#squeezie among us

[giveawayallcountry247]

Among US

Mach bei uns mit :- klicken Sie hier

[itsanidiom]

me: has massive list of dramas i want to watch also me: does not watch 

[littlebitsmile]

in flames [C.L.] | Chapter V

This is it, finally. With this chapter, we kick off the 2024 season and Emma takes part in her first official F1 race in Bahrain. I'm really excited about going forward with this, hopefully you are too.

Enjoy this chapter, breathe it in, feel it in your heart xx

story: in flames driver: Charles Leclerc [C.L.] trope: #haterstolovers summary: Always working three times as hard as everyone else, Emma does not intend to blow her chance of driving among the best of the best in her very first season in Formula 1. Concentrating on first and foremost getting ahead of her brother, she does not even notice that there are some people even in her own team who think she does not deserve this spot and would rather see her fail. And one driver in particular seems to have a need of always reminding her of that.

────ʚ C H A P T E R V ɞ────

"How exactly does this work here?" I ask, while two screens of light shine directly into my face and three or four cameras are pointed at me. A makeup artist is just powdering the last of the anxious sweat on my forehead dry, and a young man is sitting opposite me with a script in his hand. Probably the same one that was sent to me two weeks ago.

"You introduce yourself with your name, which team you drive for, and then I'll ask you a few questions. Easy cheesy lemon squeezy," he replies without looking up from his script.

I can't deny that I'm afraid of messing something up. I still regularly attend the social media training sessions run by Aston Martin's PR department, but Netflix's Drive to Survive team is probably in a whole different league. At least most of the drivers have already warned me about it.

Someone shouts "30 seconds," and suddenly the room empties. The lights are still blinding, and apart from the camera lenses and three-quarters of the interviewer's face, I can't really see much. Just a dark room, almost as if I were the suspect in a murder case and was being questioned - creepy.

I'm handed a film flap with my name, my team, and "Take 1" written on it. I hold it up in front of me and wait for the interviewer's hand signal.

"Hi!" I wave at the camera. "My name is Emma Verstappen, I'm turning 21 this year, and I'm driving for Aston Martin as a rookie in my first Formula 1 season."

"Cut!" A little bit of shuffling around echoes through the room. "That's great, Emma. You're doing good!"

"Thanks, I'm trying my best. Do you need that again or...?" My voice goes up half an octave towards the end of the sentence, unintentionally.

"Ah, no, thanks! But you can answer a question for me directly! How does it feel to sit in this chair?"

"Honestly, like I've been accused." I laugh nervously into the camera. A montage of the last six seasons of the show plays in my mind's eye - almost as if my brain is warning me not to say the wrong thing or get emotional.

"Don't worry, the jury found not guilty. For now, at least." A brief pause as he flicks through his question pad and finally stops at a page. "Emma, when you think about the coming year, what do you feel?"

"You're not the first to ask me that, what do you think my answer will be?" I raise my eyebrows. After his interview, Max gave me the advice to be as detached as possible. Don't stir up drama. Don't take shots at other drivers. Then I take two breaths and continue: "This is a huge year, not only for me, but also for my team. Aston Martin has made a huge bet by putting me in one of their cockpits. But I have no intention of making them regret it."

"Completely understandable! Do you feel comfortable in your team? It was actually very surprising that you didn't end up with your brother's team, Oracle Red Bull Racing! Would you like to tell us briefly how that came about?"

"Well, you probably all know Max, and you don't know me, but let me tell you, even though I love him and he's my brother... we would need some more time to get acquainted with the feeling of being stuck in a team together. Our mom could tell you that as well - everywhere Max and I are involved, there is trouble to follow." I answer honestly. What I don't say is that Max didn't speak to me for a week and a half after I turned down Red Bull's offer to be a test driver for this season. That I had to explain to him almost every hour why the match with Fernando Alonso works better for me at the moment and that later, after I've proven myself, we can drive together until we're old and gray.

"Emma? Are you still there?" The interviewer waves his hand vigorously in front of my face. I apologize and ask him to repeat the question.

"As you know, some contracts are coming to an end this year, and that's why there are a few places with big teams that have been in high demand for years. With Lewis moving from Mercedes to Ferrari and some contracts expiring, for example, Sergio Perez at Red Bull - are you speculating on one of them?"

I have to think for a moment, do some soul-searching. Do I even want to join a big team? Is "Formula 1 World Champion" at the top of my list of dreams? Then I answer: "As a driver, every week you're fighting for your seat, especially this season. It's no longer about where I stand in the world rankings, but rather about the potential I bring with me. I am convinced that I will find my way - regardless of my brother, Red Bull, or anyone else. Where this path will ultimately take me... I don't think anyone really knows."

-

"Two more laps, Emma," Sarah orders over the team radio. She still doesn't speak much, but at least the radio communication works well. Will I ever have as much fun with her as I did with Enzo? Probably not.

"Copy."

I say copy, but what I really mean is I hate you. Forty-five laps under the desert sun of Bahrain, drops of sweat evaporating in my racesuit and making the fabric stick to my skin. I've been trying to suppress my thirst for half an eternity. At least the heat is now my only problem. During the first few test laps, I had to mentally remind myself several times that throwing up in a new car doesn't make a good impression - especially not on the official first day of work. That moment when you're standing at the end of the pit lane waiting to get the final go. In the first corners while hitting the brakes for the first time, my head got put back against the headrest, body compressed. It felt like my heart was going to give up at any moment.

Pre-season testing is the first chance to see if what my team spent the whole year designing is actually going to work. So far, the car feels great - a few comments here and there about oversteer, the right braking behavior, and the optimal line, but at least I'm not a total failure. At least, I hope I'm not.

Fernando has already completed laps in the three-digit range yesterday and this morning combined. I happen to be put in the same test window as Max. I didn't think long about whether this was perhaps intentional, so that we could compare ourselves better, but after the first few laps, the thought crept into my head and wouldn't let go.

As I return to the pit lane faster than expected and the engineering team pushes the car and me back into the garage, I realize that I'm still holding my breath. I take off the steering wheel, release the headrest, and squeeze out of the tight seat. A few mechanics murmur "Good job!" or pat me on the back, but no one says a word. I exhale. Then I look at the car again. Standing right in front of it while the green of the bodywork hits me - an indescribable feeling.

"You know I'm your biggest critic, but that was a good performance today. We can work with that," says Sarah as she comes to a halt next to me and compares graphs on her clipboard. She looks at me from the side, then glances at the car and back at me. "This is your car, you better believe it."

I laugh and nod. "Thank you, Sarah. I don't think that was such a bad practice. There's still plenty to do." As I start to speak, I take off my helmet, finally remove the hearing protection from my other ear, and walk towards my cabin in the back of the garage. Sarah is hot on my heels. "I feel like I have to turn the steering wheel a bit more on the right-hand bends... but maybe it's just because the right-hand bends are a bit faster than I originally thought. I don't feel the headwind as much as I did in the wind tunnel, you can really feel the aerodynamic adjustments on the sides straight away. Do you think I can do one or two laps, just running around the track tomorrow before the start of training? I feel like I don't have every corner completely under control yet and..."

"Emma," Sarah tries to interrupt me, but I keep talking. Unlike me, she is at a loss for words and never let me finish my thoughts during our first few weeks. But this is about our car, about the points, about moving forward and not standing still. I carry on talking impartially.

"...maybe I can have a quick word with Fernando tomorrow? I'd like the front end to be a little sharper, at the moment we still have a lot of leeway - only if it's okay with him."

"Emma."

"Hm?" Now I'm paying attention.

"You're in fifth place at the moment."

"Wow, I didn't think so. That's good news, isn't it?"

"Max is in P6," she says slowly, smiles and then leaves me standing alone in the corridor. My water bottle almost falls out of my hand. I turn around quickly and call after her.

"Hey! You can't just say something like that and then disappear," but she's already around the corner and isn't paying any more attention to me. Has she just smiled for the first time since I met her? And that makes me almost more nervous than the fact that I have beaten my brother for the first time.

-

I'm not that lucky over the next few days of pre-season testing. But the high from my first day of practice on the track carries me through the week like clouds, before we even get to the first three free practices. I stay in the top 10 during the practice sessions that are part of the race weekend, but I seem to have completely lost my groove in qualifying. Starting from 12th on the grid, neither I nor my team are particularly enthusiastic about my performance, and this contributes to the fact that I don't get much sleep the night before the actual race.

I also have to attend several photo shoots in between - not just from my own team but also the official ones. For the first time, I get placed in an all-male field of riders, which is why I am allowed to stand in the middle of the so-called "class of 2024"-picture this year. That is more than awkward for me, but in that respect I will probably have to get used to not being allowed to have a say. On this occasion, I also try to spend more time with my brother, firstly to get some first hand insider advice and secondly to get to know the people he gets on well with.

Carlos Sainz, who tried to persuade me at all costs to go and celebrate with the group before my first race - as a season opener – immediately melts my heart. When I thankfully declined, he laughed and told me not to worry so much - after all, the Verstappen gene is in me too. I didn't mention that I wasn't so sure about that. At the same time, I wish him all the luck in the world - after all, he is currently without a seat for 2025. Secretly, I hope that he achieves better results than Charles, but of course I'm not allowed to say that out loud.

I also have time for a game of paddle tennis with Max, Fernando, Lando Norris, and Daniel Ricciardo - none of them seem to care that I've never held a tennis racket in my life, let alone a paddle tennis racket. On the contrary, each of them patiently explains their way of playing to me, until at some point I'm sure that each of them has at least slipped me some false information so that I don't turn out to be a sudden natural talent.

Unfortunately, all these distractions have not helped to reduce the pressure. The pressure from my father, who follows every Instagram post with excitement and then asks me whether I can really afford to play paddle tennis with Max and whether he missed the fact that I already have a World Drivers' Champions title in my pocket, which would explain why I would think that some free time is something I am allowed to have. The pressure from my team, whose hopes are mainly pinned on Fernando, but a driver duo consists of two people and not everyone is convinced that this is the right place for me. So I continue to sleep uneasily.

-

Before the race starts, I march up and down in the garage with a pulse of just under 130. Outside, I see fans running past, taking their seats, while the structure of the course burns in a continuous loop in my mind. It feels like I remind myself every five minutes that I shouldn't pick at my fingernails and instead find my focus. Max wished me good luck as I left the hotel, and he meant it, but that's easy to say when you start from pole position and have literally nothing to loose.

I overhear Sarah being interviewed somewhere, but unfortunately, I can't quite make out who it is from the voice. The walls here are so thin that I can hear every little movement of the technicians on the car, so I'm not surprised that I overhear conversations that aren't really meant for my ears. Only the interviewer's question burns itself into my head: Do you think you put too much faith in someone who is still so young?

I immediately shake my head, grab my helmet and water bottle, and make my way to my car. There I high-five one or two mechanics and then squeeze into the seat of my car. The cable for the radio connection on my left shoulder is connected to the car, someone plugs in my steering wheel, and the crew slowly removes the heaters from the tires. I wrap my fingers around the steering wheel, squeeze harder, and then let go again. Sitting here feels right, just like the pedals under the soles of my feet and the muffled sounds that can’t quite reach my ears. I try to find my focus and go over the route again in my head. Too much faith in someone who is still so young. The colleague in front of my car gives me the signal to rev the engine and drive out of the garage. Then I'm pushed to the starting grid.

The next few minutes fly by. The impressions of the last few days, the ups and downs, the conversations with other drivers, but also the phone calls with my father and his criticism - everything is buzzing around in my head without having an outlet for it. My body is tense at every turn and I'm literally clutching the piece of metal between my hands. I keep counting to ten in my head and tell myself that everything will be fine, no matter where I end up today - at least that's what I try to tell myself.

The signal is given for the last call to leave the start area. I get some last looks before my team makes its way towards the pit lane.

"Let's go, Emma," says Sarah through the microphone. I nod, even though I'm aware that she can't see me. My brain empties completely during the warm-up lap. Quicker than I'd like, I'm back in my starting position and looking towards the traffic lights. I feel nothing, think nothing. This is the first race of the season and nothing has been won or lost yet. All the cards have been reshuffled and we can only really say how the cars will actually perform afterward. The first lights turn red. Red. Red. Red. Red. And then the lights go out, and my foot presses down on the gas pedal. This is the official start of the 2024 season.

────ʚ [Masterlist] [Chapter IV] [Chapter VI (in progress)] ɞ────

Tags: @cmleitora @alliwantisadonut

[naoko-world]

Men aren't inherently bad

As a context I can sometimes see some people talk seriously about men as if them being men make them bad people. I could even see some people extending it to trans men!

But if you see, for example, more men being predatory than women, that's wrong to say every one of them are predators. They can even be strong allies!

To prove it to you I'll talk about some men who proved they were good people and far from predatory. Of course, I could talk about men I personally know but it will be better to concentrate on celebrities since talking about people I know won't make you that interested and will not prove anything to you.

But first, a bit of chauvinism

Still, I'll start by being a big chauvinist and talk about two french youtubers I see as feminists! (Even if none of them actually said they were.)

Le joueur du grenier (the gamer of the attic)

To introduce him a bit : He started his main emission by being inspired by the angry video game nerd and the nostalgia critic, and is one of the most popular youtuber in France. In his videos he's talking about bad old games, and sometimes talks about tv shows or other kinds of things that aren't games but are nostalgic (like old advertisements). He's also doing other things but I'll stop here since I'm not here to convince you to watch his videos.

In one video about Barbie games (this one in his second channel) he said as a joke "Pourquoi je joue à ça ? Parce que c'est marqué 'Software for girls', donc moi je veux prouver que même les mecs ils peuvent y arriver aussi." (Translation: "Why do I play it? Because it's written 'Software for girls' so I want to prove that the guys can do it too.") I don't know you but I always found it absolutely hilarious! And incredibly feminist!

Even better, in his most recent video he talked about Wii games for girls and, in it, he showed us a world where he's a woman (his role is played by an actress of course) and is playing the games with three other girls. The best is that it doesn't feel like a bad parody, you can really see him in this woman! It's not a stereotype!

Squeezie

OK now I'm talking about Squeezie, who's the Youtuber N°1 in France! He's basically the french Mr.Beast/Pewdiepie with a lot of concepts. His most popular is Who's the imposter, for which he added dubbing for one of the episodes.

To tell you about something pro-feminist he did, I could talk about his video about Kathrine Switzer, who's the first woman to run the marathon at a time where it was forbidden for women to run it. I could also mention his video where he invited one actress who was here to promote La maison des femmes (the house of women) which is a place where women can receive some care for various cases like when they're victims of violence.

Even better, in his emission Le pire date (the worst date), in the second episode, he was playing with 2 other men, but also one woman. Among the dates there was also one man. So we could see one woman trying to win some women's hearts (they're all actresses of course) and the men were seen trying to win a man's heart (also an actor).

Now for american celebrities!

It's time to talk about people you may know!

Keanu Reeves

This one surprised me a lot! Because I would never have thought about what he's praised for: not touching women when doing photos with them.

I personally did photos with celebrities and each time they were touching me because it's some kind of a automatism. It never bothered me because I never thought that I had the choice to refuse or accept being touched. So, hearing that Keanu Reeves don't touch women because, by default, he considers he doesn't have their consent... That makes me feel so happy! Also thinking about the possibility I could refuse to be touched during a photo.

Frederick Douglass

Here is an example of a man who escaped slavery to finally become a leader of the abolitionist movement in New York and Massachusetts. He was pretty famous for being a good orator and his writing against slavery but, according to a pdf from the secretary of the commonwealth of Massachussets, he was also fighting in favor of women's right to vote. I quote it: "Frederick Douglass’s lifelong commitment to women’s rights reflected a belief that rights should be universal, not limited by race or gender. He believed that disenfranchised groups should support each other."

Nice!

Fred Rogers

Well, this one I couldn't know them and I'm so happy I could learn about his existence!

For what I understood of it, he animated the children show Mr.Rogers's neighborhood, where he talked about many societal issues such as divorce or how to deal with issues of race. He also added in the show a recurring character who's an african-american police officer (played by François Clemmons), another character who is a mayor who is an african-american woman (played by Maggie Steward), and he showed his puppet Lady Elaine Fairchilde travel to Jupiter and discover a planet...

That man seemed to be a really good one who was embracing feminist values, as well as the anti-racism.

Danny DeVito

In an interview for The guardian, Danny DeVito has been asked if Hollywood is unfair to women. I love his answer, which is: ""I don't think it's only Hollywood, I think it's just generally speaking. Most men somewhere in their psyche are still dragging women around by their hair. It's terrible. I have two daughters, but even before my kids were born I always thought that it was terrible."

If we're asking about his actions, when Mara Wilson's mom got Breast cancer during the filming of Matilda he and his wife cared a lot for the girl, even inviting her at their home so she could forget a bit about her mother's illness. You can see more details on an article from Thelist.

Nonetheless that's so sweet of him!

Tom Hiddleston

Honestly when my friends suggested Tom Hiddleston because "he's a feminist" I was pretty skeptic. Especially since I heard men calling themselves "feminists" but being jerks outside of this.

But then, when looking for proof of it, I found this video showing many times where Tom Hiddleston was respectful toward women... Which convinced me he earned his place in my post... Especially with how many times in the video he's praising actresses he worked or is working with! Like OMG Tom I hope you really think that! Also... If I were them, I'd be touched by those words.

SquidTips

Back to YouTube with a man who made me question how I support trans people: Alex from the channel SquidTips.

Why is that? Because he's straight and cisgender but is showing the LGBT flag and trans flag in his logo and in his shorts where they're visible behind him (for example in this video). You can see in the screenshot that he even wears t-shirts with these flags.

He's also promoting LGBT rights in his longer videos, like in this one about why transgender women belong in women's sports.

What else do you want? He's awesome!

David Tennant

When thinking about good men one of the first people I thought about was David Tennant.

Like if I got fed up with him as The doctor since he returned in the role to be another incarnation of it, I still appreciate some things he has done and is probably still doing.

In the said things there's this t-shirt you can see him wearing during the promotion of Good Omens season 2, which is saying "Leave trans kids alone you freaks", and the trans and non-binary pins he sometimes put on.

In the same topic, he also said some things that are very pro-transgender and non-binary as the Media ThePinkNews reported.

And as a last one... My favorite...

Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan is, of course, Percy Jackson's author. He also wrote the sequels The heroes of Olympus and The trials of Apollo, as well as the spin-offs The Magnus chase and Kane Chronicles, and standalone books related to that universe.

Let's say that I admire this man... He included a lot of representations in his books after Percy Jackson ; which had been reproached to him by some parents who didn't want their children to learn about homosexuality, trans identity or other things he included ; but, in the first series, you can also see something awesome: strong and smart girls and women who aren't here only to please the male characters! I even think that Annabeth, Percy's soon-to-be-girlfriend, could have been the main character instead of Percy.

In the first series you can even see a daughter of Aphrodite and a daughter of Ares being besties and deeply loving each other (officially without them being in love with each other, especially since one of them has a boyfriend and the other one found her love interest at some point)... That's pretty touching! What is awesome is also how none of them are shamed for being either girly or not enough, they're only both two girls with different tastes.

I love these books, I love this man, I want to be a writer like him !

Adding that, outside of his books, he also created the imprint Rick Riordan presents, where he highlights books about other cultures or mythology written by other authors who asked to join the imprint. You can see a list of these books here!

Conclusion

As a conclusion I will only hope I could convince you that claiming that men are naturally predatory is a bad way to fight for women's rights but also incredibly wrong. Like I chose these examples but I was given many names ! No, being a man doesn't make anyone a bad person.

Also we can't fight for equality between the genders if we're stuck with the idea that the entirely male gender is an enemy of women. Furthermore, this idea brings some questions like "Do you consider that trans men are enemies too?" (Well, I saw some people who would reply "yes" to that question) and "What about non-binary people? Are they enemies or not?”

[quietwings-fics]

Dastardly Alien Cheesecake

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: N/A Ship: Gen (Ten & Donna) Additional Tags: Trust, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Poison, Hurt/Comfort, Vomiting, The Doctor & Donna Noble Friendship Wordcount: 3761 Summary:

Donna eats something she’s not supposed to.

Notes:

I'm going to state it outright here so that everyone knows what they're walking into: yes, this is a fic about the doctor sticking his fingers down donna's throat to make her throw up. you have now been warned of the contents and can proceed if you so wish.

The honeymoon period of traveling across time and space is followed by the most intense bout of homesickness that Donna has ever felt, which perhaps isn't saying much when she'd never been that far from home in her life before the Doctor.

To stand on an alien planet and realize just how far away she is from her granddad is a massive step up from missing him when he's only a drive away. Her room in the TARDIS is all hers, and it even fills itself with comforts that Donna forgot to bring, — like a blanket on the heavier side and a little squeezy stress ball that always seems to roll out from under her bed when she's upset — but at the same time, it never forgets what it is, an alien ship flown by an alien man. Something about the corners where the walls meet the floor are never right, never quite what a person, a human, would have built.

