agreed whenever you asked for his company. This was why his friendship with you was incredibly important. He appreciated you to the highest degree. You made him feel human.

Three knocks were heard from his door. “It’s open.”

“Namjoon, I’m taking my leave.”

Namjoon turned and made eye contact with his father. There wasn’t any bad blood between them, but there was always something in the air whenever Namjoon was alone with him. It’s been that way since his mother passed away so it was pretty much normal.

“Okay. Drive safe, father.”

His father stood there for a few seconds and took a step to leave, but turned back. “Did you have dinner with a client?”

“No, I was with y/n.” Namjoon answered.

“Oh, y/n.” His father nodded his head slowly. “Are her parents back from their trip?”

“She mentioned that they were taking a detour to New York after Milan, so they’re probably going to be back next week Thursday or Friday.”

Again, his father nodded his head and drummed his fingers along the door frame.

“Alright, don’t forget your meeting with Mr. Choi at your chosen location after your classes tomorrow. Good night.”

Namjoon slumped his shoulders forward and ran a hand through his hair after his father closed his door. Another thing was added to his to-do list.

“Good night, father.”

It was never going to end, was it?

♡ rae jagi

#bangtan boys #bts #bts scenarios #namjoon #namjoon scenarios #bts slow burn #bts arranged marriage AU #bts friends to lovers AU #namjoon slow burn #namjoon arranged marriage AU #namjoon friends to lovers AU #she bacc again #20200130 #dimplemon #rae writes

63 notes · View notes

mistymark · 5 years ago

Text

the one with the annotations.

dong sicheng x reader // 3.7k words // masterlist // send requests here

summary; in which sicheng keeps writing in the books at the library and it should be obvious but that’s,,, not,,, allowed???

warnings: none its just fluff, theres some humour if u like,, squint

requested; yes :D - “Enemies to lovers 👀 with sicheng? Love your writing btw 💕” from anon

notes; based on this prompt: ”You’ve got to stop returning books full of corrections and spiteful comments in red pen bc I can’t stop reading them and my boss gives me disapproving glares when I laugh at the funny ones

ohhhhh boi

so while you were at uni you had a part time job at the library

because surprise surprise as a lit major you like books

shocker there

you always tried to work the late shifts, closing up and doing the returns

just because it was easy and relaxing organising and restacking the books

but soon you wished you took the earlier shifts

because of dong sicheng

not to be dramatic but

your long rival

he started coming to the library to borrow books

because that’s kind of the point of a library

but he ended up liking the environment for studying

and would stay there for hours just to study

and you’d admire his hardworking nature

if he left on time, that is

you would do the rounds ten minutes before closing

just to tell everyone like

‘hey, we’ll be closing in around ten minutes if you want to begin packing up’

but this bitch

would nEVER PACK UP ON TIME

you’d end up standing at his table with your bag and the keys in your hand

tapping on the wood to try and get his attention

and him slowly packing up afterwards

even tho he kNOWS you want to go home

‘you’re just as slow as you were in kindergarten hey?’

and he’d be so furious

‘you know you cheated’

‘I don’t remember any such thing’

and maybe you did maybe you didn’t

you were like four years old

as if you’d remember a race you won when you were that age

he just rolls his eyes and leaves as you lock the doors

you leave in the other direction

happily leaving him behind

but he stops by every Monday Tuesday and Thursday night to study

which are the days you work as well

he acts like it’s just part of his schedule

but he worked out if he came in on Wednesday’s he didn’t have the opportunity to annoy you

and honestly?

annoying you at the end of your shift and after a long session of studying was the highlight of his night

but he keeps borrowing books

and you’re like

whatever

until he borrows this new book you’ve been wanting to read for ages

and you were low-key so bitter

this lil bitch has no way of knowing you wanted that book but somehow he does and that’s the only reason he’s borrowed it

even though,, he literally had no idea lmao

tbh u probably would have wanted to talk to him about the books he reads bc u have very similar taste

okay the same taste

but he’s such an asshole ur like nah fam

anyways he returns it after a week

boy reads fast ok

and when he goes to drop it in the returns box

you just take it from his hand and scan it under your name straight away

and put it under the desk so no one else can borrow it

and when there’s a lull in the work at the library

you reach under the table for the book and rifle through it

and you notice a few pencil marks

and upon further inspection you realise they’re comments referencing certain parts of the book

and you do nOT stand for vandalism

but some of them are fuckin hilarious not gonna lie

on the page you just happened to open

you can see there’s a comment beside a passage of text depicting a fight scene

‘this would kill someone wtf’

and u laugh and wonder who had done this

like the book had only been out for a little while

and u finish it in just less than a week

bc u read a lot during your shifts

probably a lot more than you should tbh

and seriously the comments made the book better

you hadn’t laughed so hard at random commentary so much

like the words were exactly what you were thinking

you couldnt help it

while ur putting some of the books back in the middle of your shift

!!!! you see another book that u might like !!!

not to judge a book by its cover butttttttt

it looks like ur type oop-

and after flipping through it

to get an idea of font size and chapter length cause ur a whole nerd like that

u see it ALSO has pencil markings

in the borders and underlining sentences

and without even thinking u borrow it

just to read the funny comments again

and ur boss comes up to you during your shift and is like

‘have you seen someone’s been writing in the books? look at this’

and thrusts a book in ur face

and ur like ??????? okay chill I’ll look

and u read the writing she’s pointing at

the familiar loopy handwriting adorning the page

and it says ‘I hope she throws her drink in his face’

when u read the paragraph for context

u realise it’s a confession scene

a few lines down the mystery person has written ‘called it.’

and u can’t help but laugh

like come on that was funny

but ur boss doesn’t agree

she just asks you to find out who’s doing it so they can be suspended from the library

or charged with vandalism

or something

she wants vengeance

u roll ur eyes and go to one of the staff computers

scrolling through the lists of borrowers for that specific book

and it’s a fuckin library that book has been borrowed a loT

2031 times ???????????????

you almost fall of your chair tbh

then someone clears their throat in front of u

and u immediately apologise as u try and get the right tab up to process the borrower’s book

but once u look at the person in front of u

you wish you hadn’t been so nice

sicheng stands in front of you

a grin on his face as he hands you another book

smug bitch is so happy he startled u

‘looking at porn on the library computer, yn?’

u laugh

‘I’m not u in 8th grade’

he glares at you as he takes his book and goes back to his desk to continue studying

u were soooo hoping he’d leave

even tho u kinda enjoyed looking at him

like dude was hot okay

what were u supposed to do????

ur actual job????

please.

so he stays

and when it’s ten minutes til closing

u go and let everyone know

and u stop at sichengs table

and he’s writing out notes or something

idk it’s not like u care anyway lol

but he’s lowkey frustrated bc he keeps messing up this one goddamn formula

so he erases it

and that’s when u catch a glimpse of his handwriting

and bruh am I high or is that the exact same handwriting as in the books

I mean he has borrowed a few of the books

and he’s into that genre

not that you've checked out his borrowed list or anything

basically ur having this whole conversation with yourself in your head

bc ur cool like that

and he’s like ????? why this bitch standing over my shoulder and watching me write out this equation

until he’s like ‘what are u doing’

and ur like !!!!! oh hi !!! sorry I was busy listening to the voices in my head lmao xD

jk jk

‘have u been writing in the books’

and suddenly he’s super shy

and he has this massive grin

and he’s like ‘no’

bitch we know it was u stfu

u roll ur eyes and ur like ‘its not funny my boss wants you to be suspended’

he squints at you

‘how do you even know it was me’

and then:

‘DO YOU HAVE E V I D E N C E’

and u cross your arms

like a badass bitch

and ur like ‘I have plenty of evidence actually’

‘for one, youve borrowed all the books that have been found with writing’

‘and your handwriting matches’

subconsciously he covers his notebook with his arm to hide his handwriting

and he's like ‘why are u telling me this’

you're taken aback by the question tbh

like ?????? to be a good person ??????

idk u fuckwit just wanted to warn you

‘thought you'd want to know’

and he just turns back to his book

and you shrug and walk away like ok get suspended then see if I care

but u do :((

but as you walk away hes like

‘wait’

‘Im gonna be suspended??’

and u nod like ye that's what I just said but ok

‘like I cant borrow or I cant come in at all?’

u don't know tbh

‘both I think?’

and suddenly there's panic in his eyes

another person walks past u and thanks u

and u mindlessly tell them to have a good night as they leave

everyone has left

except sicheng of course

that beautiful son of a-

wait why did u say beautiful

‘what can I do to nOT get suspended??’

and u shrug bc idk dude not my problem

but then u think about it

‘I mean if u get rid of the evidence theres no way u can be suspended, right?’

and he seems so happy at the thought

‘would you help me? please?’

and ur sooooooo skeptical

‘depends. what do u want to me to do?’

‘I mean I need access to the books so’

‘yeah ill let u in and out’

‘I can't exactly just erase the markings when people could be watching’

and that's exactly how you end up sitting in the library with dong sicheng at 11pm at night rifling through books to find odd pencil markings to erase

it wasnt that hard

u just got his record up

*snorts* ‘you borrowed ‘how to talk to girls’ when we were thirteen’

and he just rolled his eyes and marched to the computer like ‘you can see my record I deserve to see yours’

and ur like NOOOOOO nononononono

but later

‘you've read all the light-fighter novels??’

he looks at you from where hes searching for one of the books on the list, an eyebrow raised

‘yeah why’

‘dude,, I loved those books’

and he smiles a little

‘thats where I started marking the books tbh, every time I read it id add a little cross in the corner of the cover bc I read it so often’

part of u is a little impressed

the other is annoyed at how similar your taste in books is

but the first part keeps asking why u hate him so much

other than the staying late and the snarky comments

which you actually find kinda funny-

anyways

once you've gathered up a few of the books

like at least ten each

you sit on the floor of the childrens section

beanbags sprawled out beneath you as u read through some of the books

most of them you've read before

and every time you giggle at something hes written his smile gets a little bigger

but of course youre looking at the book so you dont notice

and he keeps his head down

‘is it bad that im hungry’

you lift your head from the book to look at sicheng

hes not even reading anymore hes just lounging back on the beanbags

and maybe he'd been watching u read

watching as the smile on your face grew wider at his commentary

‘I didnt see you leave tonight. have u eaten?’

you furrow your brows in thought, trying to recall having seen him leave

‘you been watching me, y/n?’

‘have you been eating, sicheng?’

and there's something about the way you say his name that makes his heart jump

his voice is soft as he looks at you in the dark

‘no’

you focus back on the book in front of you

‘finish whatever book youre on and we’ll call it a night’

‘what, you wanna go eat?’

you cant tell if hes just surprised or if hes hopeful

or something else

‘no but I do want to sleep’

you laugh and he forces a laugh too

you dont notice the difference

when you've returned all the books

he meets you at the front door as you grab the book you'd been reading that shift

hes just standing by the door on his phone

and maybe its bc ur tired or maybe its just him

but u cant help thinking

Jesus Christ this boy is attractive

and okay maybe u had a crush on him a few years ago

but hey! you were eleven what could u do

the crush still lasted like two years tho lmao

but u shoulder your bag and open the door for him

making sure to lock it carefully

and he walks with you in the direction of your apartment

and ur like oh u live this way too?

and hes like nah

but what kind of boy would he be if he didnt accompany home

like christ y/n u could be h u r t out here at this time of night

but you just smile at him bc wow thats ??? actually ??? kinda sweet

‘who are u and what have u done with dong sicheng’

and there goes his heart again

he just nudges u with his elbow

and u laugh at him and continue on ur way

when u get to ur building he thanks u for ur help in the most polite way possible

and u can kind of see that hes actually rlly nice ??? how ???

but hes back at the library the next day

and of course he comes up to the counter as soon as he spots you

sneaking around a few desks so u dont hear him come up behind you to whisper ‘BOO!’ in your ear

you jump like three feet in the air and spin around to tell him to get out from behind the desk

‘I dont see a nametag on u that means u have to be on THAT side of the desk thank u very much’

‘didnt realise your name tag said bitch on it geeeez y/n ://’

and u just fix him with a glare once hes finally on the right side

‘are u borrowing a book or not’

‘nuP’

he leans on the desk

his eyes staring straight into yours

‘just wanted to ask if u were able to stay back tonight’

you roll ur eyes

you'd barely gotten any sleep last night

but the look of concern on his face when he realises youre hesitating makes you nod

‘of course,, wouldnt want my least favourite person to get kicked out’

‘I always knew you had a soft spot for me’

you roll ur eyes aGAiN

‘go bother someone else’

‘oh is the hot librarian in?’

you push him away from the desk

but he doesnt miss the faint smile on ur lips

‘sicheng dont make me give you $100 in overdue book fees’

he sticks his hands up at the threat, his eyes wide

‘no. please. ill do anything’

when u raise an eyebrow at him, he just grabs the book you'd been reading (and not yet borrowed) and walks away

and he winks too

u have to stop your heart from beating out of its chest

and later

its 8pm and the library is officially closing

and for the past three hours you'd been walking to sicheng’s desk and subtly been trying to steal your book back

but every single time hes seen you coming

and pulled the book under the desk or into his lap

away from your grabbing hands

every. single. time.

you tap your foot impatiently at him when its time to continue ur undercover project

and he smiles down at his notebook when he hears u huff in annoyance at him

he dramatically looks up at you

‘do you need something?!’