She doesn’t tell the Doctor about any of this. She doesn't have to. He must see it in her eyes because he starts pointing out little details on their journeys to her. He can somehow find a little piece of home to show her no matter where they are. They wait at a train station that will take them a few hundred miles below the surface of a planet and laugh at the confusing and colorful layout of the map provided, correcting each other back and forth about which station, exactly, they're even waiting at. Another time, he fiddles with a radio (or, what she assumes is a radio) with the sonic screwdriver until it starts to call out mournfully for Major Tom, singing a signal that got sent out into space thousands of years ago all to be picked up by the two of them. Even among aliens, there are commonalities, there are always reality TV shows that play on screens no one is watching (even if the contestants are a little more green... or blue... or translucent than she's used to) and automatic doors that never work right.

Constants in the universe that she'd be lost without, really. The Doctor knows where to look for them.

(Not for the first time, she wonders if that's because of how many humans he's had to curb the homesickness of, or because while she can look up at the stars and know home is still there for her to return to, even if she has no intention of staying, he can't.

Even Timelords must have had reality TV.)

The one constant that can center her like nothing else is food. Everyone in the universe cooks.

“All your memories," the Doctor had started explaining once, and Donna had learned to measure how long he would ramble about something by his tone alone. This voice was the 'at least twenty minutes before he'll take a breath' one. "Are stored away in your hippocampus, rubbing right against where your brain lights up when something hits your tastebuds, so-" Donna had taken those few moments to weigh her willingness to listen to him babble through their entire meal and decided instead to pick up the sandwich he wasn't eating and shove it in his mouth to shut him up. It had worked pretty well.

That’s why, when the Doctor wanders off into the crowd of the party they’re technically crashing and leaves Donna alone, she doesn’t think twice about approaching the buffet table. She’s not having much luck striking up a conversation, so she might as well find something to pass the time. She doesn’t recognize any of the food — hardly surprising when she’s only the third human in the room, as far as she’s seen.

She walks along the table, taking her time and half-wishing the Doctor would come back to keep her company. Maybe he’d gone off and gotten himself kidnapped. She grinned. Now, that would give her something to do and something to gloat about when the doing’s done. 

At the end of the table, just as she begins to despair (and contemplate one of the less appealing looking snacks,) there’s a plate of cheesecake. She blinks at it. It doesn’t squirm, or bleed, or make any weird noises when she gingerly scoops a little onto her plate. It’s just cheesecake. Looks like it, smells like it… She picks up a fork and pokes it one more time before breaking off a piece and putting it in her mouth. Tastes like it. It’s deliciously sweet. 

She eats the whole piece far too quickly. She only tenses once, a scolding voice creeping up in the back of her head that sounds too much like her mother, but then, she’s a billion miles and thousands of years away. Donna can have as much cheesecake as she damn well pleases. 

With a lighter step, Donna takes another piece to wander with. It’s just as good as the first, but she takes the time to savor this one.

”Donna,” the Doctor seems to appear out of nowhere, the only warning of his approach a familiar touch on her back sliding to grip her shoulder for a moment, “oh, you’re going to love this. They’re-“ He stops. She watches the grin on his face suffocate slowly. “What do you have there?” he asks. She’s been in enough life-or-death situations with him that his excited tone dropping so quickly makes her itch with the need to run.

”Cheesecake,” she answers. The Doctor grimaces.

”Right,” he says. “No. You don’t.” Donna looks down at her plate. “Definitely not cheesecake. Very not edible for humans. How long have you been eating that?” Donna feels her appetite drop out of her and pick up a bindle to hitchhike to someone who needs it more.

”I don’t know?” She looks around, which is useless because no one in the future bothers to keep clocks on the wall. They probably just have their alarms microchipped into their brains. The Doctor takes her plate away. He sets it down, and his attention returns to her immediately. His mouth is pinched as he takes her hand in his and starts checking her fingers for… something. 

“How much did you have? Stick out your tongue,” he says.

”What?” But his gaze is deadly serious. Donna sticks out her tongue and fumbles her words around it. “One piece. One and a half.” The Doctor stares very closely at her tongue. He lets out a sigh of relief, which she takes as permission to stop looking like a fool and put her tongue back where it belongs.

”You’re alright. You’ll be alright.” She’s not sure which of them he’s reassuring, but if it’s her, he’s not doing a very good job of it. He puts a hand on her shoulder and starts guiding her through the party. “Come on. We’ll take care of this.”

”Take care of what?”

”Just a minor… major… ‘possibly fatal if we don’t handle it’ case of food poisoning. Why are you putting things in your mouth that don’t belong there?” 

“You’re always letting me eat alien food!” 

“After I’ve made sure it’s safe!” 

“Maybe you should have warned me that death by cake was an option-” She cuts herself off as she frowns at the hallway he’s leading her down now that they’ve escaped the party. “The TARDIS is the other way.”

”I know.” She turns her gaze suspiciously onto him. He dropped the argument far too quickly for him not to be playing it up for her sake. 

“So… we’re going to whatever nurse they have here to pick up the antidote?” The Doctor makes a face that’s answer enough.

”Not quite.” He herds her along to a door near the end of the hallway. The automatic door clicks twice at them like it’s annoyed at having to do its job, and then it only opens up halfway, leaving them to have to scoot in sideways one after the other. Donna goes first.

Another constant in the universe: everyone has toilets. Even species who don’t need toilets create toilets, though those were less than useful to Donna and she really didn’t feel like marveling at universal similarities when she needed to go. Bathrooms also only came in two types, through which you could tell how much the janitors (another thing that everyone had) were being paid: clean enough to eat off the floor or so disgusting that Donna would seriously consider just waiting until they got back to the TARDIS.

This one was, thankfully, the former. Donna breathed a sigh of relief before remembering why the Doctor had brought her here in the first place. He spoke before she could ask. “There’s no antidote for this. Luckily, it’s also extremely slow to break down.” 

Donna can put two and two together.

”You want me to throw up the cake.” It isn’t a question. The Doctor treats it like one.

”Sooner rather than later, yeah.” He rocks back on his heels. Donna peers around. No stalls here, but there are identifiable toilets, which is more than some places can boast of. “I’ll turn around if you want some privacy.”

”I can’t.”

”Sure you can, just-” He unsubtly mimes sticking his finger down his throat. Donna glowers at him. 

“And I’m telling you,” she repeats, “that doesn’t work.”

”How do you know that?” Donna doesn’t answer him. The Doctor grits his teeth together and looks to the side. “Okay. I’ll…” He trails off. “I’ll help?”

”Help?” Donna repeats back to him, incredulous. The Doctor turns back to the automatic door, which has taken its sweet time closing and clicks angrily at him when he moves in range again. He whips up the sonic screwdriver in a flash and quiets the door. The sensor above goes dead, locking it. 

“Donna, we have to get it out of you,” he says. “Trust me when I say this is the quickest, least unpleasant way we can do this.” She does trust him. That doesn’t mean she has to like it.

”So what?” She glances down to the screwdriver he’s fiddling with, almost nervously. “Are you going to sonic my insides?”

”What? No!” The screwdriver disappears into one of his pockets. “Look, I can just- I can help.”

”How?” she demands. 

“I can make it happen,” he replies. “If you can’t do it yourself.”

Donna fixes him with a look. It clicks.

“You are not sticking your fingers down my throat!” She takes a step back and even sweeps a hand in front of her to protect the distance between them.

”Donna-” he starts, stubbornly, but on equal footing like that, she won’t give any more ground than he will.

”Stick your fingers somewhere more useful!”

”Donna.” He tries again, but there’s no argument in it this time. His voice is quiet and serious. His eyes plead with her to let him help. (He’s doing that on purpose, she knows he is, because no one could unintentionally look so despairing. And it’s still working on her.)

”…It’s really going to kill me if we don’t, isn’t it?” she asks. She doesn’t want to look at it. Can’t. Danger is something they’re supposed to be able to run away from.

”Yes,” he confirms. There’s a reassuring lightness to his voice as he continues, stepping forward and waiting to see if she pulls back again. She doesn’t. “Death by cake. Agonizing. Embarrassing. How do I explain that to your mom and granddad?” Donna snorts. It isn’t anywhere close to a laugh. The Doctor is close enough to touch her now, and he does, hands wrapped around her own and squeezing as she takes a deep breath.

”We’ve done weirder, I guess,” she says.

”I definitely have,” he says. “You’ve got a much nicer mouth than most of the ones I’ve gone poking around in.” He squeezes her hands a second time. She looks down at them, at his fingers firmly wrapped around her, his thumb rubbing the back of her right hand. 

“You’d better wash them first,” she says. This close, she can see the Doctor’s relief in the minute drop of his shoulders and the way the lines around his eyes relax into something happier. Her hands still feel warm when he lets them go. She tucks them close to her chest almost instinctively, like she can keep a little of his presence with her. 

She has to pick out a toilet. The locked door means privacy, but the lack of stalls still sets some part of her on edge. Lavatory instincts. The desire not to be seen when she’s about to be at her lowest. No one invites a friend in to watch them throw up after having too much to drink at a party. The last time she must have had anyone around for that, she’d barely been in double digits. She wasn’t sure exactly who it had been, but she remembered having her hair held back to keep it clean while she was miserably sick. 

She got down on the floor next to the toilet. A moment later, the sink the Doctor was using had switched off, and she could hear him pad over. 

“Ready?” he asks as he gets down beside her. She takes a breath.

”No?” She turns to him. “What should I…?”

”Try not to bite me.” Donna’s mouth twitches up for a brief moment.

”No promises.”

The Doctor puts his other hand over hers again, but his fingers rest on her chin first. His touch is very light, very still, waiting to see how she reacts. Her tongue darts out to wet her lips. They feel chapped. He waits a moment before moving, lifting his fingers to place two of them against her bottom lip this time. 

“Should I stick my tongue out again?” she asks. It’s strange to speak with him touching her lip. The pressure of his fingers doesn’t impede her at all, but it is… there. His fingers bump her upper lip at certain sounds. They stay where they were when she’s finished until he answers. 

“That would make it easier.” Donna goes to lick her lips again without thinking, but  when she bumps a finger, she sucks her tongue right back into her mouth, slightly mortified. And then she snorts another almost-laugh because she has no idea what else she can do with the feeling. The Doctor smiles. He draws his fingers back to let her open her mouth.

She tries to keep her cool. The Doctor’s finger barely brushes her tongue, and… she bites him. And her tongue. Not hard enough to hurt, but they both hiss in surprise. The Doctor retreats, and she can see the pale indent of her own teeth on the top of his index finger.

”Sorry.” 

“It’s fine. Again?” She nods. This time, the Doctor lifts his other hand and places two fingers at the edge of her mouth, firm against her lower canine and lip and holding them open. She breathes, trying to relax. She doesn’t do a very good job of it. This time, when she feels his finger touch her tongue, she doesn’t bite down. Couldn’t now if she tried, but she’s proud of herself for keeping that reflex under control.

Having his finger in her mouth is… odd. He delves in with purpose. She can feel the pad of his finger slide back along her tongue as his knuckles rub against her teeth. She can hear herself breathing around it. 

He still goes slow, and so it doesn’t feel like an intrusion as much as it does an exploration she’s submitted to. Minute movements of her tongue feel amplified when they rub against his finger. A moment later and his nail bumps up against her soft palate. His eyes narrow and his finger slides deeper until Donna feels the urge to swallow around it.

”Hm.” He frowns. She did warn him. “You don’t have a very strong gag reflex.” 

She tries to respond and resorts to making an insulted noise in the back of her throat when she can’t. 

“I can still trigger it. Give me a minute.” She makes a questioning noise as his finger withdraws. He keeps her mouth open with his other hand. His thumb rests along her jaw, grounding her. Gently, he inserts his middle finger next to his index the second time he goes probing in her mouth. She grunts in discomfort.

She wonders if she should close her eyes. She would, except that whenever she tenses or makes a sound, his gaze jumps up to meet hers. It’s comforting to know that they’re stuck in this strangeness together. 

Breathing around two fingers feels more difficult. They squish against her tongue as they push back to her throat. Sensation becomes less sure the further back they are, until she can mostly feel a pressure that makes her want to pull away. She clenches the bottom of her dress up in her fists to keep still. The Doctor’s knuckles bump her teeth as he probes around in her throat.

It starts as a tingling sensation. Donna frowns. The Doctor pushes somewhere uncomfortable, and she makes an involuntary noise, her eyes welling up. He looks up to her again, and his sure expression is the only thing that keeps her calm. 

He withdraws a little. “Breathe,” he says, and Donna does, once, before he orders, “and stop.”

The constant sound of her own breathing freezes at his word. He pushes his fingers back in. 

Donna feels an awful choking sensation, her throat convulsing around some obstruction, and then a wave of nausea has her grabbing at the Doctor’s hand. He yanks his fingers out quickly as she bows forward over the toilet and throws up. Her throat burns. 

Donna sucks in a breath when it’s over. It hurts. Her mouth feels sour and disgusting. She blinks to see what mess she’s made, but aside from a splatter that she cringes from on the toilet’s side, she got the rest of it where it was supposed to go. 

She inhales again. Her eyes are watery. 

The Doctor is holding her hair. She only realizes that as she comes back to herself, but he’s got it all in his hand, the other on her shoulder holding her still. He lets go, smoothing her hair down back into place. Donna shuts her eyes to feel it better.

”Tell me it’s over,” she mutters. The Doctor doesn’t say anything. She forces her eyes open, unformed tears blurring her vision. “Doctor. Please.”

”Just one more time. I promise.” Donna makes a face, squeezing her eyes shut. She spits into the toilet, but that does very little to get rid of the sour taste flooding her mouth. 

“That better not be the hand that was in my mouth,” she mumbles. The Doctor stops touching her hair, and she regrets calling attention to it. She forces herself to sit up straight again and opens her mouth. She feels disgusting.

The Doctor touches her cheek this time before he secures her mouth open with his fingers. He doesn’t even look grossed out about touching her after she’s thrown up. 

He uses two fingers from the start this time. Donna’s jaw aches slightly. The Doctor’s fingers taste marginally better than the inside of her own mouth right now, and that’s some kind of relief. She’s never had cause to think about it before, but he tastes like… Well, he just tastes like some bloke. How fingers are supposed to taste, like skin and the salt of sweat. Not unpleasant, not enjoyable, and not alien at all. 

“Hold your breath,” he says. This time, she can brace herself as each sensation comes. The growing pressure of his fingers touching things he shouldn’t. The catch in her throat. The spasms. He pulls his fingers away. This time, when she lurches forward, she can feel the way the Doctor catches her shoulders on the way, helping her get everything into the toilet. He’s got ahold of her hair a second later, keeping it out of her way as her stomach’s contents are dragged out of her. 

Tears streak down her cheeks this time. She sniffs, and even the inside of her nose feels like it’s burning this time. She swallows, a mistake that makes her gag again, and then spits up bile from the back of her throat. 

“That’s it,” the Doctor is saying. He’s rubbing her back. It’s the only good thing she can feel right now. “It’s over. You’re safe.” She feels his lips press to her temple as she gasps in air, and then his own relieved exhale. “You’re safe.” 

Donna groans miserably.

The Doctor only moves a little to flush the toilet for her. She slumps into him, and he wraps an arm around her, resting his head atop hers.

“Never eating alien food again,” she mutters. “From now on, you’re bringing me back to Earth, and we’re ordering take-out.” 

“What about that little place on Muscolane?” he asks.

”…One exception for Muscolane.” Leaning against him like this, she can feel his chuckle as well as hear it.

He helps her to her feet. She wipes at her eyes and her nose as he brings her over to the sink. She doesn’t even bother to question it when he picks up a towel to wash her face off with. Donna stands perfectly still for him as he brushes it over her mouth and chin. She balks a little more at him picking a small paper cup from a dispenser and filling it before holding it for her to drink from. There’s something so tremendously earnest about him doing it that she allows it anyway. She sips slowly, fills her mouth and swirls it around, and then spits it into the sink as the Doctor refills the cup again. 

She takes it from him this time and drinks it at her own pace. He starts washing his hands, and her gaze darts down to his sleeve and a very conspicuous stain on it. She should feel embarrassed about that, but she’s too worn out for it. Besides, he knew what he was getting into. 

Someone rudely bangs on the door the Doctor locked. Or broke. Those words usually mean the same thing with him. The Doctor sneaks a glance at her, and when the pounding comes again, followed by demands to be let in, they both have to choke down giggles.  

“Back to the TARDIS?” he asks.

To answer, she takes his hand.

(Enjoyed it? Any interaction is welcomed. You can even support me on Ko-Fi <3)

[sunsetwanders]

Left my heart in Hong Kong

31 December 2016:

It was only on the plane back to Sg and having a conversation with my cg member during thanksgiving that I realised that being in Hong Kong has probably changed me. Maybe it is just a “holiday effect” and me having withdrawal symptoms (I really, really miss HK), but I seem to have become more “I” hahaha. I realised that being abroad alone had forced me to step out of my comfort zone to socialise more, perhaps for fear of missing out. Even though I was really tired on some days, had a lot of work to do, and just felt like crashing on my bed, I forced myself to hang out with my friends/colleagues when they called me to. I am a Cantonese but I could barely utter a word before I came to HK. But being around my HK colleagues and hearing them speak in the office also forced me to try speaking a bit of Canto e.g. when I am ordering my food which really helps!  And when my friends back home asked me what was my favourite part of the trip, I replied, “The fellowship - to just hang out and spend time with people.” 

I didn’t expect myself to say this, but I think my priorities have changed greatly compared to when I went for exchange in Europe two years ago. Back then, I was an Asian in Europe, and wanted to travel to as many places on my bucket list as possible. I had many regrets, because I stayed in my comfort zone of Singaporeans and did not hang out much with the locals or other foreign students. This time for HK, I had wanted to whack some travel destinations such as Korea, Taiwan, China, etc. But somehow, I estimated that I did not have a lot of weekends in HK (about 7 or 8) and that was my only free time since there’s work 5 days a week. In the end, I chose quality over quantity and decided to spend my days here exploring HK thoroughly. I am happy to say that at the end of my trip, I forged many friendships and built rapport among my colleagues. Indeed, there was a lot of favour and opportunities from God in my work, and I am so blessed beyond measure by His grace. I hung out a lot with my colleagues, and managed to find out what they are like, how is their way of living, how different our cultures are, etc. I explored so much of HK, but there are still many, many more places that I want to go but have not had the chance to; as well as a lot of favourite places that I will like to visit again.

I remember when I first arrived in November, I was a little skeptical of HK, as it was so crowded, the stalls were so squeezy and crowded, hygiene standards were not that high, the streets were kinda dirty, etc. It was only in December when I really started to appreciate HK for what it was and what it boasted. I remember on my 3rd last day, I went for a hike to the Twin Peaks all by myself. I was smiling to myself when the taxi took me up to Parkview via Wong Nai Chung Gap Road. I used to be skeptical of going up the mountains in order to get to places like Repulse Bay because it did not seem safe and was a little inconvenient without the MTR. But that day, I was so happy because I could get away from office life and the bustling city into somewhere further away and enjoying the heightened view of the urban landscapes as I continue up the winding road. It was such a wonderful feeling, and I really began to appreciate the allure of HK. I enjoyed the hike to Stanley so much because it was so quiet and therapeutic, where I felt I could detox and straighten out my thoughts. Also, the adrenaline probably made me happier and I felt sooo good after the hike. I was glad that I did not go to Dragon’s Back the next day which will probably be flooded by tourists, where I did Jardine’s Lookout instead which was definitely much less crowded. 

I never knew HK had so much to its name. It has always branded itself as a place for eating and shopping (mai dong xi, chi dong xi) and I was quite sick of going to HK after visiting my brother there thrice when he was still working there. This time, I discovered a different side of HK which I loved, such as the hikes, the beaches, the nightlife, etc. Like what my colleagues say, maybe I have turned a little more blue blood when I came to HK i.e. start to like the sun more and go for hikes and to the beaches, start to drink more when I have colleagues constantly feeding me wine and cheese (the amount of wine and cheese I had on this trip is probably more than the amount I have had in my entire life), enjoying LKF, etc. But it is also because of my colleagues that I had so much fun on this trip: People in Rabo HK office are more vibrant and they have more social activities e.g. Friday night drinks below office, hiking trips, organized dinners and outings, and their dragonboat team in the first half of the year which I wished I can be part of!!! 

Hopefully, I have also discovered a different side of me when I was in HK, and I hope this will stay in me now that I am home. I think I like this person more.

Lastly, I thank God for His grace and favour upon my life. I am so blessed in many aspects (housing, friends, colleagues, work, opportunities) and have found so much favour in the workplace that it is indeed the work of God :’) I thank God for His presence with me as I am in HK, that He is always with me :)

[rufusdawes]

Dough Nuts

I am not a cook. There is not the faintest tingle of an itch that needs scratching when it comes to the kitchen. Mine is a place where a kettle is boiled and only the occasional, reluctant dalliances with the gas hob, mostly as a way to curb the expense of dining out too often. However, I am supremely fortunate that many of my good friends are not just adept in the culinary department but masters and mistresses of their respective domains.

For a few years, I would be a regular at the home of Aaron and Kate, he the finest barbecuer of steak in all the land and she, a black belt in the world of sourdough. Sunday dinners chez A & K were akin to some of Australia's greatest grill houses except with an Italian grandmother's attention to serving sizes. However, since their move to Western Australia, the closest I now get to wagyu and sourdough is a pub’s own McBurger.

At Walker Street, Laura, Thalia, and Madura would often present multi plated feasts using pots and pans that carried fancy French names, herbs and spices sourced beyond the Coles and Woolworth staples, and ingredients that had to be explained to me like I was five years old. But then Thalia moved to Adelaide and Madura got a girlfriend. It's been several months since a Walker Street dine in.

Fortunately, the void has been oft filled. Not by me, obviously. I'm good for bringing a bottle of red just expensive enough to not be cheap, but nothing more. Instead, it is AJ who has assumed the crown, expert as he is in the art of the homemade pizza.

I don't know if making dough is easy or hard, or even how to do it. Both Kate and AJ make it look second nature. There's an aura watching people in their element. Latterly, watching AJ turn out his pizza base creations is not dissimilar to watching some Olympic gymnast twirl across the floor, what with all those spins, tosses, and flicks. He's just a backflip shy of tens across the board. Toppings are sourced, created, and combined beyond those that I could and would conceive of. If I was ever to shop for a pizza night, I'd be returning with frozen bases, grated cheddar, a squeezy tomato based sauce, some processed meat and, if I was feeling really fancy, maybe some rocket. After all, it's important to eat your veggies. Actually, let's be honest, if I was ever to shop for a pizza I'd be coming home with a frozen McCain.

AJ, on the other hand, is prepping for his toppings by bringing out knives and their sharpeners. At arm's length, the blade is drawn down against the tool's edge and up again ensuring both sides are equally keen. The sound of a dozen Death Star doors opening and closing is made as the swoosh, swish of metal gliding against metal occurs. Once satisfied with the honing of the steels, it's time to put them to action.

Apparently, there's a technique for slicing and dicing with a knife. As with every other time, AJ takes time out to show me the position of the fingers on the non-wielding hand, the pivoting of the knife as it moves swiftly up the object of its laceration. The lesson ends, as always, with recognition of my feigned interest, especially since the only time I might practice my knife skills are for help on opening up a box of cereal.

Garlic, prosciutto, mozzarella, capsicum, chilli, and potatoes are among the ingredients brought out for preparation. Olive oils with a particular provenance may be favoured. I'm watching, still trying to work out how the dough is made. Is it just flour and water?

Eventually, flavour combinations are created, and the pizzas are ready for their brief repose in the crematorium that has been assuming its high temperature throughout the evening. Each will see just a couple of minutes inside, enough to crisp that base up to perfection, the briefest of chars mottling the fluffy edging. Half a dozen or more pizzas will go through this process, each offering infinitely more thoughtfulness and flavour than any local options.

The chatter subsides as we fortunate recipients that have been crowding the workbench get our chops around our first slice, replaced instead by the satisfied moans on behalf of our contented gullets. Once sated, we can return to our inexpensive reds and, if like me, contemplate how flour and water can be made to taste so good.

As with ever other occasion when I am so fully fed and inspired, I return home full of an eagerness to perhaps crack open one of the handful of cook books that sit in my kitchen. I think of what it is I might one day be able to adequately bring to a table. I've always felt I should eat more fish so perhaps this should be my entree into the culinary world. I'd wow my guests with my filleting skills and they'd go home and write about my inventive marinades. Or, more likely and as has always been, the inspiration will run dry. I'll wake up the next morning, put the kettle on, get some bread out the freezer to warm before adorning it with a raspberry conserve. Coffee, and jam on toast. You know, in my own limited way, I too can make flour and water taste good.

[4dtk]

a/n: 1.2k. post defection geto, manga spoilers, a little angst, reader also believes in geto’s flawed vision. inspired by above the chinese restaurant by laufey ♡

“(y/n)-san! (y/n)-san!” the girls’ shouts cut through you and suguru’s conversation, and your lover turns to them with an amused smile — about to speak up about something along the lines of interrupting the ‘grown ups when they’re talking’ — but mimiko and nanako doesn’t care one bit, not when they’re finding out about a new dessert place down the street.

life is simple; that is if you factor out the sorcerers at jujutsu high trying to weed you out and kill you, but among the squeezy apartment above the chinese restaurant and the delicious smell of dumplings, you think that life was well this way, even if it was inconvenient. you still remember the bags under suguru’s eyes, the hair that stuck out of all places, and the regret swirling in geto’s irises when he returned bloodied and frozen.

(“i killed them… my parents. i did i—” it doesn’t take long for geto to break down, because you know that he went through all of that, numb. you hold him all through the night that day.)

“(y/n)-san! did you hear what we said?” nanako tugged on your arm and snaps you out of the daze, showing geto’s phone that displayed the colourful crepe store, albeit upside down. giggling, you flipped it around for her and her twin, ruffling her hair.

“yes, i did, honey,” you’re pleasantly surprised when you glance back up at suguru to find him already smiling at the three of you, fond and satisfied. he looks at you like you’re his saviour. “when do you want us to take you?”

that godforsaken day, seeing two young girls caged like animals made geto snap, it made him question if he was actually protecting the right people. and that night as you hear him explain his vision in hushed tones and passionate words, you still his pacing with warm, hypnotising hands on his cheeks. you pull on his heartstrings with your loyalty and love and he promises that he’ll do everything he can for this little broken family.

and do everything he did.

from sourcing for apartments that were out of range of jujutsu high’s radar, to building twin beds for the girls, to debating desperately over what to name the two. seeing suguru in unexpected fatherhood made you smile to yourself all the time, you didn’t think you’d be this lucky to witness all of it. the chair scrapes across the floor before geto stands up, walking over to your side and feeling his arm snake around your waist along with a kiss to your cheek.

“why would you need a dessert when we have (y/n) right here?”

you roll your eyes and laugh as you push him away, opposed to the girls who just pull disgusted faces at your display of affection.

“geto-sama, we don’t love (y/n)-san the way you do,” nanako speaks up, grabbing your hand and pulling you from the chair so much that you’re forced to sit on the floor between the two girls. they’re getting stronger by the day. “we love (y/n)-san like a parent, right, mimiko?”

mimiko was more reserved than her sister, but she gives her verdict anyway, nodding to her sister’s prompt as she curled into your side silently with a small smile. “yeah.”

the failures of jujutsu high — they would often call you, but you hardly felt like one when you hear the laughter of your boyfriend with the girls. you’d even call it content when you hear them playing tag in the living room or feeding each other noodles at the dining-table-slash-kitchen. the proximity felt loving, the thought of giving them a second chance felt right.

because at least if you had your youth taken from you, it was fair that you made sure that no one took away theirs.

“do you think hell is waiting for us?” you mumble to the other that night after putting the girls to sleep, swallowing nervously at the challenges that would arise before the four of you. it seems like geto understands your anxiety, taking your hand and squeezing it softly. even without looking, it feels like the sky is your shared space of vulnerability and camaraderie.

beside you, suguru takes a deep breath before turning to you and placing his forehead on yours. the moment is tender and soft, and below, you can hear the chinese restaurant winding down and closing shop. it’s the end of the day, supposedly calm and still, but your eyes are blurred from the vision of the girls covered in blood, from the vision of the strangely vivid image of geto clutching his side that’s stained his hands red.

“hey, hey, sweetheart, what’s wrong?” you sniffle, blinking away the tears before your eyes finally lock onto him. they’re downturned and hold the glow of the moon, and you think you can see how his eyes (and him) resemble the floating rock: often wrongly overlooked but striking. you remember how the girls like to pull you along while suguru rests at the back like a tired dad, how they wake you up in the morning and go to sleep in his arms.

they find fun in you and solace in geto.

“nothing— j-just,” you sigh, “i don’t know. i’m just scared.”

geto frowns, hands from your face dipping towards your waist, “will it do you any better if you sit in my lap? hm?”

he’s skillful at using his words, but today he’s a little quieter, settling rather for the feather-like touches of his arms around your middle and the similar kisses upon your jaw. his mouth maps out your skin, a memorisation of something that he can do with his eyes closed, and his embrace tightens when he feels you stifling a smile.

“that’s that smile that i love,” suguru mumbles, finishing his journey and coming to face you again. “i’m scared, too. nothing worries me more than losing the three of you, especially when we’ve only begun this small family.” the word makes you smile, no matter how fucked up it was, but if geto was determined to give you the world, so would you. 

“we’re awfully young for a proposal, but i accept it,” you laugh, pecking his forehead. he savours it, eyes closing and breath halted, and when they open again, you think suguru at the end of the day is the most beautiful — it was what he was the epitome of. the opposite of calamity and the jujutsu world, tranquil and undisturbed like the soothing tides of the night’s oceans.

“i love you.” suguru doesn’t think love is a curse at that very moment despite what his classes before at jujutsu high have taught him. your lips are an inch from his, already sensing his contagious smile before he mutters the confession again. it sounds like something forbidden, but it isn’t. “i love you.”

it is geto suguru’s curse to bear even if he falls and indulges and loves too hard, but it’s a curse he will never forget the taste of even if he lives a million lives and dies a million deaths — it will always lead back to you.

geto is a mass murderer and id still defend my little babygirl. anyway this fuckin hurt to write i wanna give him a hug so bad

[toweroftickles]

Hey hey, FNAF fan again! I'd definitely be up to hearing your thoughts on Vanessa/Vanny at the very least! As for the animatronics, could always give ler thoughts if you cant see em being ticklish!

TICKLE HEADCANONS - SECURITY BREACH

Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex is a bizarre location filled with all kinds of ticklish possibilities - mechanical devices everywhere that hunt you down…

find you…

malfunction…

grab at you…

…under the right circumstances, this place could be a house of pure tickle terror.

Gregory

Ticklishness Ranking: 8/10

Most Ticklish Spots: Belly Button, Sides, Feet

Unusual Ticklish Spots: Elbows

Tickles cripple him - immediately force him to curl into a ball and squirm around. Will occasionally shove and fight back against his tickler.

Doesn't talk back or beg much; mostly just laughs and rolls around.

Gasps a lot and always tries hard to keep his mouth shut - has a bubbly giggle that's usually forced out through closed lips.

A lonely boy who grew up without much in the way of relationships or physical affection...touch-starved. Would never admit it, but he secretly loves getting his tummy tickled.

Can't handle it on his feet though. The feet are his “oh my god no” spot.

Seems to have developed a crush on his older acting protector, Vanessa - he occasionally misbehaves or acts upset in front of her, secretly hoping that she'll tickle him.

Vanessa

Ticklishness Ranking: 8/10

Most Ticklish Spots: Between Toes, Armpits, Neck

Has a frantic, fluttery laugh that bursts out at machine-gun speeds. Extremely giggly.

Has her weak spots but she’s ticklish pretty much everywhere! The most effective way to get her is to sneak up on her and poke.

Tickling seems to trigger a panic response in her - will beg for release almost immediately. Stiffens up, almost goes paralyzed, when it happens.

Can only tolerate being tickled if she's in a friendly tickle fight of her own accord. No torture, just roughhousing.

Very protective of Gregory - would offer herself up to be tickled in exchange for his being set free.

Looks on her charge Gregory as a baby brother. Fully aware of his lack of familial bonds, she often goes out of her way to cheer him up or make him smile. Loves to pull him onto her lap and tickle his tummy when he's blue. She knows how much he likes that.

Nimble fingers that go for squeezy spider tickles…she’s an expert.

Can occasionally have a bit of a mean streak…if she’s just tickling someone for fun, she’s playful and happy. If seeking revenge, she’s much more aggressive.

Glamrock Freddy

Employed with the task of bringing a smile to each visitor's face. Despite this, not programmed to tickle (often).

If Gregory ever gets upset and hides in his stomach ("birthday cake hatch") to cry or calm down, he will sometimes use his inner machine parts to tickle the boy.

Seemingly believes that he's ticklish despite not possessing nerve endings.

Usefulness as a tickle machine negligible.

Full of pistons and levers perfect for tickling anyone small enough to climb inside.

Glamrock Chica

In her non-possessed form, very affectionate. Always wants to play and have fun.

If there’s a “tickle monster” among Freddy’s animatronic pals, it’s her. Loves to tickle grumpy visitors.

Goes after people with wiggly fingers, laughter, and plenty of tickly baby talk.

She gets away with this because she’s a girl. It’s cute when she does that to a visiting kid. Freddy…not as much.

Daycare Attendant - Moon

Not fun at all. Leans into the horror/nightmare side of tickling. Even those who like being tickled are afraid of him.

As a broken animatronic, developed obsession with “punishing” rule breakers, especially mid-night lurkers.

One preferred method of “discipline” is to hold his victim down and tickle them cruelly and mercilessly. Lacks any empathy behind his child-like grin.

Avoid.

DJ Music Man

Many robotic arms and cartoonishly flexible gloved fingers would make this robot a perfect tickle machine…if it weren’t so massive.

Far too large to tickle anyone without crushing them.

Smaller models would be extremely effective, especially if mass-produced.

[amajikilvr]

ugh i love your fluffy alphabet on tamaki 🥺 so if it's okay, can you do one for bakugou, too?

headcanon corner - katsuki bakugou sfw alphabet

word count 1.8k

reader type gender-neutral

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

In the beginning, Katsuki’s affection will come out quite stubbornly and will be harder to see at times. Later on, it’s obvious how much he cares for you. His heart is full of love despite his aggressive attitude. He’s not afraid to show PDA, no matter who’s watching, and you’re often the recipient of his rare compliments. Katsuki is always ready to say “I love you”.

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

That’s a tricky one. Befriending people isn’t exactly on Katuski’s radar, but he’d prefer someone who could “keep up with him” if so to speak. Reliable helps too. This friendship might start with him genuinely, although reluctantly, praising your quirk or skills.

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

“This is fuckin’ stupid,” He’ll mumble as he wraps his strong arms around you, but he’s loving every minute of it. Katsuki’s down to snuggle in front of everyone, but if you’re the one initiating, he’ll be a tad bit embarrassed and no one dares point it out. When you two are completely alone you’ll get to see his softer side and you might even be the big spoon for once.

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

He’ll want to settle down in a sense that he needs to be sure that they’re his and he’s theirs. The method of doing so will depend on what’s best for both of you, but moving in together is probably in the cards. Katsuki makes a fantastic roommate because, among his many talents, cooking is one of them. He’s also a bit of a clean fanatic and you might wake up to him vacuuming or doing the dishes at 7 AM or something.

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

Firstly, he would fight tooth-and-nail against whatever was threatening the relationship because he’s not letting you go easily. If it absolutely came down to ending things, Katsuki would make it straight to the point and as quick as possible. He wouldn’t be able to remain ‘just friends’ with you and would never truly move on in his heart.

F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quickly would they want to get married?)

Katsuki is beyond committed and he firmly believes there are several ways to show it besides putting a ring on it. If you two were to eventually get married it would be later on so your careers could be focused on. He just wants you both to succeed and achieve your dreams more than anything, but if the marriage was something you really wanted, he might consider tying the knot earlier than previously planned.

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Although I think Katsuki is actually a sensitive person, he can definitely be on the rough side of things. He can read and interpret others’ emotions, but relating to them can be a challenge. I don’t believe he’d ever act maliciously towards you or anyone else he cares for. He’s got a soft touch and even the occasional kind words during the most surprising times.

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

Katsuki’s a bigger fan of kisses, but he does love hugs! He’s always, well, touching you. Huge bear hugs. Squeezy. Warm. The type to literally lift you off of your feet. He’ll leave little tickling kisses on your neck and shoulders while whispering words against your skin.

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

He’ll say the words in every possible way… besides actually saying the words. It’s like a mental block of Katsuki’s because he’s admittedly scared of proclaiming his love in such a straight-forward way. Once he gets over that first hump, it’s no problem for him. He won’t be throwing the words around like candy, but he’ll always say what’s on his mind.

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

Katsuki is emotional and jealousy is a familiar feeling for him. Being a bit of a hothead definitely doesn’t help either. This jealousy stems from his insecurities and can be overbearing. At the beginning of the relationship, it will probably be the cause of some arguments between you two. Later on, jealous Katsuki will just include him being extra pissy and extra cuddly.

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

Passionate. Always. If he’s kissing you, he’s going all the way. Even during your first kiss, he gave it his all. Sure, it was an awkward mess of spit and teeth, but he was eager and didn’t hesitate! Katsuki’s skills have improved by now and he never fails to showcase them. It doesn’t matter where, if he’s kissing you, then he’s happy. It depends on your preferences. And as for him… his neck is especially sensitive and he’ll never admit it.

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Well, after the remedial lessons episode, we know he’s not very good. At all. Despite that, I can imagine him still wanting kids eventually. An “I can’t stand any kid except my own” type.

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

Katsuki is your typical morning person. He’s up at the same time every day and it amazes you. Well, unless you’re a morning person yourself, that is. If you’re a heavy sleeper then waking you up on time will be his new personal mission. He’ll probably make you a nice breakfast and get as many kisses as he can in before work.

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

Haha! This guy goes to bed at like 9-pm. He’s got a strict schedule and if you somehow manage to get him to stay up later to watch a movie with you or something, he’s gonna fall asleep on your lap and it’s adorable. It’s the perfect opportunity to play with his soft hair without having to hear him grumble about it the entire time.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

It’s going to take a while to break through his outer shell, but he’s not exactly secretive about his feelings and his past. Katsuki trusts you enough to be open with his mistakes and he won’t hide anything if you just ask.

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

I think this one is a bit self-explanatory, but it’s not very often that he gets angry at you.He’s getting better at controlling his anger and you tend to bring out his gentler side too.

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing or do they kind of forget everything?)

In the moment, it may seem like simply he brushes it off or doesn’t really acknowledge it, but that’s actually not the case. Katsuki always remembers and takes everything into consideration. The number of little things he keeps notes of might surprise.

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

One Saturday afternoon, Katsuki decided he was going to try out a new chocolate cake recipe and you decided you’d try your hand at baking for once! He was absolutely willing to teach you and it was going well… until you somehow managed to drop an egg yolk right on Katsuki’s sock covered foot. His favorite pair of socks at that. The kitchen was quiet until he swifty flicked flour at your forehead and it was game-on from there. The next thirty minutes were filled with lots of flour and kisses.

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Katsuki couldn’t be more protective of you and he’s more than willing to use his quirk if needed. He’s prepared to fight for you in the blink of an eye, no question about it. His job as a pro-hero means so much when you’re someone he has to protect, but he also knows it’s a mutual feeling. He completely believes in your own physical abilities to keep him safe and your reassuring words make him truly feel like the greatest.

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He’s certainly not lazy when it comes to your relationship, but at the same time, Katsuki finds things like fancy dates and lavish gifts kinda pointless. He couldn’t care less about eating at an expensive restaurant, all that matters is that he’s with you. That’s not to say that he won’t give you nice things because he will be spoiling you, especially on anniversaries and holidays.

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

His inferiority complex has always been his biggest enemy. There are times when he just can’t shut off his competitive side and it can turn things ugly when he lets his insecurities get the best of him. His temper is also something he’s struggled with and is still learning how to manage.

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Katsuki really doesn’t care about that kind of thing. Of course, it does fuel his ego and boost his confidence when you compliment his looks. He considers himself to be an attractive person, but nothing too special. (You think differently)

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

He likes to believe otherwise, but yeah, he really would. He couldn’t imagine a day without you. It’s just a scary thing for Katsuki to accept that he relies on someone other than himself for once.

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

He’ll never admit it, but spiders really freak him out. Let’s just say he won’t argue if you offer to take one outside.

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

Someone who gives up easily would just kinda irritate him. Katsuki knows people struggle, hell, he’s definitely one of them, but seeing someone simply not try and throw in the towel when things don’t go their way is something that would get on his nerves.

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

He’s somehow got a cute snore. Yup. It’s not even really a snore, more like some kind of soft breathing noise, but it’s noticeable and something you’ve grown to love. It’s also difficult for Katsuki to fall asleep in places other than his own bed.

[hot-wiings]

The One Where Class 3A Place A Bet On The Relationship Status Of Their Residential Introverts, Desperate For Money, Mirio And Nejire Bet They Can Get Tamaki And [Y/N] Together Before Christmas Hits.

Edited: 12-27-2020

December, 19th.

You tried to contain your smile as you walked beside Tamaki Amajiki, your boyfriend, towards class 3-A. It was rare that you got a moment alone. Being best friends with not one, but two of the most extroverted and hyper kids in your class meant solitude and peace was hard to come by. Your hands grazed each other and you knew there were light blushes on both your faces. Despite having been together for a year now, touching in public would always bring a blush to your face and a rush to your heart, although, the raging blushes weren't as deep as they were a year ago. You'd gotten more comfortable now. 

"Are you still coming over to my dorm tonight? For uh, date night?"

"Depends, is Mirio gonna phase into your room again?"

A blush spread across Tamaki's face as he remembered the incident that occurred last week. Mirio had phased into Tamaki's room and found you cuddling together. The problem was that you and Takami didn't have a public relationship. When you first got together the pressure felt high and you were both nervous to be a couple around your rambunctious class, keeping to a secret felt better, being together in secret felt more natural and lighthearted. Despite being together a year now, despite having figured out how to navigate your relationship, despite finding normality and familiarity in each other, you had yet to tell your friends. You just weren't ready to give up your secret. It was such a comprising position for two friends to be found in and while luckily you were able to play it off like you just fell asleep paying videogames, you were both nervous, paranoid, and mostly, embarrassed from almost getting caught. 

"He's patrolling with Sir Night Eye tonight."