‘do you want to get suspended?!’

he narrows his eyes at you but stands up anyway

he carefully puts his things in his bag and takes the list of books from your hands

a few of them are already crossed out as having been checked and erased

but theres still a lot to go

it takes you almost three weeks to finally get to the last day

and it had been the same thing every time;

sicheng took forever to pack up

you'd eventually find about ten books each

sit in the children’s section

laugh and chat about your lives while you went through the books

tease each other

and when you'd finished,

he'd walk you home

every single time

without fail

it became a habit that on the Tuesdays he'd stop by on his way to his morning class to drop coffee off for you

because he'd kept you up the night before

and it became easy to lose track of time with sicheng

he was just so engaging

there was no part of you that felt bored or uncomfortable with him

yeah he was annoying and infuriating

but his good book taste made up for it

and his annotations in the margins of the books too

‘is this the last of them?’

he squints down at the page again, counting the books on the table again

its the third time hes counted

‘surely ive read more than this’

‘not from this library ://’

you blow your hair out from your face and look down at the pile

‘you know, I think my manager is starting to get really suspicious of me’

‘why’ he looks up briefly from his book to read your face

but you try and remain calm

‘well she only told me about the markings right. and now theyre disappearing’

he looks at you like ?????

‘well she knows ive been closing up late... I think she thinks I did it’

he laughs ‘you? has she met you?’

you pout and throw a pillow at him

‘HEY! what's that supposed to mean :((’

‘it means ive never met someone who's so protective over books as you’

you think about it, chewing ur bottom lip

‘lets just finish this’

‘do u want to get food after’

he surprises you with the sudden question

and the slight nervousness thats evident on his face really makes you want to say yes

but you have a class tomorrow

and you always try and finish up here earlier on a Thursday night

‘cant :((’

he nods and goes back to readng

theres silence for a while

but you find it comfortable

sicheng on the other hand, feels as though hes just been shot down

you just turned down his date

you've kinda noticed hes more reserved now

quiet

but rlly hes just kind of embarrassed

until u say something that gives him hope

‘I,, uh, I dont have plans tomorrow night’

and ngl boy is stunned

‘just if u wanted to go see a movie or something idk’

now its ur turn to be embarrassed

u hope ur hair is hiding ur face as u look back down at the book in ur lap bc no doubt ur blushing

but sicheng is just staring at you

and

before even saying anything

he leans over the gap between you

with all the books

and hovers in front of your face

ur so shocked and ur heart is beating way too hard and fast and ur breathing is too quick to be normal are you having an attack I dont know-

and then he leans forward a little bit more

and his lips meet yours

and suddenly its like a fireworks display went off inside you

and then its almost midnight on a Thursday night and ur sitting in the children's section of your workplace in the beanbags with sicheng cupping ur face and kissing you

he just really needed to kiss you

like more than he needed air

and when u finally pull back

he loves how breathless you are

how you have to fight to keep the smile off your face

how you stare at him with wide eyes

‘so its a date then?’

you blush even redder

and nod

‘ye its a date :))’

but for the next fifteen minutes you sit in stunned silence together

small smiles playing on your faces

until u look at your watch and ur like

‘shit sicheng I have to go’

and his eyes widen bc holy crap u were supposed to leave like half an hour ago

so u both sprint around the library trying to put all the books back

and he meets you at the door again after you've grabbed the keys and made sure everything that needed to be locked was,,, u know,, locked

and when ur walkign to the door again

hes on his phone

u cant see but hes texting his friends about what happened lmao what a softie

and when u walk out together

without thinking he grabs your hand

and u walk home

hand in hand

after midnight

he clears his throat

‘so uh,, when actually is our date’

‘my last class ends at 5-’

‘so 5 it is’

‘are u sure??’

he nods happily

and he presses a gentle kiss to ur forehead when u get to ur doorstep

‘ill see u tomorrow’

but the next day

when u come out of your last class

a little giddy

a little too excited

and see him leaning against one of the stone pillars

effortlessly handsome

you feel your heart flip

and maybe ur just tired or maybe its him

but hes really attractive

like really really attractive

its actually just that youre in love with him

he doesnt see you coming

too focused on something on his phone

but he definitely sees you when you push his hand out to the side and step onto ur toes to kiss him

and u can feel him smile a little as he kisses you back

‘ready for that date?’

‘yeah, where are we going’

‘so I was thinking we could go to the libra- HEY! dont hit me I was j o k i n g y/n jesus christ’

215 notes · View notes

nerdgasrnz · 6 years ago

Note

Hey lex! Im lookin into buying a drawin tablet for the first time and was wondering if you had any tips on what to look for & avoid while doing so? bc i have no idea what im doing and dont wanna spend my broke binch money on smth thatll shit out quickly

@sevenspires Sorry for taking so long to answer this again! I got really bummed out after I tried typing a response the first time and losing it T_T Now I’m back months later, LOL

If you can’t afford a Wacom brand tablet, make sure that you read up on specifications that are important. Screen size, resolution, pressure levels, color settings, all that.

Tablets above a certain size, or of a certain screen type are VERY bulky and built like a tv screen. (usually bigger than 15 inches or so.) Make sure you differentiate between those kinds and the more lightweight, portable ones, and choose accordingly. I have a small space and work on the go, so more portable tablets for me are a non-negotiable requirement. My current tablet is like a slate the same size as my laptop, but I can still put it in my backpack if I need to go elsewhere and work. It’s still technically too big for my work space though. Other artists have studio-sized spaces and plenty of room to have a 24-inch tablet to draw on. It depends on your line of work!

Wacom is always going to have top of the curve pressure levels, but you can get away with having 1024 at the minimum for any tablet you end up using. I honestly can’t tell the difference between 1024 and 2048 levels (even though I know there is a difference- 2048 is definitely smoother) If you’re looking at old/outdated stuff that’s in your price range, you can get away with 512 pressure levels.512 = the barest minimum | 1024 = decent | 2048 = I think this is the modern standard for tablets right now | 8192 and higher = luxurious

My current XP-Pen 13.3 tablet has a whopping 8192, and the pressure levels are SO nuanced, that it starts to make my lines actually look... kind of bad, LMAO. So for me, 8192 is too much nuance for pen pressure. But hey I got it free so I don’t care, LOL

Make sure you can afford more than one set of the accessories that go with the tablet. Pens, nibs, cables, ALL of that stuff. And if you don’t feel like buying them right away, make sure you plan ahead in the future. With cheaper tablets like XP-Pen, Huion, Monoprice, and etc. the money you save by not buying a Wacom is money you can put towards replacement parts.

READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF YOUR WARRANTY! You should always do this when you buy shiny new toys, but it’s VERY important for your art hardware. Make sure you keep your purchase records archived in your e-mail as proof for when you redeem your RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization)Usually an RMA or warranty says that If anything goes wrong with your tablet within the warranty period that you purchased it, as long as you didn’t tamper with the tablet yourself, they will replace it with a new one for no charge except how much it costs to ship it back. I’ve done it with my cheapest Monoprice tablet (RIP) and my current XP-Pen tablet. My first XP-Pen took a nasty fall to the floor one day and the screen stopped working :’( So yeah, read the terms of your warranty, it might save you one day!!!

If you already use keyboard shortcuts on your computer a lot, you usually don’t need side buttons on your tablet. I forget they exist. Every time. Otherwise, if you find the keys on the tablet to be very accessible, then go for it! AFAIK, only Wacom has done the BEST side buttons bc they always have sliders for zooming in and out on your canvas, which I actually used before. Other than that, I have never used the side buttons on a tablet since.

Read your installation and instruction manuals! Even if you think you know how to install a tablet after owning 5 different brands, read the manuals!!! In my experience with windows, getting your tablet’s drivers to work the first time is absolute hell because tablets are always fighting with Windows’ tablet pc stuff. So even if you’re tech savvy and have been fighting Windows’ tablet support for over a decade, READ THE MANUALS! Make sure you go to the correct website, download drivers for the correct tablet model, ALL of that. Restart your computer when the installation tells you to, EVERYTHING. Do what the instructions say! After that, you can take to tech support or forums for any problems you have later.

Make sure your art software is up to date as well once you’ve installed your tablet!

Uhhh that’s all I got! If you (or anyone else who sees this post) have any questions, feel free to ask in the replies/reblogs, I do check them!

(Also I am selling one of my old/dated tablets that still works, so if ur interested, hmu and we can talk pricing!)

#art hardware #drawing tablets #wacom alternatives #tablet shopping #mine #art advice #sevenspires

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ryouverua · 6 years ago

Text

Trial 5 - Clash of Sidekicks (2)

“This is the worst movie I’ve watched since ‘The Wizard of Monomi’!”

"The fact that you can admit to watching that says a lot about you.”

Investigation 1 / 2 - second half is where I put my own theories that I penned before playing the trial.

Trial: 1

That is a PERFECTLY REASONABLE REACTION to a snuff film. All the new sprites we’re getting this chapter are so brutal, jeez... D:

... with the sole exception of hangover!Shuichi which must be protected at all costs.

Kokichi is just going over all of the important parts of this evidence and Monokuma is not about it. Well you know, Monokuma, maybe if you had given us something to work with in the Monokuma file we wouldn’t be relying on good ol’ K over here!

Anyway, it just has play, record and pause... I was wondering if it had some sort of ‘speed up’ function to explain why the press suddenly went faster at that one point but apparently not, huh. I guess if pause/play was activated by accident or purpose it would make it seem artificially fast, like the way they cut frames in animation? that would be a lot of cut frames though, hm...

Anyway, hard to know if I should be questioning this or not but wow way to come in partway through the trial and throw up like an updated autopsy report. Who do you think you are, Miles Edgeworth? >3>

Confirmation is a bitch.

Then... if I’m going to take this as is which, for now, I guess I should... then the suspect part is the act that Kaito just lay there, not moving, right? And the fact that the press went down with no problems (unless that’s why the press seemed to halt for a second)... doesn’t that mean he was already dead?

ryukishi07 is that you

Actually for that matter it could be Uchikoshi - his description of a certain 999 scene got pretty detailed. >>

RIGHT?! There was nothing for him! He ended everything! The game was over, and I’m still sure he wasn’t the mastermind! The only thing I can think of is that it was an accident as a result of Kaito getting that crossbow and attacking him right under his nose! He knows if Kaito wound up dead he’d be the obvious culprit, and he’s made it incredibly clear that not only does he wanted to win the whole game, he has the intelligence to do it! Also the fact that he brought it here in the first place seems more like he’s making a point than confessing his guilt -

So... was it someone else? Or was it illness after all, and Kokichi taking advantage of the opportunity presented to him?

... hoo boy.

“You wrote ‘Kokichi Ouma killed Kaito Momota’ on the back of the exisal, you took a selfie with the press and uploaded it onto all of your social media counts with #oops #madeamess #galaxyprinthydraulicpress -”

“Don’t you do it -”

“KOKICHI ARE YOU SERIOUSLY GOING TO PULL ANOTHER TRIAL 4 ON ME?!”

well actually I guess he’s ‘confessed’ like, 10 times to various things over many trials so who even knows anymore

Not that I think he killed Kaito, but I do wonder if he conspired with Monokuma at all to set up an ‘unknown victim’ trial and if he did, what the extent of that collaboration was. If he did, he just went out of his way to deliberately undermine Monokuma... again. There is definitely no love lost between those two, huh. 8′D

I DON’T BELIEVE YOU!!! also nice use of the word space there sob sob

I CANNOT BELIEVE -

“You don’t understand guys, I’ve played so many courtroom games and murder mystery visual novels. So many. I’m an authority on this sort of game-based killing stuff, believe you me!”

finally, a place where Shuichi and Tsumugi can coexist in peace

.... BAH BUT THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH IT BEING KOKICHI (in the exisal, not the killer obis) IS THAT IT MESSES WITH THE WHOLE ‘MAKI WAS AN ACCOMPLICE THEORY’ and I just can’t get around the fact that she had to have been involved somehow! But other than mercy-killing Kaito, I can’t think of a reason why she would do anything to hurt him - and she certainly wouldn’t leave his body to be messed with so terribly by Kokichi!

Also, I’ve been treating her this whole time like she’s hiding Kaito actually being alive and that she’s pressing hard as Kokichi as an act but, unless my genuine-meter is off, she seems far too genuine about everything she’s said up to this point? Does she really think Kokichi is the one in the exisal, then?

damn it Junko can’t you leave v3 alone even when you’ve been dead for hundreds of years

LMAO

Oh shit he doesn’t know about Junko does he? Amazing. Wonderful. Fantastic.

Disclaimer here that I actually liked Junko as the villain of DR1 and I thought she had fantastic presence as well as a rocking’ cosplayable outfit but I really feel like she has no place here... though ugh, the fact that Monokuma exists is just something I can’t ignore, so I guess she was something that would need to be addressed down the line at some point. But not here, damn it!