Tamaki stopped walking once you reached the classroom door and did a quick look-see up and down the halls. They were completely barren and the idea that your entire class was just behind one door was both riveting and daunting. Tamaki softly cupped your cheeks and pressed his lips against yours. 

"Just you and me tonight. I'll bring the food, you can bring the movie."

"Can it be romantic and sappy?"

"Whatever movie you want I'll enjoy."

You played with Tamaki's tie as you let your head roll against the wall, a smile tugged your lips up. You really lucked out with him—but he would say the same thing about you.

"How about the note-hey."

You were pulled out of your thoughts as you heard your name being said. Immediately you dropped your hands from Tamaki, straightened yourself up and you looked down the halls for someone with red-tinted cheeks. Had you been caught? There was no one there.

"What is it?"

"I heard my name. Uck. This quirk is a blessing and a curse."

Your quirk was wolfism, probably what attracted Tamaki to you in the first place. It caused you to take on the complete form of a wolf under the full moon, however, on normal days you could take on wolf attributes. When you get extremely angry or tried to 'wolf out' as Nejire would call it, you could get long nails, and take on the appearance of a werewolf depending on how far you tried wolfing out. The real gem to your quirk was other wolf attributes you could use. Between seeing in the dark and a better sense of smell, enhanced hearing was amongst it.

You pressed your ear against the door to class 3-A to hear why your name was being said. You could recognize the voice of your classmates, and among those voices were Mirio and Nejire.

"[Y/N] and Tamaki? They're totally gonna end up together."

"No way! They're too shy for their own good. Amajiki would rather die than ask her out."

"I have to agree with [Student Name #1]. Don't get me wrong, Amajiki is a great guy, he's a great hero, but when it comes to girls—especially girls as cute as that—he's complete rubbish."

"Exactly, and [Y/N]... She could probably take down any villain, and she's hot as fuck, but if she had to ask Amajiki out... She'd piss herself."

You pull your ear off the wall briefly. Very brief, and very quick so you could get back to listening. You only grabbed pulled away to grab Tamaki's arm to get his attention urgently, though, it had already been on you.

"They're talking about us. Said were too shy to get together."

With Tamaki's attention on you, waiting for more, and your ear to the wall listening in, you were both anxious to hear more. Mirio's voice came into the mix.

"You gotta give my buddy a little more credit. Last week I saw them cuddling, intimately."

Nejires voice soon followed, hyper and excited on the prospect of you and Tamaki finally getting together.

"I bet if we just gave them a little push they would get together. Just a tiny, itsy, little push."

"Shy as they are? Impossible. We'll all be pros once [L/N] and Amajiki ever romantically get together."

You pulled away, a small smile and chuckle emitting from your face as you looked at your boyfriend.

"We'll be pro heroes by the time we get together."

"Maybe we should come clean... It has been a year."

You hummed in response as you put your ear back to the wall, considering the option. It would be nice. You could finally freely go on dates, you'd have to stop worrying about them finding out, and you could even hold hands in public. Mirio's voice was the next one you heard, and Nejire's was eager to follow.

"Let's wager a bet then."

"What kind of bet?"

"Well, Nejire and I owe you that money. If we can get [L/N] and Amajiki together by Christmas then you forgive our debt."

"Sound fair, but you have a week until Christmas."

"Me and Mirio have this in the bag. Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy."

"Alright, you have until midnight of Christmas Eve to get them together, not a minute later. We want picture proof too."

"Deal."

You pulled back with a scowl on your face and turned to Tamaki with crossed arms and a pout.

"What's wrong? What'd they say?"

"They're betting on us! On our relationship. If they can get us together by midnight, Christmas eve, then the money they borrowed for Mirio's PS5 will be forgiven."

Tamaki looked up and down the halls briefly before rubbing his hands up and down your arms in comfort. It was upsetting to the both of you that they were betting on you both. Did they think you were that hopeless? So hopeless and unable to get together on your own that they were able to make a quick buck off of you?

"What happens if they lose the bet?"

"Then the money gets doubled. They're betting a lot of money on us. Do they think we're that bad? Well they're wrong! Cause' here we are."

Tamaki pulled away from you as he spotted your teacher coming down the hall, rushing to get to class. He gave you a shy, coy smile as he grabbed your hand to pull you with him to class.

"I guess we'll have to make sure they lose their bet then. After all, they don't know we know."

You walked into the classroom together, pretending you hadn't heard anything of their little bet. Tamaki tugged you closer than usual, not enough to make it seem like you were in a relationship, but enough to be questionable. You had a feeling Tamaki had a plan in motion, and you were already catching on.

"Tamaki buddy! [Y/N]! We were just talking about you both."

You and Tamaki stopped from heading to your desks to talk to Mirio and Nejire who were facing you with grins on their faces.

"Oh? Really?"

"Yes, Mirio was just talking about this new movie that came out! We should all go see it together, and get something to eat too."

"That-that sounds good."

"Great! We'll go on the twenty-first, does that work out?"

You both threw your friends perfect smiles and nodded before turning away and moving to the back of the class where your desks were. They were going to lose the bet, that you were sure of.

December, 21st.

"What's our plan?"

"It's simple really. We're gonna act super cuddly. We're gonna let them think their plan is working, until the end of their bet hits, and evidently, it didn't work and they're stuck paying double the owed about of a play station five."

"I-uh, I'm not sure I can go through with this plan... Cuddly? In public? With everyone watching?"

Tamaki fiddled both his hands and looked at his feet nervously. The idea was scary. Getting intimate and close when there was a chance you could get caught was one thing, but holding hands and being cute and cuddly with the intent to be seen was another thing. It was daunting and scary. 

"I know, public affection... It's scary... But just think of it like it's just us alone. It's just me, no one else, and if you get anxious I'll be there to calm you down."

"Okay, you'll be there... We've got this."

Tamaki placed a quick kiss on your cheek before going over to his closet. He dug through his laundry until he found what he was looking for, one of his sweatshirts. It was one of his favorites, he wore it often and there was no way your friends would mistake who's it was. He walked back over to you, a budding embarrassed and happy feeling coursed through his chest at the idea of you wearing his hoodie. 

"If our objective is to flirt and act cute, then you should wear my sweater... Please?"

"Great idea, this is really gonna push them over the edge. That's smart. They're gonna lose this bet so hard."

Tamaki had a blush reddening his cheeks at your burst of affirmation that he'd done a good job. You and he looped your arms together before walking out of his dorm room and down to the main entrance of the dorms. Nejire and Mirio were waiting for you, and you smiled at them as you moved your looped arms to linked hands instead. You swung them back and forth as you walked to make it catch their attention.

"So... What movie are we seeing?"

"That new one. The romantic one. It's so romantic, and Christmas themed."

"Nejire, you gotta be more specific, that describes a lot of movies."

"The one about the best friend's who fall in love. You'll love it, it was practically made for you."

You knew Nejire would slip up like this. She got too excited about stuff and made little mistakes. She was a bad secret keeper, you loved her dearly but she was not your go-to person when you had a secret. Another part of your plan was to torment Nejire and Mirio the entire time. They didn't know that you knew, and you knew just what buttons to push to either get them to confess or paranoid enough to think that you knew and keep them on edge.

"Oh? You think so? Why?"

Mirio shot Nejire a look as if to say be more careful. His bank account was riding on this bet. He didn't want to pay back the money for the play station console, let alone have it doubled. He was confident he and her could pull this off, provided you didn't know. Nejire scratched the back of her head and laughed it off.

"Oh, come on! You can't tell me you've never thought of our little Sun Eater like that? Everyone's thought of their best friend romantically at least twice! I mean look at me and Mir'. We were best friends and now we're dating."

Nejire was smooth with her words but had Mirio not shot her a look, you were positive she would've slipped up about the bet. Instead, she fixed her words and hinted at feelings between you and Tamaki but making it seem like she was referring to herself.

"I and Tamaki are just friends."

Tamaki moved his hand from inside yours and wrapped his arm around your shoulders. He squeezed your shoulder with his hand to help stop his shaky hand as you and him looked at each other briefly. He was nervous, you could tell as he looked down at you and spoke out his words.

"Best friends."

"Mm. The bestest."

You leaned your head against Tamaki as you uttered your words. You saw how Mirio looked back at you and then nudged Nejire in the side so she could not so discreetly steal a look at you and Tamaki. You smiled, just fakely playing into their plans of getting you and Tamaki together. It was a short walk, and before long Tamaki was pulling you into the movie theater, making sure to open the door for you to which Mirio nodded approvingly as he whispered into Nejire's ear. He was proud his friend was acting like a gentleman, his plan was going to go so well, at least, that's what they thought.

You stood in line together, Tamaki and you never leaving each other's side. Occasionally Tamaki would move his hand from your shoulder to your hair, playing with it nervously, a habit he picked from cuddling with you late at night. Mirio paid for Nejire's ticket, courtesy of her being his girlfriend and they stood off to the side while they waited for you both to pay for your tickets.

"Hi, um, can we have two kid tickets for 'A Christmas kiss', a large dr-pepper, and a large popcorn?"

The man behind the counter rang you up and eyed you warily, trying to decide if he really should run you up as a child or adult–decidedly, he didn't make enough money to care how old you were. With a tired sigh, he gave you your total.

"That'll be twenty-one, nineteen."

You went to pull out your wallet from your purse, where you had hidden and concealed candy from the dollar store, but Tamaki had already beaten you to it and paid for you using MooglePay. You turned to him, a grateful smile on your face. You knew Mirio and Nejire were watching so you took a deep breath, leaned up on your tiptoes, and pressed a kiss against his cheek. You stood back down on flat feet, and with blushes on both of your faces, you carried your popcorn and pop to meet Mirio and Nejire. That was your first kiss in public, at least in public when people were looking.

"Thanks for paying Tama'. You're the best."

You made sure to say the words out loud in front of Nejire and Mirio, planting the seeds of hope and romance in their pretty little heads as blushes remained on your faces. You walked down to your designated theater room, devious plans in your heads. You both sat in the back, next to each other and secluded from other people whereas Nejire and Mirio sat in the middle. Throughout the entire hour, they kept throwing you and Tamaki not so discreet looks, trying to see how cuddly you were acting.

"Do you think they know how obvious they are?"

"Mirio's always been obvious like that. He wouldn't know discreet if it hit him."

Tamaki wrapped his arm over your shoulder and you leaned your head against his chest as he saw Mirio take another look. He had a beaming smile, he thought his and Nejire's plan to get you together was working out. As the credits rolled on the screen and the dimmed lights brightened, Nejire and Mirio got a better view of you both. You fed Tamaki a piece of popcorn, knowing they were watching you both intensely.

You and Tamaki fell into a peaceful order as he fed you a piece in response. It was normal, normal, and natural to be this way with him. This was how you acted together in the confines of your bedroom, the only difference was that you were out in public. Forgetting they were even there, Tamaki cupped your cheeks and pressed a deep kiss against your lips. Naturally, like clockwork, your body responded by deepening it and moving your lips back in sync.

"Oh my gosh, you kissed! Ahh, it's so romantic, are you gonna date now?"

"Neji' calm down, it's their first kiss."

You and Tamaki abruptly pulled away. You didn't know what kind of shows Mirio watched, but that was not what a first kiss looked like. That was what two lovers who forgot that they were out in public looked like. You and Tamaki stood up and laughed, lacing fingers.

"I mean... If Tamaki asked me out, I wouldn't stop him."

"I– If [Y/N] wants to date me. I mean, [Y/N], will you go out with me."

"I'd like that."

This was not how your plan was supposed to go.

December, 22nd.

You paced back in forth in your dorm room, your feet making a constant flow of steps and probably annoying the student living on the floor below you. It wasn't your fault, not really. This was one of the attributes you got from your wolfism quirk. It was in your doggy nature to pace when you got anxious and upset. It was biological. Your boyfriend sat on your bed, a nervous frown played on his face as he ran his shaky hands through his hair. He wasn't sure if he should comfort and soothe you or continue to silently wallow in self-pity.

"They didn't even do anything, they just took us to a romantic movie. They didn't even pay."

"I'm sorry, did I-Uhm, did I ruin the plan by kissing you?"

You momentarily stopped your pacing back and forth to stand and snap your head over in your boyfriend's direction. Anyone else would have found your actions weird. The way you stopped so fast and snapped your head over to him at an insane pace would've been creepy. Again, it was just biological reflexes due to your quirk. If he was holding a piece of bacon you would've turned quicker. 

"No."

You walked over to your boyfriend and straddled him on the bed. It wasn't sexual or sensual, your quirk was just taking over, your deep-rooted wolfy attributes. Your instinct was just to comfort your mate. He was stressed, anxious, and worried, and you could sense all of those feelings. You pulled his hands out of his hair and laced your fingers through his. They were still shaky as you smiled down at him. 

"No, it's not your fault. Never your fault. You just kissed me, we both got carried away."

"But we lost the bet, I should've paid more attention to them. I should've watched to see if they were looking."

"Uh-uh. None of that negativity. We lost the battle, not the war."

You rolled off of Tamaki, both worried you were crushing him and bashful to be in such a compromising position now that you'd come down from the primal wolfy high. 

"The conditions to the bet are that we have to kiss and say were together to [Student A] and [Student B] by midnight of the twenty-fourth. That's three days away. We're gonna invite Mirio and Nejire over, and we're gonna act like the cutest couple ever. Then tomorrow, we'll stage a huge breakup fight."

"That's a really good plan."

"Of course it is, I have the best plans."

Tamaki cupped your cheeks by hooking his slender fingers under your ears and pressed a quick kiss against the skin in between your eyebrow and let his head rest there. 

"They'll think they've got the bet in the bag, and then we'll rip it away."

"I like it. It's sneaky, and it just might work."

You pulled out your phone and punched in the password before pulling up the group chat Nejire and Mirio were in with you and Tamaki.

[Y/N]: Do you guys wanna come over to my dorm? 👉👈 me and tamaki want to thank you for going out with us. It was rly, enlightening.

Nejire Hado: Yes!! We'd love too!!!! Does this mean your dating now?!!!

You locked and put your phone back into your pocket knowing answering Nejire would be futile because she would just ask more questions once she got inside your dorm. You nuzzled yourself into Tamaki, both cuddling and scenting him–not that he'd ever know that's what you were doing.

"Can you give me a hickey?"

"What... What?"

"A hickey. I want a hickey. Think about it, if Nejire and Mirio saw it, they'd be so happy thinking they're gonna win."

"They're on their way up here though..."

Your hands gripped the sides of Tamaki's shirt, pulling him closer to you and your nesting head.

"Even better, we'll get to avoid the 'are you a couple' questions."

"Fine... Just-just doesn't be too loud, I don't want anyone hearing."

Tamaki pulled down the collar of your shirt to get to work on marking up your skin. He didn't know what was going on with you. Lately, you'd been clingier, rubbing on him and getting freeskier. Hornier, he supposed, regardless he gave in to your whims. He pulled you closer and latched his mouth to your skin, sucking, tugging, and pulling to make a bruised mark. The door burst open and he was working and a crimson blush covered both of your faces.

"Nuh- Nejire! I- I told you to stop barging in my room like that."

"Sorry [Y/N] but I–Oh Mirio! I told you they were totally getting it on."

"Well, yeah... He's my, uhm, my boyfriend now."

December, 23rd.

Tamaki Amajiki paced around his bedroom floor. He fiddled with his hands as he tried to go over your plan in his head, carefully going over every detail, and every word you spoke out to him. It was the day of your fake fight where you would 'break up', the night before Christmas Eve to spring Nejire and Mirio into panic mode.

"I- I don't think I can pull this off."

"You can do it."

You walked over to Tamaki and wrapped your arms around him from behind. You rested your head on his back, reassuring him it would be okay, and reassuring him he would do good. It brought a crimson blush to his face, but regardless he was very nervous.

"What if I mess up?"

"You're gonna do good, okay? None of what we're saying is real, alright? It's fake. We're just convincing Mirio and Nejire, and it doesn't affect what I think about you. I'll even sneak over tonight to see you."

"Okay. Okay, do you wanna go over some lines?"

"Nope, I've got thick skin, besides Nejire and Mirio are on their way up and I don't want them overhearing our rehearsal."

Tamaki pulled out of your iron-clad grip and turned around to kiss your forehead tenderly, enjoying the soft space of skin.

"I love you alright? No matter what I say, it's fake."

"I know, I love you too. Do you want a codeword, in case we're too harsh? Something to say 'hey, dial it back'. Like, uhm, squid? I think I could work that into an argument."

You pressed a quick kiss against Tamaki's lips. You would have liked to deepen and further it along but you heard a knock on the door. You assumed this was to give you privacy and make you and Tamaki more comfortable in hopes of furthering your relationship. You and Tamaki broke apart and got ready to start screaming at each other once they walked in. Mirio and Nejire came in after giving you and Tamaki a moment in case you were fornicating in some type of way.

"I can't believe you."

"Whoa, what happened?"

Mirio was quick to try and intervene. He had rarely seen Tamaki sound so upset and get worked up. It was alarming that you were the person that he had it directed at. Mirio had never seen Tamaki look at someone with as much love as he did with you. Tamaki would move mountains for you, and Mirio saw it. That was why he originally took the bet in the first place.

"I took [Y/N] out for breakfast this morning, and she was basically flirting with the server."

You had to fight off the smile on your face as Tamaki came up with the lie so quickly. You had been inside his dorm all morning playing video games together and eating junk food, a chip bag hidden half underneath the bed was there as proof. Nejire started to bite her thumb nail as she watched Tamaki get upset. Truthfully, she and Mirio had planned to slip special animal meat in his food after the movie a couple of nights ago but decided against it once you guys kissed. They wanted to get him territorial and jealous over you, clearly, that would've backfired.

"I wasn't flirting with him! All I did was say thanks and asked for a refill."

"Yeah, you were really thirsty for him, weren't you?"

"Maybe I wouldn't be so thirsty if my own boyfriend felt comfortable kissing me in public."

You had to stifle a laugh, you wanted to giggle so hard. None of this was true, but Mirio and Nejire were eating it up like butter. Your performance was so good, and Tamaki was doing so great.

"Maybe I'd be more comfortable kissing you if you didn't wolf out and get so possessive all the time."

You crossed your arms and tried to compose yourself as tears flooded to your eyes. That last comment hurt. It really hurt. You were really insecure about it and scared that your wolfism would affect your relationship. Worried you'd get too possessive and jealous, and worried that he'd find your scenting on him and habits weird. You start sniffling as the tears start to come down faster. You knew he didn't mean it. It's fake. It's fake fight, but hearing him say it felt so real.

This was your own idea, why were you being such a baby?

"Well, maybe I don't want to be with a mean squid face. Here's your sweater back, we're over!"

You ripped his sweatshirt off of your body, despite not really wanting to. It was a comfort item for you. Smelling his residue scent on things he's previously worn really brought warmth and comfort in you. On days you were particularly sad, and hurt, on days you felt pure anxiety and fear, having a piece of him with you helped. It helped you, but you still had to put on a show for Mirio and Nejire.

"Give that back to Squidward for me, will you?"

You tossed the sweater at Mirio who easily caught it with a worried expression. Although the bet was at stake here, he was worried for you as he saw hot tears make their way down your face. You took off out of Tamaki's room, making a dramatic exit with Nejire following hot on your tail.

You wanted to win the bet–or rather have your friends lose the bet since you never made the bet, but it hurt so much it didn't even matter.

December 24th, Christmas Eve.

The following day you and Tamaki kept a distance as promised. It was part of the plan. Stay separate until after midnight, then, and only then would you reveal your relationship. You had both mutually promised to keep your distance, but it hurt you both. You hadn't shown up at Tamaki's dorm that night like you promised you would. He knew that he had taken it too far after you called him a squid, but he hadn't meant to. He didn't think you would take such offense to it, he hadn't known how sensitive you were about it. To put it plainly Tamaki felt horrible. He was trying to figure out a way he could fix this but he kept coming up empty. How was he supposed to fix it when you were supposed to be ignoring each other?

On the other hand, you felt just as horrible as Tamaki did. You felt embarrassed and ashamed for being so sensitive and emotional. You didn't know what came over you. You wanted to blame it on the wolf aspect of yourself, but that only made you feel worse. You couldn't help but nibble on your lips evIry time you caught Tamaki looking over at you. On one hand, you were happy he was looking at you. You were worried you upset him with your little outburst and ruined things, this gave you hope and a sense of relief. On the other hand, you still wanted to win this bet and Nejire was following you around trying to get you to talk to Tamaki, whereas Mirio was doing the same for his friend. You both didn't want to talk, embarrassed about how things went, worried they'd messed things up on their end. 

"I see you watching him, why don't you just go talk to him."

"It's not that simple Nejire, you wouldn't understand. You and Mirio have had a long picture-perfect relationship, you're not Tamaki and me."

It wasn't like other times Nejire gave you advice. Other times you could give it to her straight and she'd give you the best input, this time you were secretly trying to foil her and Mirios plans. You couldn't just say, it was a fake fight and I overreacted. Or alternatively, it was a fake fight but his words sounded sincere, what if he really doesn't want me. You couldn't be honest with her. Especially not now, knowing she was going to take every little thing to Mirio, who inevitably, would tell Tamaki.

"So make me understand. Try to get me to understand you. You and Tamaki are perfect for each other!"