SWEETCHEEKS IS SO UPSET BY THIS IT’S AMAZING!!

Shuichi is finally stepping in to the protagonist!shoes long enough to curse out Kokichi or K or whoever it is in there for breaking classic mystery protocol.

WHY DID YOU SHOEHORN JUNKO IN AT THE LAST MINUTE DAMN IT

YES!!! GOOD!!! MY BOY IS TAKING CHARGE!!!

.... Kokichi has some sort of plan, huh. Trying to ‘trap’ us. Shuichi isn’t wrong for sure - and this is a very ‘Kokichi’ thing to do...

Man, it’s really looking more and more unlikely that Kaito is in there, huh? disregarding the fact that we literally just watched a video of him being crushed to death Shuichi is right - there definitely is method behind the madness, and that’s exactly the problem - we got a brief glimpse of Kaito (SERIOUSLY WHY DID HIS VOICE COME OUT) but everything after has been all Kokichi, not just by voice but by personality, cadence, speech... even the way he’s presenting information to us. I’m not saying Kaito isn’t smart - I know the game keeps trying to present him as dumb at some points, via Kokichi himself sometimes, but I’ve never agreed with that at all - but is he capable of mimicking Kokichi to this degree? That would require an incredible insight on who Kokichi is as a person, and while Kaito has been incredibly perceptive on an emotional level, this is pretty next-level, right?

And other than survival, what could Kaito gain from doing this?

yes

Shuichi it’s true and you should say it

Is it bad that I wanted a new sprite of Shuichi grabbing the platform and just, leaning forward to yell, “SERIOUSLY?!” at the top of his lungs.

togami on steroids

I’m feeling confused and lost and it’s fantastic.

If Kaito really is out of the running as the culprit, the game really seems to be pointing at Maki as an option? I don’t know how I feel about that - while it does seem to fit in a lot of ways it just... doesn’t feel right to me either? But then the only other options are Tsumugi, Himiko and K1-b0 and I really can’t imagine them being the right answer....

Kokichi is definitely not the culprit. I mean, there’s always that 1% chance I guess, but...

And Shuichi - well, we haven’t had any indications of them pulling a second Kaede, right? I swear I’ve been paying attention this time... ;A;

Beatrice would be proud

Oh good, finally something I actually know how to deal with! The footage shows him being crushed, but that doesn’t mean it’s the time of death...

Once again, I’m so glad Shuichi is on the same wavelength as me. 8′D

Damn, it just switched to Maki standing quietly and staring daggers at us. Yikes.

Also it’s quite nice that K1-b0 can put his feelings about the press aside and stay on-point for this trial. 8′D I’m sure he’ll have a lot to say later, though - it can’t be nice to think you’re on the same level as a corpse.

oh thanks for showing us the video again, I really wanted to see that.

that acceleration is weird though! It’s really weird!!!

Wait, really?! It’s not built-in? I thought if the sensor was disabled then the press would be too!

I know Shuichi’s thinking about this from an immediate defensive tactical POV (aka Kokichi being able to protect himself), but I imagine losing control over the exisals guarding Monokuma would be a huge blow to Kokichi, too.

I do love the fact that he just casually throws in little comments to try and confuse the matter further. ‘D

Mm, Maki, you really shouldn’t be bringing something like this up. weeeeh I thought the answer was ‘Kaito’s coat’ aka the hole in it but I was wrong boo it was the bloodstain on the floor

Man it really seemed like it was lining up to match with Kokichi’s clothes...

Wait why are you bringing that up??? You’re the one fighting for Kokichi being in the exisal!

THERE’S THE HOLE IN THE COAT!!! Finally!!! I’ve been anxious to get to the crossbow and poison - oh suddenly Himiko’s getting upset. Yeah... yeah, considering the fact that she brought the crossbow, I can see why.

Wait...

Sorry, stepping back for a sec. Komaeda’s death was ruled Nanami’s fault because she technically killed him via throwing the poisoned canister, right? So if Maki applied the poison to one of the crossbow bolts Himiko delivered but never fired it herself - in fact, if Kokichi fired back in self-defense after wrestling it from Kaito in a fight - would that make Kokichi the accidental culprit? Could... that be where this is going? Or is this going to be a ‘different game, different ruling’ type situation where Maki becomes the blackened for setting things up so that someone would die? I was wondering why it would just be one, but maybe the ‘small amount of poison was used’ is the key to that - she tried to use just enough that the difference wouldn’t be obvious in order to fool Shuichi (but, well, failed in that regard).

That... could be interesting, right? Maki sends Himiko with one of the bolts being poisoned, Kaito and Kokichi struggle over the crossbow, Kokichi accidentally uses one of the poisoned ones and Kaito dies despite Kokichi’s best efforts... (antidote search? maybe? but he doesn’t find it - and Kaito is weakened from disease already, so...) So in order to attempt to survive an unwinnable trial that he tried to prevent by cancelling the game, he throws one loop after another - obscuring the body’s identity but then showing up because he had no choice anyway, but still in an exisal, taping himself crushing Kaito’s body with the clue of him being absolutely still hidden in there but then giving the video to them anyway, and then leading them to the answer that he was ‘set up’ as the killer against his best efforts?

This could be a narratively satisfying way of ending his journey with Shuichi - “Please solve this last riddle here at the very end, dearest detective. It’s been a pleasure.” nothing wrong with throwing a bit of saiouma in here at the very end, right?

Anyway while I was going off on a weird tangent Himiko created what may very well be the most terrifying non-lethal curse I’ve ever heard of in my entire life.

Gosh Himiko may actually be a worse liar than K1-b0 and that’s really saying something???

“That’s right, Himiko, I’ve got your number right down to that really, really weird quirk of yours.” no seriously why is ‘Himiko has to go to the bathroom a lot’ a thing

Also Himiko I’m pretty sure you only delivered it, so why are you freaking out so badly???

Maybe... I’m onto something with the revised theory...??? I don’t know why he would cover for anyone else???

“Guys, I spent a whole trial hammering the importance of lies and truth as the theme of the game into your skulls and you’re just chucking that out the window because I was gone for a few days? Seriously?”

It’s interesting that they’re bringing up being able to shoot Kaito from the outside because, I mean, the crossbow was found inside the hangar and I really don’t think it could have been tossed in through the window fully assembled, but I guess it’s a way to confuse the matter even further?

Oh hey, you included yourself for once!

“I DON’T KNOW TSUMUGI, WEREN’T YOU THE ONE WHO COMMENTED ON ME BEING A TSUNDERE FOR KAITO EARLIER?! WHY WOULD I POSSIBLY BE ON EDGE?!”

Honestly though, she’s being incredibly vicious and, once again, I highly doubt it’s just because Shuichi accusing everyone, herself included. Even if Kaito is the victim...

I S T A N D O N T H E S I D E O F H O P E

Kokichi chooses funny times to be helpful, huh. 8′D

YOU’RE ACTUALLY TERRIBLE AT THIS, HIMIKO

DAMN GET WRECKED HIMIKO

also LMAO Kokichi just declared Himiko the culprit

never change, kiddo

ARE YOU REALLY GOING TO TRY AND THROW MAKI ‘I MURDER PEOPLE WITH A LOOK’ HARUKAWA UNDER THE BUS RIGHT NOW

I feel like being scared should be the least of your worries right now.

You just want an Ace Attorney-style breakdown, don’t you???

AGAIN KOKICHI, PLEASE NEVER CHANGE

~one of these things is not like the other~

Also the fact that Kokichi yelling about how he’s the most suspicious being the dialogue blocking the actual right answer is kind of amazing.

“And please don’t ask him to prove it, I’m not really over the last time he printed something from his memory.”

“AND ANOTHER THING! I wouldn’t even cosplay as you if you were a fictional character!”

“NOW YOU HAVE GONE TOO FAR - !”

this trial is tearing our family apart

So, uh, did Shuichi just whip out the actual crossbow case or just a spare one he grabbed from Maki’s lab -

Thank you for summing it up so succinctly, Tsumugi!

That might be the longest one yet!

I actually believe that!

LMAO

THIS WHOLE DISCUSSION IS AMAZING AND SHOULD BE WITNESSED, FULLY VOICED, IN ITS ENTIRETY

It was worth messing up for this -

k1-b0, honey, you were doing so well and I believe you I swear -

We’re starting to circle around the next big answer, methinks...

Oooh man, you shouldn’t have talked about her like that earlier, Himiko!

AAAAAAAAAAW damn it okay that is actually really cute

She sounds so sad, aaaaaah D:

Implying that you aren’t lying about anything this trial? I don’t think so -

- but with that said, how sweet of you to come to her aid like this when you could have also thrown her under the bus! You really are starting to come along, Maki!

whispers why does Tsumugi voice my thoughts so often

But of course, we can’t avoid it. Someone asked Himiko to bring the crossbow there - I never was under the illusion that it was her idea. As for who it was that asked...

Yeah, I thought so. I wonder if it was Shuichi’s talk with him that spurred him to make that request. As soon as he thought the others were going to stick their necks out for him he decided to make his own plan of action, huh...

I’m taking this random opportunity to address the fact that I adore this particular sprite of K1-b0′s which practically screams, “I am so sick of your human nonsense” or perhaps more specifically, “Kokichi, why are you the way you are -”

what is happening right now

Het-ship potential? For Kokichi Ouma? The world must be endin - ohwait

TENKO IS ROLLING IN HER GRAVE RIGHT NOW

I hate to put it in these terms, and I hope dearly that Shuichi doesn’t make the same connection as me, but does this not imply that Shuichi was catalyst leading to his close friend’s death for the second time?!

Man, I can hardly imagine the panic she was in when she saw Kaito’s sleeve amongst all that blood. She probably feels incredibly responsible, and from the point of view of someone who thinks Kokichi is the mastermind, the obvious conclusion to draw would have been, “Kaito tried to rebel against Kokichi and this is the result!” And it wouldn’t have been too hard to go to, “I’m going to punish everyone who helped him” for that matter...

Yeah, so it was definitely after Shuichi talked to Kaito. K1-b0 only caught her going into the hangar the second time though?

Why in the world would you go there by yourself with the exisals wandering around? Kaito’s voice wouldn’t be able to reach you unless you were far into the hangar, so exactly what were you thinking???

Just... why. Why.

I’m so glad I have you here, Tsumugi.

Good. 8′\

I guess we’re not addressing why Himiko decided to take a nighttime stroll into the hangar before the request made then??? O... Okay???

Man, if it turns out that Kokichi was actually able to disarm Kaito of the crossbow despite being shot twice, one time in the back, that would be pretty damn impressive.

YOU ARE A LIAR, ‘K’-WHO-IS-MOST-LIKELY-KOKICHI-BUT-COULD-STILL-MAYBE-BE-KAITO!

Wouldn’t it be funny if after all of this, Maki’s straightforward determination to hang this all up on Kokichi actually turned out to be correct? And by the time we all come around to point the finger at him, Kokichi is revealed to not be the mastermind or morally responsible despite accidentally killing Kaito and Maki ends up getting him killed like she always wanted, but at that point actually regrets it - and Kaito’s life is lost in the crossfire as well?

Oh did I say funny? I meant extremely fucked up and tragic, whoops.

I think the one thing that I can stand by until the end is the fact that Maki was responsible for the introduction of poison to this whole wild affair. The electrohammer is obvious, sure - but the poison? They’ve been dancing around that the way I thought they would have been dancing around other things this whole time.

?!?!

Yeah, what??? You’re supposed to be acting as the moderator, aren’t you?

ET TU MONOKUMA

FORGET THE WHOLE KOKICHI AND HIMIKO THING, CAN YOU PLEASE STOP PLAYING WITH MY HEART?!

“INTERFERENCE!!!”

It’s not like he called it off or anything when he visibly took the reins of the game OH WAIT....

how dare you point out the issues I’ve been having without my consent, bear

WHAT

NO HOW DARE YOU

AGAIN?!

I’M LOSING MY DAMN MIND

FUCK YOU K I’M GOING TO START CRYING ACTUAL TEARS

That’s it I hope Rantaro steps out of the exisal at the end of the trial and just ascends to the heavens without a word -

actually if it has a voice changer could you do anyone because that could be hella interesting

“There’s a bit of a situation going on” you are the most casual guy every -

Okay so if there’s a voice changer and DR isn’t going to pull out a whopper on us with both of them hiding in the exisal somehow, Kokichi is either having a hell of a time doing some low-key satire by portraying Kaito as the most relaxed, casual dude ever who thinks he can just handwave his mistakes via pure charisma, or Kaito is doing the most goddamn amazing Kokichi impression known to mankind and is also actually the Ultimate Improv Actor. The inflection difference alone between the two of them and the completely different way they address people - ‘Kaito’ has shown up briefly so it wouldn’t be too hard for Kokichi, but ‘Kokichi’ has been here for most of the trial and responded pretty effortlessly without slipping up once!

Maki is Not Having this shit anymore.

I-I THINK YOU JUST HIT HER BERSERK BUTTON

Also if it is Kokichi in there then, uh, yeah, point proven about needing to stay in the exisal.

Damn it, both of them have a plausible reason as to why they can’t come out of the exisal!!! And yikes, I wonder if I underestimated the severity of his injury from his run in with the exisal at the end of the escape tunnel? He didn’t break his ankle or something, did he? That would explain why he would rely on a long-ranged weapon like a crossbow to fight Kokichi!

WILL DO! .....

....

I... I had a brief, faint glimmer of hope but -

apparently choosing Kokichi as the answer to ‘who is the victim’ is the wrong choice

How terrifying would it be to have that gatling gun-style arm waving around behind your back while you’re forced to think on your feet... >> Shuichi, I don’t envy you for even a second.

Really???? After all that, I thought... I really thought... we were leading into a flip of the script. Is - is it official then??? Man, was I just completely wrong the whole time then?

Look Kai - uh, Kokichi, K, whoever, look. Look. I was confident. I had a whole damn chart and notes written out, and even managed to work out a decent motive to go along with it, one with enough heart to make Will H Wright proud. BUT IT WAS ALL FOR NAUGHT, APPARENTLY, BECAUSE I GUESS I FUCKED UP THIS TRIAL PRETTY BADLY FROM THE GET-GO.

It.... It’s really saying that it’s Kaito, then....??? Damn....

My heart is actually aching for Shuichi right now. I understand he’s not literally in the audience POV, staring at the exisal behind his portrait with his voice encouraging him the way it always did in the last few trials - but maybe that’s what makes it worse for him?

Rather than standing at his side, ‘Kaito’ is behind him, where he can’t see him. Shuichi can imagine him though - imagine Kaito’s voice is actually coming from him, just outside of his peripheral vision, and Kaito is just about to clap him on the back and congratulate him on another well-made deduction. After the last trial, it’s so nice to have Kaito on his side again. They had finally just made up - !

..... but.

#Kokichi Ouma #Kaito Momota #Shuichi Saihara #Maki Harukawa #Saiouma #... yeah don't ask me how saiouma ended up in this post it took me by surprise too #but hey even if it's one-sided or something I thought it was an interesting tangent/direction for the trial #Himiko Yumeno #Tsumugi Shirogane #K1-b0 #Keebo #Kiibo #Kokichi Oma #Ryou plays drv3 #drv3 spoilers #spoilers #i'm not sure if this is my longest post or not #but it sure felt hella long #had to do this one in significant chunks 8'D

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subvertta · 7 years ago

Text

Yearning.

Lmao this is the fastest I’ve ever finished a fic right after posting another one, all thanks to some sappy dream. Fuckin finished this in the middle of digital testing cause that’s just how it be on this bitch of an earth. Pairings: Ignis Scientia x Reader Words: 3131 Warning: NSFW, thats about it its so fucking vanilla

Up on Ao3 as well

Rare were the times your and your Ignis' schedules align, giving little time for even one date night. Regrettably this night was no exception, leaving your boyfriend to return home early expecting an evening in your company… Only for you to be whisked away for formalities you couldn't care less for, not when it meant a missed opportunity for a lazy afternoon with him. A little gathering for your work, with one set theme that called for fitting into a dress that looked to cost more than your yearly wage, and a trip to a restaurant with fancy looking food that in taste could barely compare to what Ignis could’ve prepared for the evening. Once you fitted the dress and presented yourself to your lover, the smile adorning Ignis' features spoke his approval, even before the words of praise spilled from his lips for you to hear. His complete adoration made guilt pool at the pit of your heart, unable to indulge him on his day off with nothing but returning late at night and crawling into bed and embrace his sleeping form. It was nothing more than a cruel role reversal from the last week.

Your co-worker, while good friends were faces you saw almost every day, holding little no no bearings on their own other than passing on papers your way and causal conversations should your breaks allow it. On tough weeks where your mind couldn't find its focus and the weight of the world dragging you to crumble on the ground, it felt like you saw them more than your beloved. Adding in his late hours at the Citadel, your phone's lockscreen with his picture was at some days the only thing you saw of him.

One last apologetic "See you soon, I love you, Bye." and you were out the door, with the last image of him sitting back in the couch, smile still present as his eyes wandered over your dress clad form. You could only hope the final glimpse of moss green consumed by black wouldn't haunt you for the rest of the gathering, lest you stutter your words at the thought of all the debauchery running through the deprived advisor's mind, to the disappointment of opportunities missed that night. By the time the taxi came, calling your name alerting it's presence, you were beginning to doubt whether or not this supposed contract was worth it. Only the night to come would determine whether you time was a waste or for a good cause.

And unworthy it was by the time they released you from the restaurant, not before your boss pulling you to the side with a shower of praise for your entirely improvised charisma and a fair share of criticism over you eyeing your phone to the side, distracting from the matter at hand. You remained polite saying your goodbyes ignoring the manager urging you to stay behind for extra wine. You would rather have your celebration in the comfort of your own home.

Once out you looked back at the last message from Ignis.

Iggy (´∀｀)♡ - 21:23

‘Tell me when you are out. I will come pick you up.’

Well over three hours ago as eleven pm drew ever nearer. Judging by tomorrow's early hour his work calls for, you assumed he was already fast asleep by ten. You didn't have the heart to take away a good night's rest from Ignis and instead rung up a second taxi to take you home.

* * *

Just as expected, with the turn of keys and handle the hallway greeted you with darkness, with not even a dim flicker of light poking through the door of the living room left slightly ajar. You stepped in and locked the door behind you before plopping the keys back in your bag and kicking off your heels. The biggest relief by far, you thought as you quietly tiptoed to the living room and left the bag atop the couch. Tomorrow you'll sort everything out when Ignis wasn't fast asleep a room away. As quietly as possible you turned the knob to your shared bedroom, opening it as slowly as possible praying the squeaks wouldn't stir the man from slumber.

Instead of darkness came a dim light, notably from the little bedside lamp on Ignis’ side of the bed, and the man in question leaning back as he sat, one leg crossed over the other as he read through papers. Reports you guessed, if the briefcase swung open on the floor was any indication. An empty cup of Ebony to the side and a towel neatly folded on the lower shelf of the night stand, adorning fresh wet stains over the fabric. Ignis looked up at you, equally shocked to see you as you were to find him still awake. More surprising was to find him in only briefs, with not even his spectacles atop his nose instead neatly folded on the nightstand and hair still faintly dampened in a mess over his face.

“Y/N, what are you…” he turned to you, lowering his hand clutching the papers, “I said to call me when you were free.” He wasn't mad, far from it. Ignis’s words carried a sad tint of disappointment and your heart was quick to break.

“Sorry, I thought you’d be asleep by now.”

His expression softened, unable to keep up with his pout. Instead you were graced with a smile as you stepped into the room. Nothing short of fondness fighting away the weariness the night brought with it. This was perhaps the first time in a few days you saw each other awake. Those mesmerising moss hues you adored so watched your every movement as you got to the dresser and began with getting ready to join him in bed, starting by taking off your jewelry before untying your hair and letting it flow down freely. Once done, you were ready to finally rid yourself of the dress and stuff it back into the wardrobe for some other occasion.

Ignis had other plans, tossing the documents to the side making sure they land in the briefcase and quickly stopping you in your tracks after you turned around with a single word. "Strip." You were taken aback, eyes nearing saucers as you stared at him. Yet by the deadpan stare articulated by an equally flat voice, with expectation present in his eyes you knew this wasn't a joke. Deprived of attention for weeks, you wasted no time peeling your dress off. It was a slow, sensual little show for him in the dimly lit room. Your reached to your back, ignoring the flush of red against your cheeks, embarrassed as it took a few tries to grasp the zipper and tug it down. Then the clasp of your bra before pulling out the straps from under the dress and pulling it off completely and let it drop to the floor by your feet. Then you allowed the short sleeves to only slightly fall off your shoulders before covering up your chest with your arms, crossing them with a hand on opposite shoulders. "What's the magic word?" you grinned cheekily. "Please, I haven't seen you in so long love." You expected a comeback, or perhaps a lack of patience from his end getting up to do your job for you and ruining the dress with one swift pull. Instead, a warm, honeyed response, a stark contrast to his previous command. You saw those mossy hues staring reverently at you through a half-lidded gaze. Once more where he chose not to speak additional words, his eyes alone brought all emotion festering inside on full display. You couldn't help but coo at his sincerity, and let it slide off your arms and dropping down to your waist where it still held steadfast, revealing your now bare torso met with a pleased hum. The rest slid off with a gentle tug and playful wiggle of the hips, making sure your panties and stockings came off as well. You stepped out of the pool of fabric at your feet before walking over to Ignis slowly, hips swaying with each step.

You climbed on the bed and made yourself comfortable in your own personal throne; atop Ignis, straddling him as he pulled you into an embrace. His hands couldn't place themselves anywhere, traversing the plane of your body like uncharted land waiting to be penned down with immaculate precision. Every little nook and cranny of your body, whether you deemed perfection or imperfection he found himself lavishing you in attention. Only where you truly needed him did Ignis avoid, only going as far as the very bottom of your stomach before retracting his hands elsewhere.

There were no protests to his teases, not even a whine. This intimacy you missed was finally within reach, tangible away from the land of dreams for you to wonder over. Digits caressed his cheeks, still a sense of softness on still heated skin from his shower. You pressed a gentle kiss against his lips, waiting not even a second for him to return it. "When was the last time I got to hold you like this?" he mused, running his hands over your thigh with feather light touches. You nuzzled against his cheek and he hummed. “I planned to spend the night with you outside. Perhaps park at a lovers lane, should it be needed.”

“You'd fuck me in the car? You're getting bold, Iggy.” you laughed, pressing a kiss on his temple, then cheek, then the corner of his lip.

Touch was so foreign to his body after your weeks of separation; even your hair cascading down accidentally brushing against the exposed skin of his neck was enough to bring a giggle out of him. “Desperate times call for desperate measures, my dear.”

“Aren't we both desperate?”

“Oh if only you knew Y/N. We've a lot to catch up on.”

Deprived.

Longing for your touch.

The feel of your bare skin against his, the warmth it brought to body and soul, elating his heart to pure bliss.

Your voice chanting his name like a sinful prayer even the Six would envy hearing.

You could feel it all and more when his lips pressed against yours for a second chaste kiss, pulling you along down with him as he leaned against the headboard.

A grind against his groin and a roll of his hips against yours was all it took to break a moan out of him. You took charge of the kiss for a brief moment, initiating your dance with his tongue till he took the reins. His fingers squeezed at the soft flesh of your thighs, bringing you harder down against him as you continued the tantalising friction. You could feel him so hard begging for more attention against your bare core, pleading you in the form of groans the further you spurred him on. His only restraint was one article of clothing keeping you from your prize. Damned be his briefs, why couldn't you have come back to Ignis fully naked sprawled on the bed, waiting for you like an early birthday gift ready to be devoured.

You begrudgingly pulled away from him, shuffling down the bed to pull his briefs off. He was more than eager to help, lifting his waist up as you pulled them of then motioned at you to return to your place once you tossed them to the side, uncaring where they landed. All you cared for was freeing his erection, delaying the inevitable no further. Six above, you swore you had never see him this aroused in your time together, dick fully mast calling for attention. The dull throb at the pit of your stomach as your thighs pressed together attempting to relieve even a small bit of friction only placed you in the same pain as him.

You were ready to show him a piece of your admiration, bringing yourself up only till his hips. He quickly read what you were planning and pushed you away before you could descend on him.

“No, we have no time for that. I need you now.”

Oh.

The air left your lungs, words replaced with a single meek nod as your eyes glimmers in lust, one yearning to be filled and sated, worn till nothing else was left to give but only by him. Obeying his command you returned back on his lap, pressing your body against his in any attempt to seek out any closure. Your palms rest against his shoulders, making a slow path back and forth from his neck as he brought to you where your kiss had broken off.

He was back to feeling out your body one last time before slowly descending down. Finding you already wet as two digits rubber against your slit brought a pleased rumble from the back of his throat. His praises would have to go unspoken, lest he would break away once more.

A finger slowly breached you, gasp swallowed by his kiss. This time a protest came, a drawn out whine met with a chuckle. You were more than ready, and you'd rather come around his dick for the first time in weeks rather than fingers alone - and judging how worked up you got with a single digit pumping in and out of your sopping heat caressing your walls and curling in search of your pleasure point, it wouldn't take too long.

It seemed the carnal whispers took over Ignis, pushing aside the playful little tease and he pulled out, replacing his finger with the tip of his length against your entrance. His only warning before slowly guiding your hips down was pulling away for you to sit upright on his lap, displayed in full view before him. Nothing short of a priceless masterpiece displayed in full view reserved for him and him alone, every little detail etched into his memory, fondly kept but never comparing to the physical form before him. Figments of his thoughts were nothing in comparison to the caress of a tangible form, soft to the touch as digits gently dug into the plush flesh, or lips leaving marks over your body. It was possessive, selfish, but he wanted - no, needed the world to know who your heart belonged to.

And soon he would compose a piece with your voice alone, a symphony from the a plethora of moans. He held little care over who heard it beyond the thick walls of your shared apartment, be it the single man opposite your wall, or the older couple the floor above. They would know who ripped the chorus from your lungs, driving you to delirious rambles. They would know to whom you truly belong.