"No, we aren't!"

Your words came out in a small yell, and most people around could probably have heard what you said. You backtracked your words, embarrassed as you crossed your arms and hugged them to your chest. It was eleven-fifty, and Nejire had ten minutes for her and Mirio to get you and Tamaki together, but at this point, she didn't care. Ten minutes wasn't long enough, she had accepted defeat unlike Mirio, all she could do now was remorsefully wish with you and Tamaki were a couple. She thought you were both blind, she had never seen two people more fitting and perfect for each other. 

"I'm sorry for yelling, but he doesn't like my wolfism. You heard him, and that's not- that's not something I can change about myself. It's biological..."

"[Y/N] I-"

"You know [L/N], if Amajiki isn't interested in you anymore I wouldn't mind taking you out."

Some random guy had cut into your conversation with Nejire. You hadn't seen him here before, he looked young, most likely a first-year student. You wondered how he even got in there, it was a Christmas party at the class 3-A dorms, intended only for third-year students. The proposition was completely preposterous. You and Tamaki weren't completely over. All he had done was insult you, it was a fake insult, and while you were simply positive he was going to break up with you, you weren't going to flirt with another guy just yet, and definitely not a first year. 

"I- uhm... well- I..."

"I think what my shy friend is trying to say here is no. She's not interested, trust me."

"Awe c'mon!"

The guy leaned back against the food table he was standing in front of. You tried not to scrunch your face up in want and desire. He was leaning into a meat tray. A meat tray. The delectable treat looked so scrumptious, sausage, and cheese so perfectly put out for display. He shouldn't be leaning so hard, he'll ruin it. You wanted to devour it in an instant. Truthfully that was where your mind went when you stuttered out your reply and Nejire had to come to your rescue. You didn't care for the first year, you just wanted the meat tray. 

It didn't appear that way to Tamaki. Watching from the distance all he saw was you staring over at that guy with such a distinct look in your eyes. A look of wanting and hunger. He knew he messed up by insulting your quirk. He didn't know you'd get so hurt, but he should've thought about that first. If you had insulted his quirk like that, he'd be upset. Tamaki slowly walked forward, closer and closer trying to hear what the young first-year student was saying to you. 

"You'd love going out with me. I'd appreciate every part of you and your body."

"Oh, um... Look, I'm sure you're a nice guy and all... But like my friend said, I'm, um, I'm just not that interested right now."

"I see the way you're looking at me, quit playing hard to get. I bet your quirk really gets you going in bed."

You took a step back as the guy took a step forward. You should have told him off, you should have handled the situation better. You should have asserted yourself from the beginning instead of letting Nejire handle it, you should have shown you weren't a pushover, maybe then the guy would've gotten the point. You took more steps backward, embarrassed, and stunned at what he was implying to you. You truly just wanted the meat platter he was in front of. As the guy was about to touch you, Nejire was about to step forward and intervene when Tamaki jumped into the equation. Tamaki grabbed the guy's wrist before he could touch your hip and pushed his wrist into his body. The boy cowered back and cradled his arm from the strength Tamaki had used to squeeze him and make him cower back. 

"That- uhm, that wasn't polite. She said she wasn't interested and when a girl says no, she means no. I suggest you leave before every third-year female in this room decides to tell you that themselves." 

"Right... um right. Sorry."

The boy mumbles out a bad apology lowly before he quickly made his way out of the building. Tamaki didn't see the boy going very far in the hero course. He turned to you and hesitantly rubbed his hand up and down your arm, unsure if you would welcome his touch. 

"Are you okay?"

"It's fine, I'm fine."

"I'm sorry for upsetting you yesterday, I didn't mean to, please don't break up with me."

Part of your lip quipped up into a smile at how sweet Tamaki was acting. He didn't do anything wrong. He didn't need to apologize. It was you, all you.

"Tamaki... you don't need to apologize, I overreacted. The truth is... I'm really insecure about my quirk. I- my wolfism makes me act funny. When I go through my, you know, I react more like a dog going through heat. I get really clingy, and horny, and jealous, which can be a big turn off to some people. In all honesty, I thought you were going to break up with me."

"No, god no."

He rushed his words out as he pulled you into his arms. His hands rubbed up and down your back, trying to soothe you knowing you were on the verge of tears. He pulled back and pressed a kiss against your head. His soft lips felt good.

"I'm never breaking up with you, you're it for me. Heart, soul, and life. I don't care if your clingy, or horny, or jealous, because you'll be mine, and I'll be yours."

A smile warmed your face as your hands came up and caressed Tamaki's suit. You gripped the sides of the dress jacket and pulled him down a few inches to press a kiss against his lips. You both smiled into it, happy to feel each other again, even if it was in public. 

"Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas... Can we deal with Mirio and Nejire later? I just wanna cuddle you right now."

"Yes, no, yes. We can cuddle but you have to help me sneak the meat platter out of here."

Tamaki placed another soft kiss on you, this time your lips, and he smiled down at you before pulling you into the direction of the meat platter. You were special to him, so even with everyone's eyes on him and you, class 3-A's resident shy students, Tamaki started piling meat into napkins and fitting them inside his pocket. If you wanted a meat platter, then you deserved a meat platter. tI didn't matter who was watching, not when it was you with him.

[pinkjiminssi]

So.. About That Hickey..

I think I’m still processing all of this and reminding myself I’m not dreaming 🤣 I seriously only got 3 hours of sleep last night and when I woke up the first thing I did was check twitter to be sure this “drunk bridal-style spinning hickey neck biting proudly showing off” moment actually happened!! 

.. I hate the way my brain works though. I was so happy that it took me forever to fall asleep, spent all day on cloud 9 despite being tired, .. and then my old nemesis, anxiety, stepped in. Well kind of. TBH if all of the MOTS ON:E Jikook moments we got happened with Jimin/anyone else or Jungkook/anyone else.. I would seriously be sitting here saying “well fuck.. I believe they WERE a couple, but looking at all of this it seems they are no longer together.” So really, this just confirmed what I already knew about Jimin and Jungkook: they’re a couple. My anxiety is over.. why? Why show us this? If they can cover all of JK’s tattoos, a hickey/bite mark/whatever we’re calling it should be super easy to hide. Sure it was just rehearsal.. but it was rehearsal with cameras rolling with every intention of releasing what was being filmed as future content. It could have (and some might argue should have) been covered.

Guys... I’m confused. And concerned. ❗❗❗ TW for drama, hate, homophobia, the usual anti issues

That “official” explanation.. again.. why? I’m assuming Jimin and Jungkook were asked and allowed to explain because of the chance of it being spotted and armys freaking out, so BH (or possibly even Jikook) thought to get ahead of the speculation by just being up front about it all.. but THAT explanation? I suppose it works for covering up the army panic of “Jungkook has a girlfriend?! *insert fangirl sobbing*” .. but that’s literally all it does (and only barely if you go looking at some of the anti’s reactions to it all). Really, all it did was draw even more attention and speculation. I mean.. this is, essentially, what we were told: Jimin and Jungkook were together the night before drinking, apparently without the other members as they didn’t seem to know all of this already (and they would have if they had been there), somehow hanging out and having drinks turns into Jungkook picking Jimin up bridal style (random but some of the k-army reactions on twitter were translating through google into “princess style” and I just think that’s so cute 🥰), spinning ensues, Jimin gets dizzy and wants Jungkook to put him down, ... and so he proceeds to do the only logical thing that any of us would have done in that situation... biting Jungkook’s neck? And hard enough to leave a mark the next day?? And instead of being peeved about it (like most of us would have been if our friend bit the crap out of us), Jungkook looks happy?? proud even??? 

And they arrived together the next day and continue to be cute and playful? 

I just.. I mean.. come on. First of all.. that’s a hickey. A bite leaves teeth marks. And one would assume a wild, drunken “let me down” chomp would be something that happens suddenly and ends very quickly. I know I for sure would drop someone on their ass if they decided to take a bite out of my neck (assuming I was even picking up and spinning around with one of my friends like that to begin with.. but let’s not even get into why that was going on at this point) .. but the way this bruised? Yeah. There were no teeth involved (at least not hard enough to leave indentations) and this took more than a couple of seconds of mouth-to-neck contact to still be that visible the next day. So.. in short. Jungkook arrives with a hickey, JK decides to not cover it up (or he would have shown up with it hidden and we see him get out of the car that morning with it clearly visible), BH staff sees it and also decides to not have it covered up and actually have it explained... and the explanation is “oh yeah Jimin just bit him, you know.. no big deal hehehe isn’t that funny?” 🤯 WHAT?! Yeah.. that’s totally normal, platonic behavior between adults...

I’m not saying Jimin and Jungkook are lying btw. I have no doubt it played out more or less exactly as they said with the exception of what they’re calling the end result. Jimin and Jungkook are fine.. I mean, what were they supposed to say? They’re not going to show up saying Jimin was sucking on Jungkook’s neck the night before. We’ll probably never know why Jungkook decided to not cover it up before arriving, but it’s his body and he gets to decide. It’s BH that has me so puzzled. Other than antis and people who refuse to see what’s literally right in front of their faces when it comes to Jikook.. who were BH expecting to believe the bite thing? Just among staff and the other members, it’s a laughable but safe “oh of course *wink wink*” explanation that allows everyone to carry on like normal. But to the public who don’t know them personally, don’t know their usual behavior and patterns, and who don’t have something like a non-disclosure agreement or professional courtesy preventing them from openly speculating.. it doesn’t fly. Pretty much everyone teen and up knows what a hickey looks like (either from having gotten/given one or at least seeing one on someone else in person or online). It’s immediately obvious what it is. And even if there was some uncertainty.. that it’s on his neck (instead of other easily accessible and less sensitive/stimulating locations) and just so happens to be right near his mole as it Jimin were aiming for it? Just another “too many coincidences” thing when it comes to Jikook.

Even antis on twitter couldn’t deny what it was and, so, had to resort to the “well I do that with my sibling and my uncle’s pet raccoon all the time it’s just family things” excuse and/or the “yeah well someone ELSE in the group (or a girlfriend) gave him that and they’re just covering by saying it was Jimin.” Oh. And the same old “it’s just fan service” excuse (as if Jungkook would let someone bruise his neck for the purposes of fanservice which, again, BTS has never done or needed to do. Forever pissed off that so many in this fandom act like Jungkook is a puppet doing whatever the “evil company” tells him to do regardless of his personal feelings or boundaries. The man has tattoos covering nearly every inch of his arm despite that being looked down on in Korea. At this point he can do whatever the fuck he wants). So.. why?? Seriously, why? This all could have easily been avoided with simple makeup.

When they’re doing official content they’re all literally followed around by a flurry of staff fixing hair, dabbing sweat, touching up makeup, etc. Even though it was rehearsal, staff were everywhere in the footage that’s made its way online. If they were worried that it would be seen in the background and “taken the wrong way,” just have the staff occasionally touch up the makeup. “Easy peasy lemon squeezy.” But instead of doing the obvious, BH decides to: not cover it, draw attention to it by asking about it and letting them continue to talk about it, go out of their way to get a camera on it, and then include it in the final cut of the content they sent out?

BTS is literally the most popular group in the world right now and BH has become a behemoth of a company that runs like a well-oiled machine. They’re not stupid; this was not a mistake. For some reason they wanted us to see this and, one would assume based on the lack of a more believable explanation, they wanted us to come to the conclusion that we all have: Jimin gave Jungkook a hickey. You know they have teams dedicated to monitoring reactions to content on social media. You know they know the dialog surrounding Rosebowl, Black Swan MMA, the Memories 2020 “almost kiss,” etc. etc. All of this got “jikook,” “hickey” and variations of their names trending for HOURS (in multiple countries and worldwide). 

Out of curiosity, I decided to check the trends at the time of writing this. As of 3 AM CST (about 24 hours AFTER the clips started showing up online), there was still a hashtag trending related to all of this: #FREEJUNGKOOK.. and the tweets being directed toward BH are.. disturbing to say the least:

While I agree that the boys should trend more often based on their talents and music.. what’s going on right now is a homophobic 💩 show accusing BH of “scripting” interactions (rather than.. you know.. Jungkook interacting with whoever he wants however he wants.. the usual “mindless puppet JK” narrative), trying to coordinate the mass sending of angry emails, trying to get people to stop buying paid content, accusing BH of taking advantage of the members.. I mean it goes on and on. And BH know what’s going on right now. They’re seeing the reactions... the good and the extremely negative. And still they let this out. And this is all not even CONSIDERING the mountain of other moments that made the cut on MOTS ON:E. 

(side note, the above pic just oozes happiness and it’s so cute I love it!! 😭)

So.. even though I’ve said it dozens of times already... WHY? W H Y? I’m an anxious person by nature and not very trusting. I believe Jimin and Jungkook and I don’t think they’ve been lying and pretending for “fanservice” all of these years. I respect them both too much as individuals and artists to believe that they would stoop to such tactics just to generate a little more “interest” and revenue. I’m suspicious of BH. BTS doesn’t need fanservice to get attention; literally all of 2020 and 2021 so far has proven that beyond a doubt. Even if they suddenly made the decision to do fs.. why not go with the most popular ship (taekook) or at least one that isn’t so hotly debated on social media (remove Jimin, Jungkook and Tae from the equation and you still have four members to “play” with who have much less potential to have fs devolve into a toxic crap show all over the internet). Showing us this will do nothing to help BTS as a group or Jimin and Jungkook at this point. In fact.. all it can do is hurt. Hurt BH, hurt the group, and hurt the individual members, heck.. even potentially hurt other BH/HYBE groups. I’ve already seen people on twitter saying they’re “done” spending money on anything BH or BTS puts out because they’re “sick of jikook in their faces and just two of the seven hogging all of the screen time.” Whether or not that “spending freeze” actually materializes into anything noticeable remains to be seen of course.. but the threat is there and always has been. What is the motive? And why now? As much as my “hopeless romantic” heart would like to believe they’re preparing us for Jikook to be “out” .. I seriously don’t think that is ever going to happen. Certainly not now at the height of the group’s fame, with them being given Presidential honors and ambassador status, and with military service still looming over them all. And let’s not forget... Korea is NOT a safe place for a queer couple. Letting us see and know what they did through what was released has the potential to put Jimin and Jungkook (and the other members by proxy) in danger. Sure.. BTS has never been hardline rule followers and have been breaking molds and shattering norms from the start, so “officially” having an openly gay couple in the group wouldn’t be impossible.. just... highly highly improbable. Especially right now... and I’m concerned. I don’t want to sound like the creeps I posted a screenshot of above throwing blame at the company. The boys chose to renew their contracts with the for a reason so we have to trust their judgement as a group... but still, I’m worried and I’m questioning what the purpose was here. 

[mind-of-a-hardstan]

Paint

 Pairing: Taehyung x Reader 

Genre: smut, make-up artist au 

Rating: E 

Warnings: smut, so much sexual tension omg, mature language, dirty talk, kissing, dry humping, grinding, taehyung’s neck should be a warning

Summary: You were a makeup artist. That much was clear to everyone. You were not the only makeup artist among the team who could draw, though. When they talked about drawing on Taehyung and giving him tattoos, you’d expected someone else to get the job. Why would they give it to you? You were one of the youngest on the team. One of the least experienced. 

You did get the job though, to your surprise.

And, well. Who were you to turn down an offer? 

Based on this post by @taechnological​ 

Word Count: 5.3K

A/N: Should I have edited this? Yes. Did I? No. Also I wanted to use a gif where tae was already painted but then I saw this one and I went feral and I knew that was the one. Also I’m seriously debating whether or not I should start selling organs for feedback :))) 

You were a makeup artist. That much was clear to everyone. You were not the only makeup artist among the team who could draw, though.

When they talked about drawing on Taehyung and giving him tattoos, you’d expected someone else to get the job. Why would they give it to you? You were one of the youngest on the team. One of the least experienced.

You did get the job though, to your surprise.

You were delighted at first. You liked painting people. One of your first jobs during college was painting kid’s faces at McDonald’s. You painted your cousins all the time, turning them into cute, bouncing little artworks. You had the skill and the talent for it.

So yeah, at first you smiled and accepted the job graciously. Then you realised… this would not quite be like painting kids. This would be a lot more like painting superman.

Or a Greek god perhaps.

You were a professional though. You’d done their makeup plenty of times. You were near all seven of them enough that they didn’t affect you as much as they did in the beginning. Sure, you’ve laughed with them when they joked around, tried to console them if they were nervous.

Doing their makeup took time, and that time was either spent in silence or with talking. That depended on how they felt at the moment.

They were never rude though. Just tired, sometimes.

You were a professional, and you’ve done all of their makeup at some point or another. Never on their necks though. Or… for god’s sake, their chests.  And Taehyung… Taehyung was something else.

Taehyung’s personality shined like a star. He was bright, he made the whole room laugh if he wanted to. He made you struggle to keep your composure multiple times. Taehyung was someone who wore his heart on his sleeve. You’ve had to apply lipstick to multiple of his pouts. You always had to hide a smile at the cute gesture, and he always noticed and pouted harder.

Taehyung was, and this was the worst part of all, so unbelievably fucking hot to the point that it was almost downright intimidating. Sometimes you would walk into his dressing room and just need a second to stop and process. And he would doing something as simple as sitting and looking at you with a raised eyebrow.

Now, the other members were just as stunning. They had you just as flustered in the beginning. They just… they never looked at you in the way that Taehyung did. They never locked eyes with you when you leaned closer to their faces. They never winked at you, never smiled so brightly when they saw you, never stared at you so intensely. They never requested you when –

Oh.

Oh, that made sense. Taehyung had requested you do his makeup quite a few times before. Why would this be any different? There were older and more experienced artists on the team, so the only reason that you got the job would be because Taehyung requested you.

That made sense.

You weren’t sure if you had to be flattered or disappointed.

You went for flattered. It was better for you mental health.

When you entered Taehyung’s dressing room, he was already there.

You weren’t surprised. Taehyung was rarely late, and never without reason. You’d just… well you’re hoped there was reason. There had been a rush today and you felt like you’d needed a minute to mentally prepare for this.

He smiled at you though, that open, box shaped smile, and you smiled back.

“How are you doing today?” you asked by way of greeting and put down your make up case on the vanity. It was strangely quiet. None of the others were here yet. Taehyung came three hours early for the tattoos.

Taehyung bit his lip and looked down. “Nervous,” he said, voice low. You looked back at him and smiled softly, hoping that he would find comfort in it.

“Well, the paintbrush feels nice against your skin. At least according to my cousins. Maybe it’ll help?” you suggested, turning around with a small brush in one hand and black body paint in the other.

“Your cousins?” Taehyung asked with an unsure smile. You put down the paint and decided to do his foundation first, lest you ruin your masterpiece later.

“Yeah. My mom’s youngest brother is like sixteen years younger than she is? So his kids are still pretty small.” You gently primed his face with a cotton soaked in primer. “He has two girls and a boy. The boy is eight, I think? And the youngest girl is three.”

“And you painted them?” Taehyung mumbled, trying not to move too much. You stifled a giggle and nodded.

“When my uncle told Connor that I do makeup for a living, he kept asking me to paint his face too. His sisters joined in and now I paint them whenever they come over.” You started with his foundation, taking care to apply it where the paint will go too. “Rosa, the middle one, always says that it ‘tickles nicely.’ I think she enjoys the brush more than looking at herself in the mirror afterward.”

Taehyung had a big smile on his face that he tried to suppress for the sake of his makeup. He was looking at you fondly as you talked, and you had to suppress the urge of stopping just to stare into his eyes in infatuation. The closeness wasn’t helping.

He wasn’t looking fondly at you though, you had to remind yourself. Rather, he was fond of the story you were telling. He liked kids – that was no secret. The fond look was not directed at you. It was directed at your cousins.

You clenched your jaw and tried to focus on the task at hand. This was a job. This was your profession. There wasn’t supposed to be any feelings involved. Not infatuation, not fondness, not longing.

Job job job.

“What’s the other one’s name?” Taehyung asked when you turned away and looked for another beauty blender.

“Hmm?”

“Your youngest cousin, the three year old, what’s her name?”

“Oh, Ira. She’s a dear, far less spoiled than some of my other cousins were. She’s still a toddler though, so like, never leave her in a room with a white wall and crayons.” You leaned in close to blend the foundation near his ear. “I learned that the hard way.”

Taehyung laughed and his warm breath hit your cheek, making goose bumps rise on your neck. It didn’t mean anything, you told yourself after suppressing a shiver. It was just a normal bodily reaction.

You stood back and admired your handiwork. With the foundation done, you could do the tree patterns and then the rest of his face. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

You dragged a stool closer and sat down. The stool was a bit higher than his chair, but you were shorter than him, so you had comfortable access to his neck.

Depending on how you saw it, that could either be a good or a bad thing.

See, the good thing was that this made it very easy to work. The angle was good and you it would be easy to paint the patterns. You would have to move your stool a bit to have better access to his chest later on, but that wouldn’t be a problem.

The bad thing, however, was that Taehyung had a very nice neck. You’d thought of sinking your teeth into his neck quite a few times in the past, and being this close to him – facing said neck – was not helping. Furthermore, you would have to lean into his neck, and Taehyung always smelled so fucking good.

But you were a professional. You’d think of biting his neck later.

Or… well. You’d think of biting his neck now, you’d just keep very quiet about it.

You opened the paint and picked up the brush and got to work. At the first touch of the brush against Taehyung’s skin, he shivered and you slipped, smearing paint where it shouldn’t be. You giggled and he let out a shaky laugh too.

“Sorry,” he whispered, “’s cold.”

“It’s okay,” you whispered back, not wanting to disturb the gentle stillness that lingered. You cleaned up the mess and picked the brush up again.

“Keep still,” you warned before gently starting again. He shivered once more, but it was more subtle this time and didn’t disrupt you. You slowly started to trace the patterns on his neck.

“Tickles,” he breathed, and you huffed out a short laugh.

The paint was good, better than the cheap stuff you usually used on your cousins. It was supposed to be waterproof too, which was a very good thing because then it wouldn’t smudge on his clothes and he also wouldn’t sweat it off whilst dancing.

Because he was going to sweat under all of those lights. But it was okay, the droplets are going to roll right over the paint and not smudge a thing. Just… just perfect caramel skin shining with sweat and non-smudged paint. That you applied. That you were applying right now. To his neck. Beautiful thick neck, covered in your paint and sweat dripping–

This train of thought was bringing you to a bad place.

You pulled away and turned around in your stool to wipe the paint off the brush. Not because you needed to, you just needed a second away from Taehyung’s neck. He smelled too good, looked too fucking edible.

Taehyung stuttered out a deep sigh, like he’d been holding his breath. You looked at him curiously and smiled.

“You can breathe, you know. It doesn’t make a difference with the painting. Breathe as deep as you like,” you said. Taehyung swallowed and nodded, but he didn’t look at you.

You leaned in close again, took a deep breath and got a lungful of Taehyung’s intoxicating smell. You stopped for a beat and then got back to work. You had a job to do, and only so much time to do it.

You dipped the brush in paint Taehyung shivered again when you started to work on him. You were able to pull the brush away before catastrophe happened. You looked at him, and he had a blush on his cheeks.

“Sorry,” he said.

“Don’t worry about it,” you smiled, “I should have warned you anyway.”

Silence followed after that. You worked on Taehyung’s neck diligently. You were proud of yourself for only being mildly distracted. Taehyung still wasn’t breathing properly, though. His breaths were coming out too shallow. You frowned.

“Are you okay?” you asked and pulled away. Taehyung swallowed and nodded. “Are you sure? Taehyung, if you’re uncomfortable we can stop. You know that right?”

“Yeah,” he said.

You eyed the patterns on his neck. They weren’t nearly done, but they looked good enough that you could stop here. They could edit in the rest if needed.

“Do you want me to stop?”

“No,” he said so fast he almost cut you off.

“Okay.”

Something was clearly wrong, but you didn’t pry. He mentioned that he was nervous before, so maybe it was those same nerves acting up. If he wanted to talk, he would.

“Ready?” you asked. Taehyung nodded and you touched the brush to his skin again. His breathing stuttered. You laid a free hand on his thigh without much thought, trying to give him a bit of comfort. Taehyung tensed and you removed it as quickly as you put it there.

“Sorry.”

“It’s – it’s okay.”

Another silence followed after that. You tried to focus, but the room felt charged somehow. You couldn’t put your finger on it, but the moment you’d put your hand on his leg, the vibe in the room changed.

You brushed it off as your own idiocy. Maybe you were just projecting. Maybe feeling that muscle tense under your hand messed with your head more than you realised.

Time passed in a blur. You worked on his neck with as much focus as you could muster. You made surprisingly few mistakes – which filled you with pride, because these were hardly the best circumstances for focus.

“Taehyung.”

“Yeah?”

“I need to work on your chest.”

“Okay.” He sounded breathless. Was he really breathless or were you just hearing what you wanted to hear?

“Can uh… can you take off your shirt? Maybe you can switch it for one with a wider collar?”

“I don’t have another shirt.”

“Oh. Uh. Do you want me to get another one?”

“No, I uh, I can take it off. It’s fine.”

“Okay.”

You turned around and fussed with your make up kit to give him a moment. The material shifted audibly and you saw the white t-shirt fly across the room from the corner of your eye. You cleaned off the brush fussed with it some more to avoid having to turn around and face this new challenge.

It wouldn’t be the first time you saw him shirtless. And it wasn’t like you were some schoolgirl who couldn’t control her hormones, for god’s sake.

You took a deep breath and gripped the brush before turning around. Taehyung was… well. Wide. Caramel skin and wide shoulders and a soft tummy and such a biteable fucking chest.

Well.

You refused to let your eyes travel beyond his neck though, refused to meet Taehyung’s eyes. You followed the lines you drew and tried to map out where you needed to go from here.

“I might have to sit in front of you for this part. Is that okay?” you asked, still staring at the black lines across his neck.

“Yeah, sure.”

This wasn’t fucking fair. It couldn’t be legal to talk with a voice that fucking deep, while shirtless and looking like a fucking Greek god. This wasn’t allowed to be fucking okay.

You moved the chair in front of Taehyung and sat down. Your knees brushed against his and you had to lean forward a lot to work on his – very fucking wide and perfect – chest.

You leaned your hand against his shoulder to steady yourself and tried not to feel your skin spark at the contact. “Is this okay?” you asked,

“Yeah.” Taehyung’s chest vibrated, vibrated, with the word. You swallowed and kept painting.

Your back complained loudly, and after a few minutes you sat up straight again with a frown. You arched your back in a stretch and winced at how loudly your spine cracked.

“This isn’t good for my back,” you said and Taehyung scoffed out a laugh. You locked eyes with him an smiled. “I feel like an old lady for saying that.”

Taehyung gave you big grin in return. “Maybe because you are?”

“I’m younger than you,” He laughed and shook his head. “No but really, this isn’t working. Could you maybe spread your legs for me?”

“Jesus,” Taehyung groaned.

“What?” you asked in alarm.

“You can’t – you can’t fucking say that!”

“What?” you asked again.

“You can’t do that! You can’t look like that and then tell me to take off my shirt and breathe into my neck and touch me and that fucking brush, god damn it, and then tell me to spread my legs for you.”

“I’m – what?”

“And then you told me to breathe normally. Breathe normally. How the fuck should I breathe when I feel like I’m boiling in my own skin, fuck.”

You stared at him with wide eyes when he finished his rant. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration and – well. Good to know. You finally let your eyes travel up and down his body. It was like he gave you permission, even when he didn’t do it literally.

His cheeks were slightly flushed, now that you looked. His chest too. He was slightly tense. His thighs looked so good in his sweatpants. And. Well.

Taehyung was unmistakably hard.

“Taehyung,” you said when you dragged your eyes back to his. His pupils were blown wide now, jaw tense. He saw you eating him with your eyes. He definitely saw and he looked at you like he was waiting.

“Yes?”

“Do you need help with that?” you said and looked down at his dick straining his pants.

“God, yes. Please. I’ll literally fucking beg.”

You looked at him slyly, not able to hold in a smile. “Wouldn’t have guessed you were into that.”

“I don’t usually do the begging but I’ll beg for you. Christ I’d do anything for you.”

His words caused need to pulse in your lower stomach. You liked the visual of him begging for you. You weren’t usually into that either but… well.

“That’s a dangerous thing to say,” you teased and pushed at his knees. Taehyung got the message and spread his legs. The visual was something fucking else. It was nothing new to see Taehyung sitting with his legs spread, but god. He was shirtless. And very fucking hard. And wearing grey sweatpants.

You moved your chair closer until it touched his, almost creating a bench of sorts and just… looked and looked and looked.

“Please,” Taehyung whimpered and your eyes snapped back to his. They were nearly black and very much pleading. “I feel like ripping my skin off.”

You breathed out a laugh and placed your hand on his left pec, the one that wasn’t covered in patterns. You ran your hand over his chest, then down his stomach and flicked a thumb over his hipbone. Taehyung’s breathing hitched and you smiled again before putting your hand on his clothed erection.

“Fuck,” Taehyung groaned out. You palmed him slowly and his hips bucked up into your hand. He threw his head back and bit his lip and god you were wet. Just… looking at him.

“You’re big, aren’t you?” you said lowly.

“Yeah,” he choked out.

Taehyung damn near mewled in protest when you took your hand off of him. You bit your lip and moved closer, shuffling onto his lap. Taehyung stared at you with hooded eyes as you made yourself comfortable on his lap.

You ground your hips down onto his and you both hissed at the friction. You threaded your fingers through his hair and steadied yourself with your other hand on his shoulder. Taehyung was breathing into your neck, groaning at the feeling of his dick getting attention. Every noise vibrated down your spine.

You leaned down and bit his neck thoughtlessly.

Taehyung cried out and his hips bucked up, causing you to moan into his neck. He felt big. He felt like if he fucked you, he would destroy your insides.

It almost scared you, if it weren’t for how hot you were.

“You don’t understand how long I’ve wanted to do that,” you groaned and bit his neck again, softer this time.

“Do what?” he asked. You licked over the forming mark, hoping to god that make up would be enough to cover it up.

“Bite you.”

“Fuck, really?”

“Yeah. You have such a thick fucking neck and I just–” you sucked another mark into his skin “–wanted to fucking mark it.”

“Christ,” he moaned into your neck.

You rocked your hips back and forth against his, creating the ideal friction for both of you. His dick rubbed against your clit perfectly. You threw your head back when he bucked up, not able to keep your moans to yourself.

“You sound so fucking good, do you know that?” Taehyung grit out and gripped your ass, guiding your movements to sync with his.

“You too, fuck.”

You leaned forward, needing to feel his skin on your lips. You’d fantasised about this so much, now that you finally had the chance you were not going to let it slip through your fingers. Taehyung tilted his head to give you better access to his neck, and you peppered kisses all the way from his shoulder to his ear to his jaw, stopping every now and then to suck a mark.

Taehyung’s fingers threaded through your own hair, using it as leverage to pull your head back roughly.  

“You have no fucking idea,” he growled, “how bad I want you.”

“Yeah? How bad?” You still moved against him, the friction enough to push you to the edge of an orgasm, but not enough to push you over.

“So bad. So long. Was so fucking frustrated.”

“Why’s ‘at,” you asked teasingly and he groaned.

“Because you’re so goddamn hot, fuck, and – and you’d breathe into my – shit – neck and when you bent over me you smelled so good – hng. And I’d sit there trying – trying to crack jokes while I just wanted to fuck you ‘till you feel me for days.”

“Fuck, Taehyung,” you moaned and he gripped your hair harder.

“Say it again,” he whispered. His other hand was moving from your ass to your hip to your back to your breasts. He explored you slowly, almost curiously, trying to see which touch made you gasp.

“What?” you breathed, unable to think.

“My name. Say my name again.”

“Tae–” he bit your nipple through your shirt and pulled your hair at the same time, causing your whole body to jolt “–Taehyung!”

“God, I could come just from that, I swear.”

Hoseok’s laughter filtered through the walls and realisation struck that you were not alone in this building, and that you had a job to do. You’d get fired if they had to go on set and Taehyung wasn’t done. You’d get murdered if they found you like this.

You stopped grinding on Taehyung’s dick and he looked at you quizzically.

“What’s wrong,” he said, voice so silky and deep and fucked out.

“I – I have to finish you,” you said unsure.

“Uh, please?” Taehyung’s eyes were near pleading, but he seemed as confused as ever. You laughed and shook your head no.

“I mean I have to finish your neck. And clean up that mess.” You gestured to the red and purple marks blooming on the other side of his neck. You were very careful to stay away from the painted parts.

“Oh. Oh, yeah. Yeah that.” Taehyung shook his head like he was trying to clear it. You knew how he felt.

The paintbrush was somehow still in your hand. You grabbed the paint and took a deep breath before dipping the paintbrush and starting up where you left off. Taehyung’s hands never left your body, and you were still sat in his lap. It was just more comfortable to work whilst in his lap than to have to break your back bending over.

That seemed to be a good excuse.

“I have a question,” Taehyung whispered, still running his fingers lightly over your back and the top of your ass.

“Yeah,” you said, trying hard not to fuck up the patterns on his neck.

“You said you thought about biting me?”

“Yeah.”

Taehyung laughed at the mumbled response and pinched your but, making you squirm. “That all you thought about?”

You looked up at Taehyung and saw the lust still glittering in his eyes. His dick was still hard against your clit.

“No,” you said, leaning in so your lips nearly touched, “thought about riding you. When you sit with your legs spread I just wanna fucking mount you.” You firmly ground your ass on his dick once. “Thought about sucking your cock too. Debated doing it right then and there in front of everyone, I swear.”

You caught Taehyung’s lip with your teeth and pulled. Taehyung moaned and you swore you felt his dick twitch.

“Are you gonna?” he ground out. His voice was rough, you could tell it was more out of frustration than anything else.

“Depends on how good you are,” you teased.

“Jesus you can’t fucking say that.”

“I just did.” You giggled at the way he groaned and threw his head back. “Really though, I have to finish this if I don’t want to get fired.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“So are you gonna be good and let me finish?” you teased again.

You didn’t miss the way Taehyung swallowed. “Yeah.”

You giggled again and nipped at his jaw before going back to painting his chest. Silence followed, the pressure of time finally catching up to you. Taehyung was evidently still distracted though, judging by the tiny movements he made with his hips, still chasing the friction.

You didn’t let yourself indulge in him though. You finished your work as quickly and effectively as possible and focused hard on covering up the marks you left on the other side of his neck. You tried to plan ahead too, knowing the bruises would darken within an hour.

If someone saw them, all hell would break lose. Fucking him would already cause an uproar, but fucking him while you were on the clock could make you lose your job. And everything else for that matter.

“There,” you whispered, anxiety evident in your voice, “all done.”

You moved to get off of his lap but Taehyung pulled you back and kissed you.

You melted. You felt how your body turned to mush in Taehyung’s hands the moment he put his lips on yours. His lips were soft against yours, moving slowly. He kissed lazily, like he had all the time in the world and was willing to give it all to you.

Taehyung nipped at your bottom lip, asking for access. You opened for him on instinct and his tongue swooped into your mouth expertly.

It felt good. It felt so good. You tangled your hands in his hair to try to pull him closer. Taehyung seemed to share the sentiment, pushing you against him by your lower back and slowly, thoughtlessly, grinding his dick against you.

After what felt like hours of kissing, you had to pull away, the need to breathe finally making itself present. You gasped against Taehyung’s mouth, leaning your forehead against his.

“I was good, wasn’t I?” he breathed, base in his voice sending shivers down your spine.

“So good,” you gasped.  

“Will you ride me now?”

“Do you have a condom?”

Taehyung cursed and shook his head and you felt your stomach drop in disappointment. No gut rearranging happening today, apparently.

“Just grinding then. I just wanna feel you. We can fuck another time just… just wanna feel you. Please.”

“Yeah. Yeah fuck.”

The next moments passed in a blur. You moved quickly to pull his sweatpants down his legs, only about halfway down his thighs. Taehyung was fumbling with the button of your jeans, fingers moving clumsily with impatience. You helped him pull your own pants and underwear down.

“Fuck,” he whispered when moved back to his lap. He kissed you again, this time with more impatience, more heat. It wasn’t lazy in the slightest. He sucked your tongue into his mouth and lightly bit down and you moaned. You lowered your hips onto his and he hissed when you made contact.

This was a whole different feeling. His cock was smooth against you. And big, fuck. You swallowed down the urge to throw caution in the wind and ride him for real.

“God, you’re so wet, why are you so wet?” he said in wonder.

“Because you’re so goddamn hot.”

“Fuck, Y/n.”

Taehyung gripped your hips and moved you against him at a faster pace, movieng his own hips against yours. The brush of his dick against your clit was driving you insane, it was nothing near feeling him through your jeans.

You ran your hands over his chest and he gasped when you ran finger over his nipple. You stared in wonder and did it again, this time his cock twitched against you, making you moan.

“You’re sensitive here?” you asked, licking at the bud and gasping when he gripped your ass.

“Yeah,” he choked out, “stop that or I’ll come.”

“That’s the idea,” you teased, breathless. You took his nipple between your teeth gently and Taehyung full on moaned.

He was having none of it though. He gripped you by the hair and pulled you up for another kiss. It was so messy now. None of the practiced skill of before, just a desperate need of contact and stimulation. You cursed him for ruining his make up once again, but let it slide for now. Easy to fix and worth it.

“Tae,” you gasped into his mouth when his thumb came into the mix. He was toying with your clit while his cock was still deliciously sliding against you. “Taehyung.”

“Yeah?” he asked, sounding so fucked out, voice so rough. He was everywhere. You felt him everywhere. Every point of contact burned your skin in the best way.

“Good, so good. You’re so good. Fuck,” you moaned against his lips. You took his bottom lip between his teeth and pulled, pulling another small – fucking incredible – sound out of him.

Your hips were moving desperately now. Neither of you had a rhythm anymore, just chasing pleasure.

“Don’t stop don’t stop,” you babbled, orgasm crawling closer and closer and you were right there so close so close. “Tae – Tae, fuck, Taehyung,”

You came with a cry of Taehyung’s name, body pulling taut and hands gripping Taehyung’s hair mercilessly. Your hips were twitching against him, but he used your ass as leverage to keep grinding against you.

“God, Y/n sound so good. So good, fuck, fuck, fuck,”

Taehyung’s cock twitched against you before spilling come over his stomach. His head was thrown back, mouth open in a silent cry.

It took a few moments for your soul to return to your body. You took deep breaths, trying to calm your racing heartbeat.

No easy feat with Taehyung looking at you with hooded eyes.

“That was so good,” he rasped. You giggled breathlessly and nodded.

“Imagine how good it would feel,” you said, leaning closer, “when you actually get to be inside of me.”

Taehyung groaned and closed his eyes, shaking his head. “Don’t say shit like that, I’ll get hard again, I swear.”

“Is your recovery period that quick?”

“Around you, apparently.”

You laughed and got off of him, looking for wet wipes or a towel of sorts. You frowned when you noticed a few drops of come on your shirt.

“You got come on my shirt,” you said and threw a towel at Taehyung.

“Sorry. I wasn’t exactly focusing on aim.” You set him a glare, but you had to bite your lip to force back a smile.

“You owe me a shirt now. And panties, holy hell.” Taehyung smiled brightly.

“I’ll buy you all the panties in the world if it means I get to ruin them.” And that smile was too innocent to be pared with the dirty words. You shook your head.

After quickly cleaning yourself up and putting your pants on, you fixed Taehyung’s make up. The damage wasn’t that bad and it only took two minutes.

“You might want to hurry. You need to be out in half an hour.” You gestured to the clock and Taehyung cursed, moving to get dressed quickly while you packed up your make up kit. You couldn’t help but smile.

“See you, I gotta get back,” you said, getting ready to leave.

“Wait, get back here,” Taehyung said and pulled your back flush against his chest, wrapping his arm around your waist. “Next time I’m gonna bend you over that couch, yeah? Gonna make sure you feel me for days.”

Your mouth went dry but you nodded. “Yeah,” you whispered, “but only if you be good and come prepared.”

Taehyung groaned and you grinned on your way out.

[ashenburst]

Let It Happen

Fugo x Reader, fluff, 3861 words. Y’all aren’t in a relationship, but you might get into one after the events of this oneshot <3

Purple Haze has a special role here!

A new mission landed in Buccellati's hands. A retaliation ought to be carried out. That alone was a peculiar request, for Buccellati's team wasn't meant for these tasks – but since a higher-up commanded so, no reluctance would be shown. You and Fugo were chosen to do the dirty deed.

This selection was odd too, in your opinion at least. Despite being in the group for a month or so, you picked up on many patterns in their dynamics. When it came to missions, for example, Fugo participated by far the least. Buccellati avoided sending him for some reason. You assumed that his stand simply wasn't adequate.

Thinking more about it, you concluded that it truly was unusual. That and the fact that, out of all team members, you grew to be the closest to him, and yet did not know anything about his ability.

You had the opportunity to ask, but chose not to. You were no nosy type, and you wouldn't pry in case someone didn't wish to speak. You realized right at the beginning that these abilities wouldn't be easily shared with you, for you were new. The general distrust taught you not to snoop, and you were fine with that.

Fugo evidently had no desire to bring up his stand, so why rile him up? It wasn't even that important. Someday, you would find out its power, the same way you chatted to the Pistols and observed Aerosmith's pirouettes.

Understanding and patient as you were, this slow, mannered approach of yours earned immediate approval among your teammates. You recognized your boundaries and never overstepped them, thus remaining on everyone's good side. Even Abbacchio took a quick liking to you. And according to Fugo, that was extraordinary.

Things would reveal themselves on their own, in the right place and time, you reckoned. Upon being assigned your mission, this mindset was awarded. You glanced over to Fugo, knowing you'd soon get to see his stand in action.

"If it's no problem, Buccellati, I just have to finish correcting Narancia's assignments, then we can go," he explained to the team leader. Buccellati nodded in agreement.

"Make sure you're quick."

"Absolutely! Looks like Narancia has been improving, so this will be fast. In fact, he hasn't made a single mistake."

Narancia was sitting next to Fugo with a massive grin, staring at the many check marks and not a single cross on the paper.

"Not a single mistake, you say?" Mista repeated.

"Not a single mistake indeed," Fugo confirmed, vastly proud. This only made Mista laugh.