No more time wasted to losing himself in thought and he guided you down in one swift motion, sheathing his length inside your tight heat in one swift snap of the hips.

Maybe your body wasn't as prepared as you hoped, assimilating to his size after the neglect. The surge of pain came as a sudden shock over your nerves, sending your body into a jolt, and yet the noise that left you was one of ecstasy. The pressure was enough to have you unravel in his touch all on its own, if not for your one desire to both lose yourselves in unison.

Together, you thought. This was all the night was about.

He let you start at whatever pace you saw fit, first a torturous languid pace as you rocked your hips, sometimes simply grinding down against him to let your body stretch to fit him.

Normally the advisor wouldn't moan, keeping down to simple, low groans to instead revel and take pleasure for your voice alone. Tonight every part of him was bursting from the seams, overflowing, overwhelming, chiseling away at every inch of his body, drawing breathy moans with each thrust against you.

“Ignis” fell from your lips like a mantra, pure bliss taking you whole. Your body moved on its own, bouncing against your lap and his hips followed with each thrust.

Your skin hitting against his filled the bedroom, accompanied by an unhinged duet of both your bodied reveling in the pleasure. You were oh so close, desperate to hold him close and denied your advances as he kept you in view watching every slight twitch of your, muscles, every bounce of your breasts as you moved against him, drinking every contort of pleasure over your features.

A subtle shift in his position, slightly spreading his legs further and you sunk deeper against his cock, filled to your capacity. Yet your body cried for more, begged with sobs for everything Ignis had. Your delirious thoughts cared little for any consequences, grasping at the present detached from reality. You didn't want this.

You need this.

Ignis was close himself, not that your mind could comprehend the break in his voice with each coming moan, only able to focus on your own pleasure, clinging onto the bliss for as long as your body could endure. Once his hand moved below, pressing two digits against your clit rubbing circles in tandem to your erratic pace you felt you finally came around his dick, unable to deny yourself release.

You stilled, finally allowed to boneless drop against his body as he continued to ride out your orgasm before burying himself deep inside you with a final thrust, last moan muffled as his face hid in the crook of your neck. With a twitch his cock released thick ropes of cum inside you, painting your inner walls white.

You remained together, him buried deep inside as he clung onto you desperately for a few moments, unwilling to let go just yet. Only once his breathing evened and his heart calmed from its erratic beat did he release you from his grip, no longer worried you would disappear from his sight should he let go. You lifted your body up, feeling him slide out with a mutual groan.

Your body collapsed to the side, unable to muster up any strength. Ignis wrestled the covers from under you before he joined you, draping the both of you under the soft blankets before laying opposite of your form, tucking your head under his chin as he wrapped an arm around your waist bringing you close. You were far too exhausted to even speak, leaving only a string of satisfied hums to fill the newfound silence. Sleep was already threatening to claim you in an instant, far too relaxed as he stroked lazy patterns against your back. Before your mind entirely blanked out, abandoning reality to dreams, you managed to pick up his last words for the night.

“I missed you.”

#ffxv #ignis x reader #ignis scientia #final fantasy xv #final fantasy 15 #drabbles and writing

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welovekpopscenarios · 7 years ago

Text

Case Closed (Jungkook x Reader)

Admin: Candi

Request: “Can i request a rough jungkook smut? Thx btw.. – anon”

Fandom: BTS

Member/reader: Jungkook x Reader

Genre: Smut, Lawyer!AU

Warnings: Smoking, language, hair pulling, daddy kink, spitting, slapping, choking

Words: 3.6k

Authors note: O this is a treat for all you jungkook stans, hope you enjoy it and lemme know what you think. Thank you! Also I ain’t a lawyer so don’t judge my case scene lmao.

As a child you always thought you’d end up being a vet, then during your teens you wanted to be a tattoo artist since you entered the rebellious phase at that stage. Throughout the years you never saw yourself as a lawyer but here you are, your first case was happening today and you were going against the most respected and feared lawyer in the company. His name was Jungkook and he always won every case. You wanted to kick your boss in the teeth for putting you up against Jungkook for your first ever case but you were also quite flattered knowing that your boss thought you’re good enough to go against Jungkook.

The case has been going on for a few months, your client was a victim of identity fraud and Jungkook was defending the person who did it. If the judge had any common sense you’d easily win the case but it’s not about that, it’s about knowledge and confidence, it’s much like having a debate; the more facts you put forward the more likely you’ll win.

You were sitting outside the hall waiting for your client when Jungkook walked past.

“Good luck today, you’ll need it.” He smirked. “You’re new and I’m the best lawyer in this company, by the time I’m done with you you’re going to be asking me for help.” He leaned over you and laughed in your face.

“Keep it professional and stop acting so childish.” You hissed. For the past few months he was getting so deep under your skin you couldn’t stand him, he was so cocky and kept trying to throw you off your tracks. You weren’t delusional, you knew you were going to lose but you didn’t want to get it rubbed in your face by him. You took a deep breath and let him walk off without continuing the argument.

“Hi! I’m so sorry, am I late?” Your client ran towards you, sweaty and breathless.

“No, not at all. We still have 5 minutes, sit down and relax, everything will be fine.” You lie to your client and Jungkook looks at you with a smile on his face as he awaits his client.

Eventually, it was time to go in. Your heart was racing and your palms were alarmingly sweaty. You were sitting in your seat, trying your hardest to look confident and calm but Jungkooks cockiness overshadowed you and you looked like a hysterical mess.

“All rise. Department One of the Superior Court is now in session. Judge Kim presiding. Please be seated.” The bailiff announces.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Calling the case of the People of Seoul versus Jungkook. Are both sides ready?” The judge asks.

“Ready for the People, Your Honor.” You announce “Ready for the defense, Your Honor.” Jungkook says quickly after you.

“Will the clerk please swear in the jury?” The judge asks.

“Will the jury please stand and raise your right hand? Do each of you swear that you will fairly try the case before this court, and that you will return a true verdict according to the evidence and the instructions of the court, so help you, God? Please say “I do”.” The clerk announces

“I do.” The jury all respond “You may be seated” The clerk continues.

“Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury: the defendant has been charged with the crime of identity theft. The evidence will show that my clients credit card was stolen on the night of February 8th. The next day the card was put into debt and my client wasn’t the one who was using it. The defendant’s fingerprints were on the bag of my client, meaning that they went through my client’s bag in order to get the card out. Since this case took months to crack and find the defendant there’s loads of evidence to prove he’s guilty of not only stealing but identity fraud.” You start.

“How so?” The judge is intrigued.

“When you look into the bank statements of my client you can see the person is using the card under her name but everything they ordered is under a different address, an address that my client was never assigned to.” Your confidence grows and you feel a sense of power flush over you. “The defendant also bought cars and rented apartments in my client’s name.”

“Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury: under the law my client is presumed innocent until proven guilty. During this trial, you will hear no real evidence against my client. You will come to know the truth: that my client was just related to the person who stole the card. After finding out that the card was stolen, they were just trying to do the right thing by returning the card to its owner. Therefore, my client is not guilty.” Jungkook uses his charm to distract the judge.

The case went on for an hour, there was a lot of witnesses and you couldn’t see how the case was going to play out. It was hard to read these people, everyone kept a serious face and listened to all the arguments. It felt like no matter what evidence you presented, Jungkook had a way of proving you wrong. This was a work environment and you had to be professional but he was getting under your skin and you were starting to crack.

“I issue a 30 minute break.” The judge announced and you deflated in your seat. That’s exactly what you needed right now. You went outside and brought your tobacco with you, you didn’t smoke a lot but ever since starting this job you definitely noticed an increase in the habit.

“You’re putting up quite a fight.” Jungkook joins you.

“Let me live, I want a break. Let me relax.” You snap.

“I’m only messing with you kitten.” “Don’t call me that.” “You’re a good lawyer, you know your stuff. Usually I’d be done by now and the case would be solved.” “Is that so?”

“Yeah, people usually crack and don’t last with me that long. Do you like working with me that much?” He faced you and came closer, resting one of his hands on the wall behind you.

“Ugh fuck off, you’re so cocky.”

“Quite the mouth on you. Your lips make me wonder what the rest of you would taste like.” He lowered his voice and your heart seized up.

“Excuse me?” You turn pale and feel his hand on your thigh. The cigarette in your mouth falls to the ground and your nerves that you managed to ditch at the start of the court session came back and flooded all over you once again. You were telling yourself this is his tactic of distracting you but you knew you had to keep your head clear. You’d be returning to the hall shortly.

“Keep it in your pants asshole.” You grab his hand and stop it before he goes any further. You turn around and walk back into the hall.

“I think this is going well.” Your client says with a hint of hope in her voice.

“Yeah, definitely! I got this.” The confidence took over, in order to beat Jungkook you had to act like him, you had to be as cocky as he is, give him a taste of his own medicine. “Come on, let’s get back.”

Everyone was returning to their seats in the hall and it was time to win the case.

“Let’s proceed.” The judge orders.

“Your Honour, I have evidence to show that Jungkook’s client is definitely guilty. Well, Jungkook brought up the fact that the defendant was related to the person who stole it but why is his exact name on all of the orders?” Your brain starts going ninety, suddenly you feel like you know much more than you did but all it took was a spark of confidence.

“Well yes that is correct but their relative could have been trying to frame him.” Jungkook fights back.

“That might have been right but let me ask your client a couple of questions.” “I object!” Jungkook starts panicking.

“Permission granted.” The judge says. Jungkook locks eyes with you as you get out of your seat and walk towards their table, his eyes scanning your whole body, his chest moving up and down rapidly, not knowing what questions you were going to ask.

“That’s a nice shirt.” You say to the defendant. “It’s designer, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” He nods.

“So, you told us earlier you work a normal retail job, isn’t that right?” You lean over the table and look at Jungkook for a split second making sure he’s still in a state of panic.

“Indeed.”

“How do you afford a designer shirt when you work retail? How do you afford a whole suit that’s Louis Vuitton for that matter?”

“I work overtime.” “Hm, okay. Let’s think about the bills you have to pay. Rent once a month, electricity, water, Wi-Fi, cable as well probably, also food every week.”

“What’s your point?” Jungkooks voice is low and unsettling.

“Your Honour, my client is a successful business woman who owns a couple of companies, she can afford to have a credit card and designer clothing.” You smile. “Jungkooks client is a retail worker that obviously cannot afford to have a credit card, he would easily fall into debt.” You walk towards the judge. “So, if he can’t afford a credit card then how can he afford a full designer suit that is probably around $10,000?” You say that last part loudly just so Jungkook can hear it.

“He got a loan!” Jungkook bursts out.

“Can you show the documents that he took out a loan?” The judge asks. Jungkook starts to go through his papers pointlessly since the client didn’t take out any loan.

“That’s all your Honour.” You smile and go back to your place. You lean over the desk and you feel Jungkooks stare burn into you.

For the next few minutes there were whispers between the jury and the judge was writing stuff down. You put your pen into your mouth before turning on your chair to face Jungkook. He was burning in anger, his fists were clenched as well as his jaw, you winked at him and turned back to face the judge but Jungkook wasn’t turning back.

“We have come to a decision.” The jury says. “The jury finds the defendant guilty.”

“Case closed.” The judge ends the case and you stand up from excitement and you and your client celebrate for a few seconds.

The crowd slowly starts to scatter and the hall empties. You clean up your desk and put all of your files into your case. The fact that you won against Jungkook in your first case would mean that you’d get much more respect around the place and your boss would hand more cases to you leaving you with more work and a bigger pay. You kept your cool while in the hall but you knew once you got home you’d celebrate with your roommate.

“Well, well.” Jungkook approaches you. “Well done, maybe I’ll be the one asking you for help.” He laughs.

“Thank you.” You stand up, ready to leave the hall. He grabs your wrist and pulls you closer to him. The atmosphere suddenly changed, a heavy feeling of anticipation hung over you.

“I want to see you in my office.�� He orders and leaves. You bite your lip, your core burning and you leave the room in a hurry.

“Thank you so much Y/N! You saved me thousands of dollars.” Your client thanks you and hands you a bottle of wine.

“Aw this isn’t necessary I’m only doing my job.” You smile at her, trying to leave as fast as possible so you could get to Jungkooks office.

“Seriously, thank you!” She hugs you and lets you go. You wave her goodbye and rush to his office.

The ride in the elevator was excruciatingly long, it let your mind run free and in result of that it made your core burn even more. What did he want from you? As much as he got under your skin you wanted him quite literally under your skin. Just because he’s cocky doesn’t mean you can’t think he’s attractive, right? He is one of the most powerful men in the company and the way he looks in a suit makes your knees weak. When you entered the office, he was standing up facing the huge, wall length, window, drinking water.

“You did well today kid.” He admits.

“I know.” You start acting as cocky as he always does. “I mean, this was my first case and I went up against you and I still won.” He laughed at your remark and started walking towards you.

“Don’t get too cocky, I’ll wipe that smirk off your face.” He towers over you and runs his thumb across your lips.

“What is your problem? You act so cold towards me yet you seem to want me so, so bad.” You push him off.