"Should I tell him?" Mista turned towards Abbacchio, and the white-haired male chuckled. They exchanged mischievous looks. You knew nothing good would come out of this, and so your brows knitted together in worry. Looking back to Narancia and Fugo, you noticed the once grinning boy had a slightly panicked expression. Just what was happening...?

"Tell me what?" Fugo too was beginning to get wary.

"Nothing!" Narancia abruptly responded instead of Mista. He couldn't have made himself more suspicious, you thought, squinting your eyes. You were absolutely certain he was hiding something and he was hiding it from Pannacotta Fugo. Did Narancia value his life that low?

You truly didn't want to see your dear friend vexed all over again, simply because of that boy's silly scheme. So you watched carefully, trying to dismantle this mess in your head before it would be too late.

The gunslinger laughed again, this time with a hand over his mouth. The fact even Abbacchio couldn't keep his amusement to himself, and instead smiled profusely, was enough of an omen.

"Boys, what are you hiding?" Buccellati's question was supposed to bring out some clarity in this situation. However, it failed to, for nobody wanted to speak up.

Fugo skewed the topic a little. "I have no idea what's happening, but I should announce that Narancia hadn't made a single mistake. Good job!"

"Hehe. Easy peasy lemon squeezy," Narancia responded to that.

"Gimme a high five, Narancia," Mista suggested and bent over the table, his hand in the air for Narancia to... not high five it. He shook his head no in awkward refusal.

"Why not?" Mista faked his sadness. "Come on, a little high five. Low five? Any five?"

Narancia grimaced. You rolled your eyes and offered your insight. "Is it that hard to lift your hand and high five Mista? Look." You did it instead of Narancia, which caused Mista a radiant grin. Despite this, the black-haired boy refused. Your doubts were fueled in abundance.

"Is there a reason why you don't want to show your hands?"

Narancia stuck out a tongue at you and lifted his left hand. "Nah. And is there a reason why Fugo and you are being late for the mission?" Oh dear, he was getting too defensive, which you noted with a blank face.

"Narancia!" Fugo scolded. He tried to reach out to the boy's right hand, but Narancia moved it away.

"Narancia, behave yourself immediately and stop this nonsense," Buccellati silenced him. He looked at you, then Fugo. "And you two aren't being late. I believe I know what's behind this farce, so there's no need to ruin yet another table to find out." The leader glared at Narancia and Fugo who were both in uncomfortable positions.

"It's evident, Buccellati. He's been cheating and wrote the answers on his hand," Fugo hissed, letting go of Narancia's biceps. The boy winced.

"On his fingers, to be exact," Abbacchio added nonchalantly.

"Oh fuck off," Narancia grumpily cursed and crossed his arms. Buccellati told you and Fugo to leave, and that he would deal with this problem himself. He tossed you the car keys with a chilling look. It was eerie, you had to admit. But you were glad you didn't get to witness Buccellati's anger, and thus were left with something just a tiny bit better: an annoyed Fugo.

Consequently, the mission began in silence. The two of you exited Libeccio with little to no information available. You knew the location of only one of your targets, and through that one man, you were supposed to find other people behind this conspiracy against the Famiglia. This was a job for your stand, obviously – you would pinpoint and track any target once it's marked. However, it had no destructive power, because it was literally a pair of binoculars. What could you do with them, hit someone in the head?

That was where you supposed Fugo's stand would step in. Something deadly for sure, to kill off everyone in this group. If what Buccellati had heard was correct, they had a meeting later that day, meaning all of them would be gathered on one spot. Convenient for killing.

You reached the car Buccellati was kind enough to borrow. You unlocked it and were about to enter, when you felt Fugo's hold on your hand. "I can drive," he offered.

"Are you sure?" Being the newest member meant you had the honor of driving others every single time, and you were used to that obligation. Seeing that Fugo could do that instead of you was... a surprise, simply put.

Although you asked such a meaningless question, Fugo found a reason to be annoyed. The violets of his eyes turned a shade darker. "I wouldn't be offering that if I weren't sure."

Sure, having a literal hedgehog of a person by your side wasn't too pleasant. But he was surprisingly easy to read. At the slightest signs of his irritation coming, you would make sure to avoid any future provocations. It wasn't a hard thing to do, not at all.

Fugo had good intentions and if his problems with rage were overlooked, you knew he would be an absolute angel. This time, similarly, he was trying to help. It was something you could only appreciate. So you nodded and responded, as calm as you could get, "Then thank you for being a gentleman. That's very nice of you."

Internally, you weren't as relaxed. What was it that you had just said? You bit your tongue. It sounded so weird, didn't it? But you just wanted to compliment Fugo.

And every time, he'd be positively baffled. He let go of you, his gaze switching its focus back and forth between your hand and your peaceful visage. Lastly, he smiled. Of course he did. "Why, it's nothing! You're welcome!" The way he'd always brighten at your understanding nature, ever so shyly, ever so innocently – it was something that never failed to make your heart flutter.

. . .

When Buccellati said you wouldn't be late, he was absolutely right. The man you were after was in his house and did not move at all. It took you about an hour of waiting to finally see him leave his residence, and hopefully, head to the remainder of the conspirators. But beforehand, you made sure to comfort Fugo about Narancia's cheating; luckily, it worked, and Fugo was quick to thank you.

After you had spotted the target with your stand, marked it on the tiny map on the binoculars, you followed the man's drive all the way to the rural parts of Napoli. Fugo wasn't exactly... the gentlest driver out there. Every now and then (to be exact, every time he would hit the brakes or start accelerating), you were reminded that it would've been way better if you were the one at the steering wheel. Oh well, too late to change that.

The neighborhood you were lead into was in deep neglect, and yet, nature found a way to make it pretty. Rebellious was the grass all around, falling over the sidewalk, and an occasional flower laid here and there to further disarrange the scenery. Trees grew in unorderly batches, not a single straight line to mark a well-planted row. Amongst the green, buildings were a scarce sight, but nothing short of unpleasant. Most were vandalized in one way or another, and the usual warm, prideful architecture in Napoli's center was completely absent in their build. It was almost as if you were in a completely different city.

The good thing about this tracking situation was that you didn't have to see the target's car, you had the map on your stand. Consequently, the target would have no guess that he was being followed. You were far enough not to be noticed.

And once the target slowed down, you knew he was on his feet. You informed Fugo and he, unfortunately, sped up. Dashing through the streets, the two of you quickly reached your target's proximity. That was when you told Fugo to park the car, which he did, albeit sloppily.

You got out of the car and walked to the house inside which the man had gone. You checked once again if the location on your binoculars' map matched the one you were in front of. It did. Your spot on the map was almost the same as that of the marked man's.

"He's in there," you confirmed.

"I'll send in my stand to get this over with," Fugo told you in a hush, "but we'll have to get near."

He walked over to the brick wall, and you followed. He leaned against it, standing by the window, then lifted a hand towards you.

"(Y/N)? Would you please move a little?"

You nodded and backed off. "Your stand?"

He nodded back. Next to him, the long-awaited mystery of a stand emerged. It was an oblique humanoid figure, shrouded in...

"Purple Haze!" Fugo presented his somber stand, and to announce his appearance, Purple Haze groaned. It wasn't only the jarring sound that abandoned his mouth. Through bared teeth and the stitches on his mouth, saliva, yes, so much saliva dripped – down his chin, onto the ground in long slivers. Tethered above was a pair of manic eyes that screamed of bewilderment, and spoke to you with its deadly stare. A sleek visor, curling down like a preying beak, was the only frail filter between you and Purple Haze's aggressive gaze.

The remainder of his attributes were sent into oblivion. You could not redirect your attention. It was wholly, utterly enslaved to this bane's eyes and its low growls. Was this monstrosity the manifestation of Fugo's soul?

One elaborate scene lasting a single instant, no more. That was enough to render you terrified. The very next moment, Fugo had his stand enter the house through the window – he cracked the glass with a high kick and swooped inside, that menace.

Fugo's menace. The mafioso stared back at you, his expression darkened by newfound misery. Your shock must've impacted him, and you knew, he felt bad for petrifying you. He told a lengthy explanation for you to, perhaps, calm down. To console you.

"My stand is capable of releasing a deadly airborne virus. Since our targets are inside with Purple Haze, the virus won't reach us. Everything will be over in no time." Having finished that sentence, Fugo paused – screeches began rising from the house. "So there's no reason to worry. You're safe and sound," he assured, then looked away.

Truth be told, you weren't even scared, rather – intimidated. That's what you had told him to ease him, then sat on the warm curb right at your feet. Yes, this had to be over soon. Judging by the croaking screams, you were positive it wouldn't last long. Otherwise, you'd go insane. It was deeply unnerving to sit idly next to carnage, and not do anything else but take in the death.

But the wails died down, and another sensation would come in. You heard a thump next to you, footsteps nearing – and that frightening gruff hum tagged along. You looked upwards, and saw none other than Fugo's stand. He bore into you with his intense pupils. Their severity could not be handled. Reflexively, you jumped on your feet, staggering backwards, and were about to scream for Fugo when you realized something was happening.

Your brows knitted together, you blinked, once, twice, thrice, unsure if you were seeing this right. Purple Haze ducked and picked a flower from the ground. He lifted it, a gesture meant for you and you only.

"Purple Haze...?" You whispered, not believing your vision a single bit.

Fugo's stand was murmuring incoherent gargles, hand still in the air, delicately holding the plant for you to take it. With his head hung low, the helmet hiding his face, it seemed almost as if he was... ashamed. If it weren't for the stark impression from before, you were certain you'd find this adorable.

And you were about to accept the precious gift when the stand user began yelling.

"Purple Haze! What the hell are you doing?!"

The stand made some guttural sounds, probably out of dissatisfaction, then turned towards his user. You, on the other hand, had to jump to the side because Fugo was yelling right into your ear.

You lifted your both hands, ready to cover your ears. "What's wrong?"

"(Y/N), get away from him. Right now!"

"B-but why?"

His fists balled up. "Just do it!" His sharp order made you flinch.

Strangely, although Fugo had ordered you to move, he got rid of his stand before you made more than a step. The ominous apparition vanished with a sound you could only perceive as sad – and so, the flower it had once held floated down to the ground. A sorrowful sight that trapped your fixation for a second or so. Afterwards, Fugo was heard.

"(Y/N), come here right now, please, just come," Fugo called out. You managed to discern desperation in his plea, but did not understand the excessive worry. It would be right to say you were slightly disturbed by the entire turnabout of events – and so, you quietly complied.

Once you reached him, he did not comment. You two began walking towards your car. He bore a grumpy façade, and likewise, shrouded his surroundings in uncomfortable silence. You debated if breaking it would be a good idea – you were unsure if you did something wrong, but then again, this guy could get stressed about the most minor of details.

As you saw for yourself, he had control over his stand. So why did he get so angry?

"Fugo."

"What?" He almost spat.

"I don't know what happened and why you reacted the way you did, but everything is fine. Nothing bad has happened."

Fugo grumbled in response. "Nothing bad has happened now, that's true. But promise me you will keep your distance from my stand."

"If it unsettles you that much, then no problem, I promise I'll do that." You tilted your head in his direction. The gloom in his expression had not faltered. "What's the deal with Purple Haze? Are you scared you can't control your stand?"

He snorted. "Absolutely not. I can control Purple Haze, but accidents happen, and I can't afford a stupid, preventable accident to cost an entire life. Your life. What if one of the sockets carrying the virus cracked when you took the flower? They're on his knuckles." Fugo lifted a fist. "You could've died then and there."

The gravity of the situation finally presented itself. With a nod and a newly formed lump in your throat, you acknowledged his explanation. You understood that his behavior stemmed from worry – so you couldn't help but feel bad for him, and yourself as well.

The risk was real and you could've succumbed to it. It was through dumb luck that you survived, and you knew that – but Fugo must've felt far worse, for it was him that the death would be blamed on.

"I'm sorry," you finally said, just in case. This surprised him.

"Why?"

Whereas others would continue blabbering or even arguing, inconsiderate in their wake, you were wise enough to stop. Just a little bit of patience did wonders. For you, to think things through – or even, to fasten your hold on the reins of usually wild conversations.

You happened to be one of the rare people willing to reconcile, sort things out peacefully. Compromise was what you were after; Fugo deserved it.

For he was a good person after all. He would eventually overcome his agitation and accept his faults. You knew this, and you knew how much he struggled to do so. Making things easier for him was the least you could do; you cared for him.

"For making you worry. I just didn't understand what was happening at the moment or why I might be in danger."

And it was through your apology that Fugo would find a reason to apologize himself.

"O-oh. It's fine. I... uh..." You heard him heave an aggravated sigh. "Never mind, you shouldn't be apologizing, it wasn't your fault anyway," he mumbled. Tone low paired with a tongue soft, you knew he was gradually calming down. Oddly, it relieved you as well.

Now, to lighten the conversation. Something very relevant. "It's okay. But hey, you have to admit it was super sweet of your stand to give me the flower," you pointed out.

You noticed that Fugo's jaw had clenched before his unconcerned reply. "And weird too. I wonder why he did that." He stopped in his tracks, thus confusing you.

"Something wrong?"

He was looking sideways, to the ground, at the moment you questioned him. Once he heard you, he whipped his head towards you, his eyes wide. "Not really. But give me a moment, please!" Then he stepped aside, to the very edge of the sidewalk, and squatted. You got even more confused.

When he stood up and turned around to face you, in his hand you saw a petite flower, similar to the one Purple Haze had once picked for you. But Fugo went a step further – he bowed, and even exclaimed dramatically:

"I'm sincerely sorry for lashing out on you. Please accept this flower as my humble apology!"

Oh, Fugo. Constantly nervous and so deeply insecure he was, fixing his mistakes and stepping over his rage, with countless of apologies and countless of tremors. His act was that of chivalry, and warmed your heart it did, however, his very own core was left in a qualm.

And the fact saddened you. You tried to joke around to make him laugh, if anything, to brighten his mood.

"Copying Purple Haze? So unoriginal." You rolled your eyes in a playful manner.

But Fugo, that poor boy, he misinterpreted your action. An awkward expression formed on his face as he straightened his back. "Well... you liked it when he did that...? So, uh..." His stammers were horrible to listen to. You had to do something, but what? How to show him that he was appreciated, forgiven? Show him –

You sighed, shook your head lightly. If it meant that you'd have to overstep your boundaries, then so be it.

Fugo's guard was low, so you took advantage of that to dive in for a tight hug. He simply froze – this surprised him vastly, you were certain. You were surprised as well. Purple Haze? That was nothing. Hugging Fugo was dozens of times scarier, or at least that was what your heartbeat rightfully dictated.

Because he was rigid. Unmoving, unsettling – unwelcoming.

The realization crept on you: you miscalculated. You quickly found yourself wanting to move away, doubts and misconceptions landing on your conscience like the worst of sham. It was as if you were rejected – no, no, you were being rejected, by someone who you truly cared for, and somehow, you understood in that regretful moment, by someone you wanted to care about you as well.

Affection, for him? That couldn't work, that would never work. You wanted to strip him off of it, for he could not handle it. That was when you felt him shift, move his arms upwards to – to actually hug you back.

Gentle words reached your ear, healing your hurting soul. "You... um, you smell nice," he complimented quietly. Just like that, a grin overtook your face. One statement, and he erased all of your aches.

You mumbled a thank you. Fugo would assume that it was simply gratitude for his kind words, but you knew its meaning was a lofty one – through this, you believed you realized your feelings towards him. And what once was a hurrying heartbeat that raced with fear, became a gleeful sensation that spread all over your chest.

Fleeting was the embrace, far too long and yet – surely not enough. Once the two of you stepped away from each other, no words were discovered to describe the moment. Fugo held a bashful smile, and you knew he wouldn't speak up first. You noticed a detail more, something that instantly made you chuckle.

"You dropped the poor flower," you told him with a pout.

"I... I had greater priorities other than holding it," he justified himself.

Priorities, he mentioned? Oh, you remembered something very important.

"Speaking of greater priorities, I am driving us back," you informed, placing your hands on your hips. Fugo had no choice but to agree.

Purple Haze was a fitting stand indeed. Misunderstood, just like his user, and undoubtedly a sweetheart.

[forgive-me-your-highness]

I ask you a question. You answer a question. Repeat.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Although lemons are sour and I'm sweet

What are three shows in your watchlist that you’ve been meaning to get to?

Surprisingly none! I stick with my favorites, well, I am catching up on The Good Doctor right now.

Describe your favorite pair of socks

Thick fuzzy ones, they're gray knit with soft fluffy insides and have polar bear faces sewed onto the front.

Do you like smoothies?

Mhm! I make a banana/strawberry/blueberry/spinach one everyday.

What do you wear when you have to dress nicely?

I have some nice pants + shirt/vest duo as well as a nice navy lace dress, just depends on what I want to wear.

How do you like your eggs?

Scrambled, fried, and hard boiled in that order.

What do you use to keep your place when you’re reading a book?

I fold the corner. Blasphemy I know.

What color dominates your closet?

Black or blue.

Do you collect anything? If so, what?

Hmm I used to collect funko pop's but I only collected the ones I liked and now I have them. I guess I don't collect much, sometimes shells from beaches and stuff.

What sounds or scents calm you down?

There's a specific frog audio that my mom played for me when I was very young that helped me sleep, it's turned into a comfort sound for me now. Lavender or the perfume my mom uses is also comforting.

What’s your favorite kind of uquiz question? (Lyric, color, aesthetic, etc)

I like aesthetic with pictures. I can't read to save my life.

Do you wear glasses or contacts?

Nope, although I have a feeling I might need some.

What’s something about your best friend that you love?

Even if we're hours apart I still get to spend more time with them than anyone else. They take the time to talk to me and I'm always eager to relax and hang out with them. They're so smart and even helped me with a subject I struggle in.

Do you prefer to write in pen or pencil?

Pen, if I'm writing in pencil I have to be using a mechanical one.

What are some places where you feel most at home?

My bed and room, anywhere soft and cozy. The beach too.

Do you have any houseplants? Do any of them have names?

I only have one and it's an aloe plant I keep in my room. It doesn't have a name.

Describe your favorite hoodie. How long have you had it? What makes it unique?

AH okay my favorite one currently! It's a light blue hoodie from Tilly's that says "Stay away please and thank you" and I absolutely live in it. Had it for a few months now.

What’s the last thing you ordered online?

Skyward Sword HD!

What’s one historical event that you would have liked to have witnessed?

Bit morbid but either the Salem Witch Trials, Black Plague, or the disappearing of one of the British Colonies.

What’s your favorite Halloween costume from when you were a kid?

I dressed as Ariel a lot, I want to say I dressed as Merida in elementary as well.

What kind of math are you best at?

Angles and Shapes.

What’s your favorite period in art history, your favorite famous work and/or your favorite style of art? If you don’t know any that’s ok!

Well, I don't know the period of art but anything that has to do with water color I adore.

Iced or hot drinks?

Hmm Iced.

Which songs do you like to sing in the shower?

Um not many sadly. Was teased for doing that so I quit years ago.

Are you a good driver?

LMAO NO, I'm learning soon but I have run over a tree on a golf cart among many other things.

Do you have any piercings or tattoos? Are there any that you want?

Only one lobe pierced, my right one. There's a handful of tattoo's I want if I wasn't a pussy, as well as piercings. Lip and tongue definitely, nipples, more on my ears, I don't like anything too drastic I'd probably just keep studs or small hoops.

Can you cook or bake? If so, what are some of your specialties?

Mhm! I bake super good brownies and my favorite thing to cook is either meat rice balls or omelets.

Do you have any keychains on your home or car keys? Describe them!

Oh I have MANY. I keep a green rupee chain on my key, I have a Legend snack keychain, a Four Sword, Minish Cap Link, and Vaati on my backpack. Purse has Midna and Wild as well as Toon Zelda.

Can you swim very well? Do you like swimming?

I can swim, not gracefully, but I certainly won't drown. I do like to swim!

Did you play with Legos as a kid? What was your favorite set?

HELL YEAH I DID! Ninjago my beloved! My favorite set I owned is probably, well it ties between, The Monastery and the Destiny's Bounty, and my original first season sets are Cole's Earth Drill from Season 2 and my Ratla Bike from Season 1!

Is your closet organized? If so, how?

At one house absolutely not. At the other I have my dresser in one half, shirts hung on other, folded sheets on the closet floor + a bin for old stuffed animals.

What’s the last music video you watched?

Umm I think Bottom of the Deep Blue by MISSIO? I'm not one for music videos but it was in a playlist.

If you could dye your hair any color, regardless of how you think it would look, what color would you choose?

Oh man I've done this so many times. I'd go for a purple again or a deep ocean blue.

Headphones or earbuds?

HEADPHONES, hands down, 100%

Can you read analog clocks?

Yup! Surprisingly I was one of two people who could read one in a class so I was dubbed the time keeper.

Describe your favorite stuffed animal, either now or from when you were a kid.

I have two. One is a sesame street character I've had for years. His fur is matted down and he has been patched up so many times. I also have a newer Toothless plush I love.

What’s an arcade or table game (air hockey, ping pong, etc) that you’re really good at?

Air Hockey, I kick ASS at that!

Do you mind if others are in the kitchen when you’re cooking or baking?

Not at all! So long as I don't accidentally bump them all will go smooth.