“I have to act that way to keep up my image, I can’t show people that you get to me.” He laughs.

“I get to you?” You smirk.

“Your tight skirt that hugs your ass so nicely, your shirt that should definitely be buttoned up a bit more in here.” He pressed you against the wall, his hands around your waist and his mouth so close to your own. “They all get me Y/N.” Your body started disobeying you, you wrapped your leg around his and he put his other leg between yours and pressed it into your core, the moan that left your throat was so pathetic.

“You give in so easily.” He whispered in your ear. “Do you want me kitten?” His fingers run up your thigh, slipping under your skirt, getting closer and closer to your heat. His lips moved to your neck, he started of gently but kisses turned into bites and hickeys. His soft skin making contact with yours made you ache, you were rubbing yourself on his thigh and you couldn’t control yourself, it felt so good.

“Good girl.” He said as he grabbed your wrists and pinned it against the wall. He moved from your neck to your chest, leaving bites along the way. He used his other hand to rip open your shirt and in result he was left with your breasts, squished so perfectly together in one of your best bras. His eyes darkened and you could swear that a shadow fell over him. He walked over to his chair while you stood in the corner of the room with your grey silky top caressing your skin.

“Get over here.” He ordered. You stood right in front of him and he leaned over to you, his face right in front of your breasts, he grabbed onto them and squeezed them. Your bra was off before you noticed him undo it and his tongue was circling your nipple. Your breath got heavy and you could see Jungkook’s member bulge through his pants. When he looked up at you he noticed you staring.

“You like what you see?” He caught your attention and his hand tangled itself in your hair. “Well get on your knees and suck me off.” He harshly pulled on your hair which made you drop to your knees. He undid his pants and you gasped at his size. You wrapped your fingers around him which seemed quite small compared to him and you took your time, you moved your hand up and down, tightening your grip and watching his reactions.

“Does daddy like that?” Your confidence grew once you acknowledged his reactions so you decided to take it one step further. Jungkook sat up and grabbed your hair again.

“What did you call me?” He was panting, clearly euphoric.

“Daddy.” You said, followed by you licking his dick from the bottom to the top not breaking eye contact. He furrowed his eyebrows and his mouth parted, he obviously underestimated you. He stood up, his fist full of your hair pulling you up with him. He pushed you onto his desk and then lowered you so you were lying down. Jungkook stood over you eyeing your chest and admiring your body, he started taking off your skirt revealing a black lace thong.

“You just get better and better.” He smiled. His finger ran from your chest to your slit while he rubbed his jaw. His finger hit your bundle of nerves and your chest rose from the sudden inhale. “This is what you get for being a good girl.” He leaned over, one hand by your head and the other playing with your clit. His fringe fell so effortlessly, brows constantly furrowed as he pleased you. His phone suddenly rang.

“Hello?” He picked up while playing with you. “I have a meeting in 15 minutes?” He slowly started to place two of his fingers inside you, testing your limits, seeing if you’d make any noise while he was on the phone. “Can it be rescheduled?” He looked at you with lust, fingers pumping faster into you but you’re still not making any noise, you’re holding back as much as you can. “Oh, it can’t?” He curled his fingers and hit your spot, your mouth opened, ready to moan but he put his fingers into your mouth before you could make any noise. “Well, I might be 5 minutes late.” He hung up and threw his phone aside. His mouth quickly hit yours while you sat up on the table, your legs were parted and his member was rubbing off your wet cunt.

“You want me?” He asks while he rubs his tip into you. You moan in agreement, locking your legs around his waist. He quickly slides into you and goes back to exploring your mouth with his tongue. He was ramming into you with such force it felt like you got winded, you couldn’t breathe and it never felt so good. Your mouth was fully parted but you couldn’t possibly make any noise.

“Feels that good, does it?” He asks while he gently slaps your cheek, grabbing your face and bringing you closer to him. His tongue was wrapping around yours, the kiss felt almost as good as his cock ramming deep into you. He let go of you and slowed down the pace while he looked at himself coming in and out of you, he was spreading you so well as well as hitting every single nerve inside you making you weak.

“Open your mouth.” He ordered and you did as he said. He quickly spat into your mouth followed by a slap and his hand shutting your mouth. He grinned and licked his lips. “You’re such a good girl.” He praised you. He picked up the pace again, sweat started to gather on his forehead which dripped down to his cheeks. No matter how hard he fucked you it seemed like he couldn’t get enough of you, he constantly needed his tongue inside your mouth, his dick throbbed inside you.

“Hmm, can’t get enough of me daddy?” You moaned and he grabbed your throat.

“As a matter of fact, I can’t.” He bit his lip and squeezed your throat cutting off the air. You grabbed onto his arm and enjoyed the tingling in your whole body. The more air escaped you, the more you could feel his big, thick dick inside you. The more air escaped you, the more you clenched around him.

“Fuck, you’re tight.” He let go of your throat and your vision went blurry. His pace didn’t stop and everything was becoming too much, your pussy was soaking wet, your juices and his pre-cum were dripping onto his desk.

“Daddy I’m going to cum soon.” Your breath was shallow and your moaning became louder. Jungkook smirked, slapped you and grabbed your throat once again, bringing you closer to the edge. The tingling feeling came back again and his throbbing dick felt so big inside you.

“I’m not going to let go until you cum baby.” He said and he tightened his grip. It felt so wrong but so good at the same time, his grip, his dick ramming into you, the tingling all over your body quickly brought you to an orgasm. It was so intense you couldn’t help but to moan his name and as soon as you hit it he let go, prolonging the orgasm. He came right after you, your tight pussy was too much for Jungkook to handle and he filled you up with his warm cum.

He took himself out and went to his toilet to clean himself up and bring you a towel. There was no way of saving your makeup and your hair but at least you could make yourself presentable enough to run out of the courthouse and get into a cab home. On the way home, you thought about what happened and you couldn’t believe how much you obeyed him, how much power he had over you. You were able to win against him in court but when it came to sex, you were all his.

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moonraccoon-exe · 7 years ago

Note

Heyyyyy Racc ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) how flustered do you think Gladio would be if he found out Ignis had a twin??.. (sister or brother, your choice! )

Hahahaha, Y E S!!!

I’ve had this here for quite a while but I can’t stop thinking about it and probably won’t. I’ve been laughing at the mere mental images this brings me, and I so have to share something about this!!

First off; Ignis with a twin? HNG, YES.

I’d LOVE both cases, because if it was a sister then we could have some sort of Fem!Ignis at least visually and ASTRALS ABOVE, yes.

But imagine if it was a brother. I think that that would mess with Gladio a little more. No, wait, I just had ideas for both scenario ahaha, awman, I need to write stuff for this! Due to length this only includes Brother but ohman. I’m having so much fun writing this.

Edit: *dEEP BREATH* I ADORED AND LOVED WRITING THIS, this is now one of my new absolute favorites, thank you so much!!!

[Adding a Keep Reading at some point]

Gladio dealing with discovering Ignis has a twin brother (& their adventures after he does):

I’ve been adoring the idea of the situation being like that rumor from Marvel’s Avengers on Chris Evans and his troubles with identifying whether he’s talking with Scarlett Johansson or her stunt actress.

Same happens to Gladio: is this Ignis or is this his twin brother?

First time Gladio interacted with him, he still had no idea Ignis had a sibling, let alone a twin.

Gladio was fourteen.

Ignis, due to his great intellect and potential, was taken to the Citadel since very little, but he couldn’t bring his brother along, so Brother is staying with their Aunt at the Scientia house, while Ignis stays at the Citadel with their Uncle.

Ignis isn’t the most talkative on his personal life and, when young, he was very damn shy, so he didn’t bring up to conversation he has a brother (it either didn’t occur to him or he just was too shy to talk on his private life).

So, despite all the years together as friends, Gladio has literally no idea Ignis has a sibling.

One day, Ignis’ brother was visiting for a proper tour around the Citadel. He waited in the hallway while Ignis went into the bathroom.

Gladio happened to stumble upon him.

“Yo, Iggy! Hey, what are you doing ‘round here? :)”

“Oh. I’m not-”

“I was looking for you, say, I forgot to give you your pen back at school yesterday, so here you go.”

“Thank you :)”

“No worries, Iggy.”

“I’m-”

“*gasps* Oh, no, dad will kill me if I’m late. Sorry. See you later, Iggy!”

“Oh. Well, hurry, I wouldn’t want you to die, big friend from school.”

Gladio was a bit ?? because what the fuck did Ignis just call him, but the almost naive way in which he said the rest made him laugh a lot, so he just shrugged it off and left.

That was literally his first interaction with Ignis’ twin.

Jkssks this idiot.

You cannot judge Gladio, the Scientia have the same bloody hairstyle and both wear glasses.

They’re like waterdrops, except Brother has a darker shade of green in the eyes and a different birthmark.

Gladio continued to live unaware that this was not Ignis.

One day, Ignis was very, very, as in absolutely v e r y sick.

Still, he insisted to go to the Citadel because “he has work to do”.

Brother smacked him.

“LISTEN HERE, I already knew the way you’re going stress would kill you in a year or two, but I can’t believe you want to fasten the process by also throwing yourself into the Stress Pit while agonizing.”

Ignis tried to insist he’s fine and kept it very, very clear he can’t miss work and someone has to do it.

Guess who’s going in his place.

Twin bro is the shit.

Twin bro is taking Ignis’ clothing and going to work in his place so Ignis doesn’t miss his work day but also gets to rest in bed.

It wasn’t in the plan to pretend being Ignis. He just happens to look the same.

Across the day, Bro waves back at “Hello, Ignis”s and “How are you, Ignis?”s and he doesn’t mind.

There’s a few who recognize he’s Brother (king Regis and Noctis, as well as Clarus and Cor), but the majority mistake him by Ignis.

He doesn’t mind nor is he correcting them.

Guess who happened to stumble upon him again.

“HEY, Iggy!! You’re looking good, yesterday you looked kind of bad, are you okay?”

“Oh. Well, Ignis is fine.”

Gladio’s laughing because “haha Ignis is refering to himself in third person.”

“I’m happy. Say, the other day, at my house. Thank you. The way the teacher puts it, it’s ridiculous, but you helped me understand very well, and today I got a 100% on the test.”

“Ah, I’m glad about it! :)”

“Yeah. You know, I used to think tutoring embarassing, but it’s very helpful. I know I’m not awful at school, but you make it a thousand times easier. You’re so smart, how does your head not explode? Nice sweater, by the way. Are these glasses new?”

“Oh? Ah, no. I’ve always had them.”

“Hm? I thought they were black, but I may just be an idiot. Do you want a candy? I saw Monica and she gave me a few.”

“Oh, that’d be nice! :)”

“Here you go. Do you like orange or strawberry better? Don’t tell me. Orange.”

“Hah, yeah :)”

“Nice. Also, did you know about Beric?”

“Who’s Beric?”

“Ahaha, Iggy, you’re extra funny today. Beric from school. Turns out he [blah blah blah]”

Gladio talked long and comfy with him having no idea this isn’t Ignis.

Brother has literally no idea what Gladio’s talking about.

He doesn’t mind, though.

Brother let him call him Ignis and talk with him as he pleased and never corrected him and just agreed or laughed even though he doesn’t understand what is going on.

That night, Brother told Ignis everything that Gladio told him.

“I think he thinks I’m you.”

“Hm…Gladio’s not as silly. He’s very perceptive. He’s got a very sharp eye and great intuition. I guess he must have noticed by now.”

Ignis’ expectations of Gladio are too high.

As time goes and by the time they’re 15 and from then on, sometimes brother goes to the Citadel to help.

Sometimes it’s to replace Ignis when he worries Ignis is stressing too much, sometimes both are around the place attending different duties.

Brother is in charge of minor ordering of archives, messenger activities, etc., while Ignis continues with his major ordering, Council and etc.

Even when both are at the same time at the Citadel Gladio still doesn’t notice there’s a Second Ignis.

The Scientia twins are coming and going everywhere all the time, so they’re barely ever together or in the same place.

So, Gladio only sees one.

“Woah. Iggy? I thought…I thought you were…ahaha, never mind. Good day! :)”

“Hey, Iggy! How did you get here so fast? I last saw you at the hallway of the throne room! Winged feet, huh? :)”

“Oh? They told me you were during Council meeting lessons! What are you doing here? :)”

“Lmao haha Ignis wtf you couldn’t have come here so fast.”

“Ignis, literally what the fuck, I just…around the corner and… *takes a look* *stares at Brother* *stares around* *stares at Brother* How the fuck.”

“Gladio, have you seen Noctis?”

“He’s at the training Hall :)”

“Thank you! *leaves*”

Gladio’s tying his shoelace and stands back up to find Ignis standing in front of him.

Gladio’s flinching and yelping in a jumpscare.

“Hi, Gladio. Excuse me, do you know where Noctis is?”

“Lmao, Ignis, wtf. I just literally told you he’s in the training hall.”

“What? Oh, right. Okay, thanks. *leaves*”

Gladio watches him leave, shakes the head and thinks he’s just hallucinating, so he turns around and goes, only to find Ignis coming from the other hallway a few seconds later.

“Ah, Gladio! I’m sorry, which way is the training hall?”

“IGNIS WHAT THE FUCK.”

“Did I upset you? :’(”

The Scientia twins have literally no idea they’re messing with Gladio.

Gladio still has no idea or clue Ignis has a twin.

Whenever Gladio happens to engage in conversation with Brother, he has no idea it’s Brother.

Literally, Gladio will stand or sit there with him and talk like this is Ignis and call him that.

Brother has long assumed and has it a hundred percent for sure that Gladio’s just kidding when he treats him like it’s Ignis.

He assumed that Gladio knows him and is aware that he’s Ignis’ twin, and both because he doesn’t know his name and because that’s his way of kidding about the whole situation, as if doing this on purpose in some way of laughing at himself for their first interaction, he just calls him Ignis.

Truth is Gladio really thinks he’s Ignis when they’re interacting.

When Gladio’s sixteen he starts growing feelings for Ignis.

He adores just staring at him instead of the chalkboard at school, he really likes his hair and his brain and his feelings and his heart and his eyes and everything about him.

It was eventual, but he figured he really adores the guy and has a crush on him.

“Besides, I feel…Iris, I feel I’m seeing him everywhere all the time. That must mean he’s got me bad.”

Hahahahahahaha, oh Gladio.

Gladio spent most part of his 15′s and part of his 16′s hiding the feelings because “They’re ridiculous, I’ll get over this” but lol nope, it only got worse, to the point he’s agonizingly, desperately, insufferably, profoundly and excruciatingly crushing on Ignis.

Can’t look at him without going red to the ears and entirely stupid.

This state, of course, makes it impossible for him to pay attention and notice there’s two Ignis.

The poor thing.

One day he couldn’t contain the feelings anymore and had to confess so he went straight towads Ignis.

Except that’s not Ignis.

ahahahsdioashdasiohaha this mess, I love it so much.

“Uhm…Ignis…can I talk with you for a moment? >////

“Sure, Gladiolus. What’s wrong?”

“I…I uhm…I was…I was wondering…I mean- no, it’s not- no-”

“:) ?”

It took Gladio veeeeeeery long to get anywhere.

“And I just want to say… >////////

Look at that sixteen year old Gladio. His undercut hairstyle, his still hairless face, so young and smol and inexpert and silly and shy, entirely red in the face and almost sweating from the nervousness, standing in front of Brother, who’s just all (・・ ) ? holding his clipboard and blinking up at Gladio.

“Listen. You are…you are…the most incredible person that I know. Ignis, I am- I want- I just want to say- you don’t need to pressure or feel engaged or guilty or anything, I just want to say- Ignis I’m- thing is…you are…the way you make me feel. It’s stupid and I’m getting tired of it, because I can’t sleep because I think too much and it’s always you in my head, and I can’t look at you without having brain death, I literally sometimes forget how to speak just because I saw you, and I can’t eat because it tickles so much inside I’d throw up, and I’m…what I what to say is…Ignis just don’t- I don’t- I am-….”

“ (・・ ) ? “

“…Ignis, I really really really really like you like you have no idea and I wanted to offer we go somewhere you’d like!” he bows to him, “I-I have no troubles if you say no!”

There’s a very long and dead silence.

Trembling 16 y.o. Gladio’s still in reverence in front of Brother who’s still all (・・ ) ?

“…I’m sorry. :’(”

“Why?”

“I…don’t know. I don’t mean to upset you. I just…really like you. And I would really like to go…to go…out? Sometime…someday…anywhere…just as long as…as it’s…with you?” Brother is impressed Gladio’s face has not exploded from how red it is. “Uhm…you don’t…have to say yes if you don’t wanna. Sorry, Ignis.”

There’s another long, dead silence and nobody’s moving.

“…oooooh…you’re- oooh, *gaSPS* GLADIO THAT WAS SO SWEEEEET!! ❤ ”

“Really? :D”

“Yeah, I’m sure he’ll love it!”

wat

Gladio’s now all (・・ ) ?

why is Ignis referring to himself in third person wtf.

He’s too scared of ruining things between them so he just rolls with it.

“Uhm…yeah?”

“Gladio, that was so sweet, I’m sure he will say yes, just wait and- omg I’ll tell him to go look for you tomorrow, this is so sweet, I had no idea you- *histerical contained giggle* YOU TELL HIM THIS EXACT SAME TOMORROW, it’s so sweet! You’ve got this, IT’LL TURN OUT FINE AND HE WILL SAY YES”

“…?? (・・ ) ??”

Gladio’s very puzzled and also a bit creeped out.

What just happened

Is that a yes

Brother broke out running because HE’S SO EXCITED OMG IGNIS WON’T BELIEVE THIS

Gladio’s just standing there staring into the void and frowning lightly and feeling so confused he feels lost because

wtf is Ignis doing

Was this his way of telling him “I need to think but I’ll tell you my answer tomorrow”?

“I’ll tell Ignis”.

Wtf.

Ignis

Ignis wtf r u doing

Gladio’s V E R Y confused.

Brother thought that Gladio was rehearsing.

Jjkdsjksdjsfsd THESE IDIOTS ｡ﾟ(TヮT)ﾟ｡

Brother thought, once he understood what Gladio was asking, that Gladio had wanted to ask Ignis out for a while now, but has been way too shy and can’t gather the courage; as a solution, he thought about approaching Brother and pretend it was Ignis since the beginning, so while he knows this is not Ignis, he’s pretending he is and imagining this is the moment, so he can let it out and get rid of the shyness, so this is his rehearsal for the real thing.

Brother’s expectations of Gladio are too high, too.

The next day Gladio’s going around the Citadel when Ignis appears from a hallway a bit shy like

“Hi, Gladio. Uhm, Kaji told me you wanted to tell me something important, but he refused to tell me-”

“Wait wait wait. Who?”

“Kaji.”

“Ignis, listen, I don’t know what’s with you but you’ve been acting very weird. Listen, if it’s because of what I said yesterday, forget it, really. You don’t have to act like you’re mentally insane or something as crazy.”

“…excuse me?”

“If you just want to say no, say no, no need to invent madness or anything.”

“Gladio, what are you talking about? Kaji said-”

“Who the hell is Kaji?”

“Kaji. Kaji Scientia?”

“….who?”

“My brother?”

Dead silence again before Gladio’s shaking the head. He’s going all dry and cold on Ignis.

“Your brother.”

“Yes. You talked with him yesterday and-”

“Wow. Wow, okay, you’re saying-” sarcastic laugh. “Your brother. Twin, I suppose.”

“Well…yes?”

“Fantastic. Great. This is amazing. I thought you were better than this, Ignis. I’m very disappointed. I understand I’m not your type, but to invent a twin brother just to pretend it wasn’t you I was talking to yesterday? Wow. You, you really are incredible.”

“What?”

“Your sarcasm really knows no limits. How incredible of you.”

Ignis is about to reply, but he doesn’t get to say anything and he’s just frowning at Gladio with confusion when there’s a yell from behind the Shield.

“HEEEEY GUYS! Did he already tell you!? :D”

Gladio’s turning around.

Kaji Scientia walks towards them.

Gladio’s eyes grow so wide his eyeballs almost fall out their sockets, his jaw drops so low it almost touches his chest, and he’s turning to look at Ignis, back at brother, Ignis, brother, and continues until Kaji stands at his other side so Gladio’s standing between the Scientia Twins.

Kaji’s all naive smiles and Ignis is all sarcastic raise of an eyebrow.

It took a second.

The Citadel had never ever before witnessed a louder “WHAT THE FUCK” in all its history.

It takes literally twenty minutes before Gladio can calm enough just to listen and half comprehend.

“IGNIS YOU HAVE A BROTHER!?!?!!? IGNIS YOU HAVE A TWIIIIINNNNN!?!?!?!”

“I thought you knew!”

“YOU LET ME TALK TO YOU ALL THIS TIME LIKE YOU’RE IGNIS AND NEVER CORRECTED ME!?!!??!”

“I thought you knew!”

“I’VE SPENT AN ENTIRE YEAR WITH THE TWO OF YOU IN THE SAME PLACE AND I HAD NO IDEA!?!?!?”

“We thought you knew!”

It’s yet another half an hour before Gladio comprehends better and stops panicking.

“WAIT A- WAIT. WAIT, DOES THAT MEAN THAT-” he turns to look at Ignis. “WHAT I SAID YESTERDAY I SAID…” slowly turns to brother without making eye contact “…I-I….I-I said…to you…”

“It was ADORABLE, you have to repeat the same words to Ignis because hnngffgf.”

“Wait, what was adorable?”

“Gladio wants to conf-”

“NOTHING.”

“Kaji, what was the important thing you said-”

“NO-THING”

“Gladio’s too shy but he wants to ask you-”

“I SAID NOTHING.”

And that’s the story of how Gladio ended up wrestling with poor Kaji Scientia while Ignis smacked Gladio to force him to let go and Gladio’s confused the entire time because he’s fighting an Ignis while another Ignis fights him and how in the world.

Everybody’s making fun of him for the rest of his life.

“I am surprised you only noticed when you had both in front of you. I thought you were an Amicitia but you may as well have been adopted.”

“Dad >:’‘‘( “

“Hah, you didn’t notice before? Pscht, talk about brute.”

“NOCT >:(”

“*insert a Regis joke about this all*”

“…your Majesty :’‘(”

“What a poor eye. And you call yourself a Shield.”

“Cor, stop >:’(”

Tbh it took Gladio a while to stop feeling flustered whenever he interacts with neither of them.

He’s profoundly embarrassed for not having noticed, ofc, but he’s also personally embarrassed with Kaji for not knowing his name or proper existance, and he feels personally bad for Ignis because he doesn’t want Ignis to think he doesn’t care about his personal life, so not knowing something like the fact that he has a twin makes him ashamed of himself.

None of the brothers mind, and they’re both moved by the way Gladio takes this so personally.

“Omg he cares.”

“See, he’s a good choice, say Yes, Ignis.”

“Omg no, I can’t do that.”

“But why, don’t be shy.”

“What if I’m not what he expects?”

“OMg Ignis he’s literally dying for you, he expects nothing.”

“Hnfgnmf, Kaji I can’t.”

“But he’s such a good choice for you, don’t tell me you don’t like him.”

“Well ofc I do but-”

“His face, Ignis.”

“OMG I know he’s so handsome”

“His physic”

“Hnfgmnf yes”

“He cares”

“I KNOW”

“GO TELL HIM YES.”

Basically Kaji is the romance devil on Ignis’ shoulder who whispers to him ‘yes omg do that’ when Ignis doesn’t want to do a thing.

The twin brothers are gossiping on Gladio matters.

After the initial weeks of flustering whenever he sees any of the two, Gladio starts just laughing at the situation and rolling with it.

As time passes, he still confuses them, though.

The twins are now doing it on purpose.

Sometimes Gladio will go with one and talk with him like he’s the other, and he won’t say a thing and will see how long Gladio takes to notice he’s talking to the brother of who he thinks he’s talking to.

“Wait, you’re not Ignis.”

“Ten minutes, two seconds.”

“Why are you writing that?”

“Ignis and I are taking note of how long you take to notice you’re talking with the wrong twin.”

“Wat”

His record is five minutes forty nine seconds.

The twins literally have a list for that.

The only moments the twins break the fun is whenever Gladio wants to get affectionate (if it’s Kaji).

I forgot, ofc Ignis said yes and now they’re dating, how lovely.

So, you know, sometimes Gladio mistakes Kaji by Ignis so he’ll be chilling and talking with him, and sometimes he’ll try to grab his face and smooch, but brother always yelps out like a pterodactyl and shoves Gladio off him.

“GROSS”

“Wha- WAIT YOU’RE NOT IGNIS.”

Kaji’s ace, btw, so no troubles there.

You can understand it’s sometimes super startling for Gladio because he has for sure this is Ignis so

“Haha, aw Iggy. You really have no idea how much I love you…”

“Eeeewwww.”

“…well aren’t you the most affection- WAIT YOU’RE NOT IGNIS”

“Twenty minutes three seconds.”

“Come ‘ere, you idiot! *bear hugs and tries to kiss his face*”

“EWWWWWWWWWWWWW AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!! S O M E B O D Y H E L P M EEEEEEEEEEE!!!!”

“YOU’RE NOT IGNIS!”

“You’re so cute, Iggy. Come here, you moogle nose, adorable creature, sweet angel, my dearest heart, piece of my soul, part of-”

“UUUUUUGGGGH I AM DISGUSTED.”

“Wow, okay, no need to- *GASPS* YOU’RE NOT IGNIS, DAMMIT”

“Forty minutes, fifty three seconds.”

Ignis plays, too.

“So the other day I was telling him ‘So how do you expect me to know when you’re lying? You were raised a strategist, you’re too good keeping secrets but it’s not always a good thing’, you know”

“Uh huh”

“So I was like, ‘you shouldn’t be keeping things like that from me, you know I’m your boyfriend and your friend’

“Uh huh”

“And he was like all sass and class like ‘it’s not like I make any harm’ you know”

“Uh huh.”

“And then I was- ………….”

“……”

“WAIT YOU’RE NOT KAJI”

“Nineteen minutes, thirty four seconds. Also, your impression of my voice is pretty…unique.”

“So I was like ‘mother of Shiva, Noctis, you can’t do that’ but he was like ‘Eh’”

“Ah hah.”

“And the little shit almost convinces me to go to the arcade and skip training.”

“Oooh.”

“Yeah and I was like “Omg Ignis is going to be so angry at me.”

“Uh huh.”

“And it took a moment and I almost surrender but I didn’t give in to that.”

“Nice.”

“Yeah. Just don’t tell Ignis, the mere idea that I considered it will make him angry at me.”

“…..”

“….”

“….wait yOU’RE NOT KAJI.”

There was this once, omg read it

Gladio thinks he’s with Ignis and he’s ‘made sure’ according to himself, so they’re alone at the training hall and they’re a bit older and hormones are a bit crazy, okay

So some innocent smooching ended up heating up until he was making out with Ignis, and until he had the guy pressed to the wall.

And Ignis is gently biting at his lips and their tongues are a mess, and Ignis may or not have hooked a leg with Gladio’s and Astrals above the kiss is so good.

And then when they break apart it’s just for air and Gladio has the forehead resting on Ignis’ and Ignis then caresses his face and looks at him with dark eyes and some lust and then he says in almost a pur

“I’ve always had this fantasy and temptation. Always.”

“Really?”

“I’m so glad you’re giving in to it, too” so the brown haired in his arms and against the wall hugs him closer to whisper at his ear “Let’s just not tell Ignis. Okay?”

Gladio swears his heart stopped for five minutes.

Needless to say, he immediately broke apart, stared at whoever he’s holding, eyes wide and face pale, and he’s not even able to talk, he just mouths “…really?”, before the other guy gives him a little dark giggle.

Gladio fucking shoved him off himself.

“…you’re not Ignis.”

And another of those playful smiles.

He stepped away pretty roughly and only stared long and long and long before he could say or do anything.

“Kaji. Listen. This should have never…I didn’t- I don’t mean to-. Whatever you thought-…how could you do this? Pretend to be your brother, and then do this to me? And worse, you dare do this to him? Kaji, I don’t feel towards you like I feel towards him and I will never do. He’s…my only one. You look the same, but you’re not the same. So if you thought for a second that I’ve ever wanted…”

Kaji’s looking at him with teary eyes and a moved expression.

Gladio at first took it by sadness and he continued to lecture and nag him and it lasted about five entire minutes before he got an unexpected reaction.

Kaji started smiling.

It was very very clear he’s trying to contain it and he only looks at Gladio and he doesn’t seem ashamed or anything, just very very very amused and trying not to burst into laughter.

And then Gladio catches it.

“….wait…you’re-you’re…”

Scientia burst into laughter.

“Ignis! >:(”

“I’m so sorry, Gladio, dear, ahahahaha!!”

Gladio has the most perfect (ಠ ヘ ಠ) face that has ever existed.

Gladio was (`ヘ´) all the rest of that day.

Ignis had to feed him Noodles so he could talk to him again and stop being all moody.

Tbh Ignis was particularly and especially cuddly and clingy with him for the following days/weeks, so #WorthIt.

“You care (´︶`)♡”

“You know, you could have put me to test some other way, now I can’t look at your brother without feeling odd. Thank you for the trauma.”

Ignis regrets nothing.

Him and Kaji have had some good laughs about it.

Back to Gladio sometimes mistaking Kaji for Ignis and trying to be loving with him and Kaji screeching like a pterodatyl:

Every time this happens, Gladio gets super flustered.

He really doesn’t mean to mistake them, it just happens.

So he gets super flustered and embarrassed when he gets affectionate with brother.

He’ll burn red in the face like when he was sixteen, will lower the head, avoid eye contact, and be an apologizing mess.

Gladio never feels more embarrassed than in those moments.

He feels super bad and exalted.

This is Ignis’ damn own brother and Gladio almost smooches his nose, omg, earth please swallow me I cannot cope with the shame I am terrible

It’s already bad to have Kaji walking on in them cuddling

Ofc Gladio gets super mega incredibly flustered when he mistakes him for Ignis.

Gladio had no idea those levels of embarassment are possible.

They’re so big they stalk him whenever he thinks about any of those moments.

At least Kaji takes it the fun way and screeches.

Sometimes the Scientia twins like to go full fake drama on him if it happens that Ignis walked on in Gladio mistaking Kaji for him.

“*SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH*”

“OMG YOU’RE NOT IGNIS”

Ignis, from the door: “*GASPS* Gladiolus!! You’re cheating on me!!”

“IGNIS! NO, I’M- *sigh* Omg please no don’t do this to me again”

“And with my own brother! :’‘(”

“Ignis, he’s forcing me!! :’‘‘(”

“Oh no! The misery! You cheat on me with my own brother and you’re forcing him into this!”

“Guys, this has never been funny >:’(”

“Oh Ignis. Brother of my blood. I cannot look at you anymore.”

“Oh, brother of my soul, do not talk like that. It was not your fault.”

“Oh, brother of my heart-”

“GUYS >:’‘(”

“- please *unnecessarily super mega dramatic* forgive me.”

“I forgive thee, brother.”

“Oooh, Ignis. You merciful soul *hugs his knees*”

“COME ON THIS IS GETTING OLD”

“Brother, shall we go and comfort each other and leave this heretic to his own luck?”

“Yes, we shall. Give me your arm.”

“Guys, please”

And that’s how the Scientia twins leave for an ice cream leaving Gladio behind just for fun.

How has Gladio not gone mad

“Excuse me, Iggy-”

“Not Iggy.”

“Sorry, Kaji. Uhm, Iggy- wait you’re Kaji.”

“Try again.”

“…so…Ignis? I- wait no, Kaj- no, wait I am confused.”

This is usual.

“Ig-”

“Not Ignis.”

“Sorry. *is about to leave* Wait. Are you sure you’re not Ignis trying fool me to think you’re not Ignis just because you’re busy?”

“You’ve got me. I’m Ignis.”

“…wait are you Kaji covering your brother?”

“*sigh* You’ve got me again. It’s Kaji here.”

“…wait.”

This is super usual.

Sometimes Kaji helps in their relationship.

He’s Ignis’ confidant, so Ignis tends to tell him most of his stuff he doesn’t talk to others.

Stuff from his relationship with Gladio, for example.

Kaji knows both mean only good for each other and that Gladio’s a good guy, but he’s also aware misunderstandings and accidents happen.

He’s also very painfully aware of how much Ignis can ignore himself or think himself obstacle or a bother, so brother understands sometimes Ignis doesn’t open up to Gladio in matters that he should and only tells Kaji.

Guess who can’t keep the mouth shut.

Kaji wants their relationship to work out bc of how aware he is that these two are sincere with each other, so he assumes it’s fine to sometimes give a hand into it.

This one day, Gladio’s going around and Ignis approaches him, looking a bit embarrassed/upset.

“Uhm…Gladio…I uhm…here.”

He’ll just hand a folded paper and leave.

The note contains a polite message from Ignis saying something like ‘It’s all okay, but I didn’t like your comment about (X) last night. It made me feel a little sad. Sorry I tell you via this. I’m not upset, I only wanted to let you know. - Your Iggy’.

Did I mention Kaji has mastered how to fake Ignis’ handwriting and that that was not Ignis?

Gladio’s usually going to look for Ignis, apologize, and hug him.

Ignis has literally no idea it’s Kaji’s doing.

This is usual.

It doesn’t really matter; things get solved and his relationship with Gladio improves.

And the best part is that this eventually gives Ignis the confidence so he himself opens up to Gladio later in the future.

Best brother award goes to Twin Brother.

After entire years dealing with the Scientia twins messing with him both accidentally and on purpose, there’s a point where Gladio hits the limits that are past his limits and he can’t deal with this anymore.

“YOU TWO DO SOMETHING, YOU’RE TWENTY AND STILL LOOK THE SAME, OMFG, CHANGE STYLES, NE OF YOU BECOME GOTH OR SOMETHING, OR CUT YOUR HAIR, OR WEAR LENSES, OR SOMETHING, YOU CANNOT BE TWENTY AND STILL BE IDENTICAL FFS.”

“You’re right. It’s supposed that once we hit adulthood we’re supposed to shift and transform and look entirely different from our TWIN BROTHER.”

“Do not sass me, Ignis >:(”

“I am not Ignis.”

“DO NOT SASS ME, KAJI.”

“No, I am Kaji, he tricked you.”

“THAT’S IT, I’M DONE.”

Gladio’s grabbing the first one he reaches and starts messing with him.

Thing is this Scientia’s offering fight, so they end up wrestling and the event repeats itself and Gladio ends up wrestling one while the other smacks him, except this time he has no idea who is who.

Gladio didn’t reach to hurt, he aimed to mess with the hair.

“Ew Gladiolus what are you doing!? Let go of me, no, no!! What are y- eewww, why saliva!! Stop it this instant, I’m going to- kfgjnf, no!! What are you doing to my hair, stop!!”

And that’s the story of how Gladio invented Ignis’ sticking-upwards hairstyle.

This is the only way he can difference the Scientia twins from afar, understand him.

….sometimes the twins exchange hairstyles during a day.

You know what’s also very usual?

“Not that I complain or anything, Gladio, but all this talk on what you’re planning to get Ignis for his birthday makes me feel a little left out. You forgot mine.”

“*GASPS* NO WAY, KAJI, ARE YOU SERIOUS!? When was it!?”

“You don’t remember? ;(”

“Kaji, no, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, I forgot, I’m-”

“….”

“…”

“You goddamn idiot, your birthday is the same fucking day.”

Kaji likes to make a drama out of what Gladio gifts him on their birthday.

“Of course. Ignis’ is better.”

“Of course not, just the thematic is different.”

“OF COURSE. Who says I don’t want a gift like that?”

“Kaji, he’s my boyfriend, I can’t gift you the same things.”

“Yes of course, because nobody loves poor Kaji.”

“Kaji you’re asexual.”

“Leave me alone to die out of loneliness and isolation.”

Just as a side note, imagine Scientia twins musical duo

I THINK I’M BREATHING FOR THESE BROTHERS I’m loving the visuals omfg.

Gladio likes but also hates when both brothers pamper him just to mess with him.

Like he has Ignis kissing his face and Kaji stroking his hair.

He has Ignis playfully biting at his ear and Kaji massaging his hand.

He has Ignis hugged to a side and Kaji to the other. Well, they are hugging him.

He has Ignis piggy-back style and Kaji’s clinging from his leg.

Ignis is smooching his face and he’s got Kaji koala-hugged to his back.

Too much love.

They’re identical.

Stop.

Romantically, Gladio loves only Ignis.

Visually, the gods damn, he has a pleasure buffet when he sees the Scientia twins together.

Kaji trained for Crownsguard too, so while not acrobatic like Ignis, he’s got the same body, basically.

Kaji’s identical to his boyfriend, were you expecting for Gladio to not like him at least visually?

Omfg how dare are these brothers so attractive.

You know the kind of impossible fantasies people have, as in, the one fantasy (in any sense) that they know impossible so it’s not a goal? Only just that, an impossible fantasy? As in something very wild they know they won’t look for, just fantasize about?

Gladio’s is, but of course, having these two for threesome.

Again, that’s only in his mental archives of Impossible Fantasies, not a goal and certainly not something he’ll die without.

Still, imagine the possibilities.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Maybe they Scientia agree.

I wanted to do Sister too, but I gave all my imagination to Brother so currently I don’t have things for Sis :(

But I have to point this out:

Gladio’s very, very, v e r y flustered about Ignis’ twin sister because

“This is what Ignis looks like. WITH BOOBS.”

You can tell Gladio’s constantly avoiding her because he turns red and all idiot and fights not to stare at her boobs.

It’s not her boobs, it’s not them why he’s staring.

It’s the idea of “this is what Ignis looks like boobiefied” what has him staring.

But ofc he can’t explain that to Twin Sister. But also can’t lie with “I like your boobs”.

I mean he likes them.

But it’s not that why he’s-

See, this is the kind of mess Gladio’s trying to avoid.

…Gladio may or may not have the same impossible fantasy here.

Do not judge me, have you looked at the Scientia twins!?!? Geez.

Hahaha, imagine Sis cuts her hair short.

So she looks even more like Iggy now.

“THIS IS WHAT IGNIS LOOKS LIKE WITH BOOBS.”

Why is Gadio thinking so much about that, anyway

This was so much fun to write, you literally don’t have an idea how much I enjoyed it, ahahah, aaaaaaaaaaah!!! (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ*: ･ﾟ

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS GOLDEN ENTRY, I’m loving all the visuals and I hope you did so too! o(≧▽≦)o

PS: ‘Kaji’ means Fire in japanese, or so said the internet. :)

Edit: Look at these two arts for the Scientia twins! Here & here!

#one of my favorite gladnis asks #this was so much fun omfg #the scientia twins are all sass and jokes #poor gladio #i adore this au #thank you so much yuu #this is so pretty #i hope i did it justice #yay gladnis!#ignis with a twin #coon's favorites #coon answers #coon stories #coon writes

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