What’s one show you watch or musician you listen to that your friends know nothing about?

Hmm probably music by John Powell or Rozen.

What was the best part of your day today?

Getting to hang out with my favorite Toad, hands down. They bring so much joy!

What’s your favorite kind of tree?

Birch or Weeping Willow. Basic bitch I know.

What scent is your deodorant?

Fucking uhh pomegranate or something?

Do you have any games on your phone? If so, which one(s) is/are your favorite?

I do yup! I like Axalochi and Bubble Pop

Do you shower with the lights on or off?

ON?? PEOPLE SHOWER WITH LIGHTS OFF?? It could be broad daylight and I still turn the light on.

What do you do with spare change?

Save it in jars. I kid you not.

Do you have good handwriting?

Ehhh it's not the best but it's not the worst.

What’s the last thing a friend recommended to you that you looked into and actually liked?

Heheh, Zelda/Zelda ships. So fucking good.

Do you like to go on walks?

Yes! Depending on who I'm with I love to.

Do you have a favorite plate or bowl?

Hmm no I don't think so. I do have favorite silverware though.

What’s your favorite thing to do when it’s raining?

Stay inside, open a window to listen, and chat with my friends or draw.

Describe your perfect sleeping conditions

Cold, bundled in blankets, hood pulled up and sock on, cuddled up to a pillow or someone I love. Cat resting on my chest or curled up against my tummy if I'm laying on my side.

[is0gild]

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Chapter 11

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 8,761

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

“Please, Ray, think of the child!”

“I am! Cuz this is my last few months of freedom!”

It was getting late and things were winding down now in 7th Heaven. Most of the gang from the mall had already split and there were just a few stragglers left. It may have come as a shock to find me among them. Or maybe not, given Anna and I were carpooling and my little sister had never, ever been one to call it an early night.

Rayne apparently wasn’t ready for the party to be over yet either. Much to Riku’s dismay, she had climbed up onto a table for what was probably now the sixth time tonight and was rocking her best dancing queen moves. I snorted as I watched her work it, always managing to boogie-dodge out of the way whenever Riku would make a desperate grab for her ankles. I was almost surprised Anna wasn’t up there cutting the proverbial rug with her right now like she had been earlier.

“Trying to wrangle the wife so you two can head out for the night?” I asked, stepping up beside Riku.

His shoulders slumped as he released a long suffering sigh, “Yeah, if only she’d stand still long enough.” Once again his hand swiped out and once again she evaded him with ease as she razzed her tongue at him before spinning around to shake her munny-maker in his general direction. “Now she’s just taunting me,” he grumbled.

I brought a hand up to hide my grin. “Need help?”

“Nah, I got it.” He glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes. “You catching a ride home with us tonight?”

“No thanks,” I shook my head. “Anna is more alcohol than person at this point. She has no business being behind a wheel, so she’s going to need me to drive her. Will it be okay if she sleeps on your couch?”

He nodded, “Fine by me. Sure you yourself are good to drive?”

I cocked an eyebrow at him. “If you’re referring to that one sip I had on the karaoke stage, that was hours ago. Trust me, I’m good.” Looking around, I then asked, “Any idea where Anna may have gotten off to?”

“Haven’t seen her for a while now, but I’m sure she’ll turn up. Maybe check with-”

“Catch me!”

Eyes going round, Riku hastily threw his arms out just in time for Rayne to land in them princess-style. Giggling, she wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a loud smooch on his cheek. He gave an amused huff through his nose, muttering, “Woman, you’re gonna be the death of me.”

“And you’ll love every minute of it, my knight in shining armor,” she cooed, hugging him tighter and nuzzling her face into his neck.

He snerked, closing his eyes. “You’re right. Probably need my head examined.”

I felt a tug at one corner of my mouth. “Looks like you have your hands full with this one, Riku. Good luck.”

“Eh, it’s just this place. She’ll be all sobered up by the time we’re on the road. Speaking of which, we should probably get going.” Still carrying her, he started to turn to leave but then stopped and peered back at me with a smile. “Oh, and Elsa? Great job at the mic tonight. You were amazing.”

I blinked, then looked down with a weak chuckle. “No, not really.”

He gave my leg a friendly nudge with his shoe, seeing as how his hands were otherwise occupied. “Yes, really. Anyway, see you back at home.”

“Hi-ho Silver, away!” Rayne cried, jabbing a finger out and kicking up a leg.

“If you’re expecting me to gallop and whinny, sorry, not happening,” Riku said flatly as he started making his way towards the door.

“Aw, please?” she dragged out the word and I could all but hear the pout in her voice.

I hummed a soft laugh as I watched them go. I’d said it before and I’ll say it again… they really were so sweet. It was hard not to envy them and what they had, the relationship and life they’d built together. I wondered if I could ever have anything like that with someone. I mean, I’d had my chance with my ex and had blown it. I’d never felt anything even remotely like that for him in the years we’d been together. Could I if the right person came along? Or was I just…

...not built that way?

In any case, this wasn’t the time to be thinking about such things. Romance was the least of my worries at the moment. What with having made the wholly unwise and completely spur of the moment decision to turn my entire life utterly upside down, there were much more pressing matters to deal with.

Not the least of which was locating one rambunctious and currently quite heavily sauced little sister.

Now where to even start looking? Hmmm… pretty sure I’d seen her last holed up in one of the booths with Xion, heads hunched together, whispering and cackling about something. What exactly? Not entirely sure. Part of me had been a little too afraid to find out. Either way, checking in with Xion would probably be my best bet. I knew she’d been making the rounds and saying good night to everyone, but I didn’t think she’d left just yet.

It took a few minutes as the bar was still pretty jam packed, but I finally caught sight of her over by the arcade machines chatting with Olette and Hayner. She waved goodbye to the other two before turning and spotting me as I approached. “Oh hiya!” she smiled broadly. “Glad you decided to join us tonight, hope you had fun!”

I smiled back, “I did, thanks.” And I wasn’t just being polite. Oddly enough, I actually meant it. “So hey, any clue where Anna might be?”

She pursed her lips to one side, giving a low hum before at last shaking her head. “Nope! Sorry. She and I were hanging out a bit ago, but then she ran off. Haven’t seen her since. Why don’t you try calling her? You’re still phoneless, right?” She dug hers out of one of her pockets. “Here, use mine.”

I took it from her and almost dropped it when it immediately started vibrating against my palm. The screen lit up with Anna’s name and a photo selfie of her next to Xion in one of the booths here, both posing with duck face and white girl gangsta hand gestures. Speak of the devil. Apparently, the phone was receiving an incoming call from my sister. I arched an eyebrow up at Xion, to which she just laughed, “Oh yeah, we exchanged numbers. Perfect timing, huh?”

Perfecting timing indeed.

Shrugging it off, I pressed the green button and brought the device up to my ear, “Anna?”

A loud dramatic gasp came through from the other end, “Xi-Xi! Has anyone ever told you that you sound exactly like my sister?”

My eyelids drooped. “This is your sister.”

Another gasp. “Sis! Has anyone ever told you that you sound exactly like Xi-Xi doing a spot on impression of you?”

“You’d be the first,” I rolled my eyes, squinting as I took another quick glance around the pub. “Where are you? We should probably get going.”

“But I am going!” her voice slurred through the speaker. “I’m already loooooong gone, baby, woo!”

“Oh, no doubt about that,” I snerked. Xion pointed over to Meg and Tiana, indicating she wanted to catch them before they left and I nodded as she walked off. “But no, I mean going as in driving. You know, like in a car? Beep beep, vroom vroom?”

She huffed, “But that’s what I’m saying! I am in a car with all the beep beeps and vroom vrooms!”

My eyebrows knit together. “You are? With who?”

“Ray-Ray and Ri-Ri of course!” she chirped.

Anna was oh so clever and original at coming up with nicknames, if you hadn’t guessed by this point. “What? But I told Riku I’d be driving you. Like, not even five minutes ago.”

“Yeah, I caught them as they were leaving and Ri-Ri said something about that, but told him I figured I’d just snag a ride with them cuz you decided to stay a tad longer to hang out with yo peeps!”

“Oh I did, did I?” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Funny, I don’t remember saying anything like that.”

“Well, no, not in so many words, but I knew. I could tell. Sisterly intu… intu-ish-ish, uh…” she sluggishly stumbled over the word for a bit before instead settling on, “I’m psychic!”

“I see. Fine then, oh great and powerful reader of minds, what am I thinking about right this second?”

There was a pause. Then, “You’re thinking… no, wondering… how… glue doesn’t stick to the inside of its own bottle?”

“No.” Well… yes actually, since she’d brought it up, now I was. But Anna didn’t need to know that! “I’m wondering where the keys to your car are.”

“Oh!” Another pause, then some shuffling noises followed by a loud jangle. “Right here!”

I frowned, heaving a sigh through my nose. “Perfect. So then tell me, Anna, because I’d really love to know… how am I supposed to get home?”

“Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Just ask someone there to take ya. Oh oh, ask Xi-Xi! Besides, you shouldn’t be driving anyway, ya boozehound!”

“Oh my god, it was just one sip!” I facepalmed. “Look, can you just put Riku on the phone? You guys can’t have driven that far yet, I’m sure he won’t mind turning around. Besides, we shouldn’t just leave your car here overnight.”

She scoffed, “It’ll be fine, I can get it in the morning!”

“Anna, please, can you just hand the phone to-”

“What was that?” she asked before making a loud, crackly hiss through her teeth in a super obvious and super fake attempt at static noises. “Sis? You’re breaking up! I’m going through a tunnel, I can’t-” More hissing followed by a long beep, presumably Anna pressing down on what she thought was the ‘End Call’ button. It wasn’t. “...hehehe, all according to plan.”

 “You know I’m still here and can still hear you, right?” I deadpanned.

“Gah!” Another beep and the line actually went dead this time.

I pulled the phone away from my ear to narrow my eyes down at it.

What were you up to, brat?

“So!” Xion beamed as she abruptly popped back up in front of me, making me jump as my hand flew up to my chest. “Looks like you’re hitching a ride with me!”

My brow furrowed, “How did you-?”

“We better hit the road then!” she took her phone back as she slung her other arm around my shoulders, making me stagger into a walk beside her as she directed us towards the exit. “I gave the boys my keys so they could let themselves into the car, so they should already be all buckled in and good to go!”

Okay, something was beyond fishy here.

I started reaching towards her hand to remove it, “Thank you, but this isn’t necessary. Could I just maybe borrow your phone again and try Riku’s or Rayne’s numbers directly? I don’t want to be any trouble, really.”

“Nonsense!” She swatted my hand away before barreling us through the door and out into the night. “No trouble at all! I’m only too happy to drive you. Besides, with all that testosterone swimming in giggle juice stuffed into one teeny-tiny car, I’m grateful for another sane female presence. Trust me, you’re doing me a favor!”

As we made our way down the steps and into the parking lot, I tried again, “But-”

“Arr, avast ye scallywags!” Roxas suddenly jumped out in front of us from between two cars, earning a yelp from the both of us. He drunkenly wobbled into a battle stance, brandishing a broken tree branch in our faces. “Surrender yer booty or taste the cold steel of my blade, yar!”

Xion fixed him with a dull stare and crossed her arms. “Roxas, that’s a stick.”

“Wha?” Blinking groggily at his makeshift weapon a couple times, he then shouted, “Think fast!” He chucked it, missing us by miles and instead hitting some random car, setting off its alarm. Then he sniggered and spun around to make a break for it, only to trip over his own two feet and hit the asphalt hard. He hiccuped before calling out a weak, “I’m okay!” Scrambling to his feet once more, he managed to stumble across Xion’s Prius a few vehicles down and dive (well… more like fall) head first through one of the backseat windows, shoes flailing about wildly in the air for a few seconds before getting pulled inside with the rest of him.

Her lips flapped as she puffed out a breath. “Ugh, Rox is such a lightweight. At least Lea knows how to hold his hooch a little better. But see? See what I have to put up with?” She pressed her palms together and held them up under her chin, “Please, please just let me give you a ride home so you can keep those baboons from driving me bonkers.”

My lips pressed into a thin line. “...oh, alright.” Then I scraped together a small smile, “Thanks.” 

“Yes!” she pumped her fist before she resumed walking and I reluctantly followed. “And don’t mention it!”

As I gave her my address to put in her phone for directions, we walked around behind her car and I looked longingly at Anna’s Porsche, just one space over. So close, I could reach out and touch it. Ugh. Besides not being able to quite shake the feeling that I was wandering headlong into a carefully laid trap courtesy of Anna and I was beginning to strongly suspect Xion too, I’d just plain had enough of being around people for one night. My social battery was depleted and in serious need of recharging, so even something so simple as a car ride with others sounded like a lot.

Hmm... wonder what my chances of success would be if I tried to break in and hotwire Anna’s car?

Probably not the best considering when it came to grand theft auto, I didn’t have the foggiest of where to even begin. But hey, someone had to be the first to figure out how to start up a car sans keys. And that person wouldn’t have even had Youtube tutorial videos to help them through the whole process, so who knew, maybe I had a shot.

Meh. I should just suck it up and go with Xion. Ten more minutes of human interaction wasn’t going to kill me.

...famous last words.

Xion opened the door to the backseat and held out her hand to whoever was seated inside, curling and uncurling her fingers a couple times. “Keys.”

Another hand stretched out from within the car, dropping the requested item into her awaiting palm with a muted clink. As the arm was pulled back inside, it was replaced by a fiery head of hair poking out to quirk an eyebrow back at me. “El?” Lea called out. “What’re you doing here?”

Xion stepped aside so I could walk up, coming to a stop between the open door and where he was buckled in in the back. With a tiny, awkward laugh, I said, “It, uh… looks like I’ll be catching a ride with you guys tonight.”

“Oh?” he smiled up at me, but then it quickly faded. “But there’s not really space…”

“There’s not?” I frowned, bowing down a bit to get a better look into the car. Sitting next to Lea were two Roxases. Or rather… I guess one was his brother… Ventus, was it? I didn’t know them well enough yet to tell which was which. Drat, I couldn’t even remember what Roxas had been wearing thirty seconds ago when he’d tried to hold us up at stick-point. And neither one was in their work clothes, so I didn’t even have that as a clue. As for the front passenger spot, that was already occupied as well. Naminé had twisted around her seat there to give me a wave with a warm grin.

“Oopsie,” Xion singsonged behind me a touch too innocently, “looks like I miscalculated available car space!”

I turned to squint suspiciously at her. “You told me you needed another,” here I used finger quotes, “sane female presence in the car with you.”

“Yeah, another. Never said anything about you being the only one.”

My gaze shot skyward as I released a soft huff. “Well… thanks anyway, but looks like I’ll be needing Riku to come back for me after all. Could someone lend me their phone please?”

“Nah, it’s fine, don’t make him drive all the way here again,” Lea batted a hand and started reaching for his seatbelt. “El, take my seat, I’ll just walk back to my place, it’s not that far.”

“Please, I’m not letting you walk your drunk ass home in the middle of the night,” Xion said sternly.

“Yeah, we’ll just stuff your drunk ass into the trunk instead!” Roxas (or was it Ventus?) cackled beside him.

He snorted, “Like I’d even fit in there. If anyone’s going in the trunk, it’s Nams. She’s the smallest.”

She blinked back at the boys before tapping a finger to her chin, “Well, I guess if it’ll make everything easier…”

“No one’s going in the trunk, Nams, he was joking,” Xion rolled her eyes.

I decided to try again, “Now about that phone?”

“Worry not! We can make this work,” Xion smirked and I didn't like that sudden gleam in her eye. “It’ll just get a lil cozy, but that’s okay. We’re all friends here, right? Right.” And with that, her hands shot forward, shoving me into a backward stumble.

And straight into Lea’s lap.

I felt his whole body jerk and tense beneath mine. As my brain was still trying to catch up and process what exactly it was that had just happened, Xion cooed all sugary sweet like, “Watch your toesies there,” lightly kicking my feet in along with the rest of me before slamming the car door shut.

“Xion!” Lea yelled, grabbing the door handle and yanking on it several times, but it remained shut tight. “This isn’t funny! Open the door!” She just brought her face down to the window, sticking her tongue out as she waggled her fingers at him before skipping off around to the other side of the car. He banged his fist against the window glass, “Damn it!”

Oh no…

Oh.

No.

“W-what’s wrong with the door?” I asked, my breathing growing rapid as I pulled on the handle a few times myself, but still it didn’t budge. “Is it stuck?”

Lea flopped his head back against the headrest, raking his fingers through his hair as he grumbled, “Child lock.”

“Yup!” piped Xion as she plopped down into the driver's seat, buckling herself in. “Rox here has tried one too many times now to jump outta a moving vehicle while plastered.”

“Keep telling ya, I’ll be fine!” the one next to the other backseat window snapped. Guess that’d make him Roxas.

She snorted, turning the key in the ignition. “For the last time, no, you won’t. Being three sheets to the wind doesn’t make you as invulnerable as you seem to think it does, sorry bud.”

I barely heard a word that was being said, heart thudding loudly now as my fingers frantically and repeatedly pressed the window button. I was not above climbing out that way to escape! However, the window remained firmly closed and I heard the one opposite of us rolling up as well.

I caught Naminé casting me a look of concern through the rearview mirror before she glanced at Xion, “Um… maybe this isn’t really the best id-”

“Shush, it’ll be fine!” Xion brushed her off before backing the car out of the parking space. “And we’re off!”

Oh god, oh god, oh god, this was really happening. I rigidly sat as far forward on his legs as I could, self-consciously tugging at the hem of my mini skirt. I still hadn’t purchased any tights to wear under them, so there was also that. 

Worst. 

Work attire. 

Ever. 

I stopped fussing with it, instead concentrating on sitting as still as humanly possible, planting my elbows on my knees and clasping my hands over my nose, mouth, and searing cheeks.

Breathe. Breathe. Okay, Elsa, calm down. This isn’t another person you’re sitting on. It’s a chair. Just… just a chair…

A very warm, firm, shifting, breathing, distressingly person-shaped chair.

Yeah, no, that wasn’t helping.

My eyes screwed tightly shut.

Alright, okay, try this instead! Just picture like you’re a child again, sitting on Santa's lap and telling him what you want for Christmas!

...except I’d always been terrified of Santa Claus as a kid and had screamed bloody murder until they’d take me away from him.

Ugh, this wasn’t working! Were we there yet? Was it almost over? Please, oh please let us almost be back to the apartment!

I peeked one eye open and...

We weren’t. In fact, we’d just barely left the parking lot and were waiting at a light. Out of my peripheral, I saw Lea’s hands hovering about awkwardly, clearly not sure what to do with them. At last, he settled on one grabbing the edge of the seat to the left of his knees while the other fumbled about against the door, the window, the ceiling, basically trying to be anywhere but on me.

This was awful. One could all but choke on the sheer amount of awkward, it was so palpable. This was one hundred and ten percent the type of situation I would usually nopety-nope the hell out of faster than you could say ‘panic attack’. But I couldn’t! I was trapped! No way out!

Except… hold up, maybe there was one way out… it was a long shot, but...

Squeezing my eyes shut once again, I clicked my heels together three times.

There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home…

I peeked one eye open.

Fudge, still here.

Maybe it’d help if I actually had ruby slippers.

Stupid, useless, non-magical, suede ankle boots. 

“I’m really sorry about this,” I heard Lea mumble behind me.

I twitched, then quickly shook my head, “Don’t be, it’s not-”

“Sweet! Light’s green!” Xion whooped before slamming the pedal to the metal.

The car leapt forward, knocking me into a backward slide along Lea’s lap, my back thumping against his chest. I heard him suck in a sharp breath and groan softly, his hand on the seat cushion gripping harder. I stammered, “S-sorry, did I hurt you?”

Voice somewhat strained, he said, “No, not at all, it’s, er… hm, it’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.” His breath tickled against my neck and shoulder, making me shiver and my blush burn hotter. It was a wonder my whole body wasn’t glowing in the dark at this point. “Your, ah… your hair… may I ask the, um… the scent?”

Oh gosh, he must have gotten a face full of ponytail when I had been thrown up against him just now. “Snowberry? I believe is the, erm… the flavor of shampoo.” I winced. “Not flavor! D-don’t know why I said that, I don’t know what it tastes like! Not like I go around eating shampoo, who would do that? Crazy people, that’s who! I’m perfectly normal and eat normal things like-” Ugh, stop rambling! You may not eat shampoo, but you’re definitely sounding like a crazy person right now! “Nevermind. Anyway, sorry… I know it- the shampoo that is... that the smell tends to be a bit strong.”

“No, no, it’s, uh…” he cleared his throat, “... it’s nice. Very-”

There was a loud thud that jolted the whole car, making me bounce in his lap, much to my utter horror. I heard a tiny whimper from Lea as his knuckles started turning white. 

“Sorry,” Xion laughed, “pothole!”

Oh, Xion. Dear, sweet Xion… what did I ever do to you to deserve all this? Did I mess up one of your ice cream orders? Give you a sugar cone when you had wanted waffle? Or only two scoops when you had asked for three? Served you a Sea Salt that was an insultingly subpar shade of blue?

And Anna… oh-ho, trust me, this little stunt had that hellion’s name written all over it, no doubt about that. I don’t know what she was even trying to accomplish here, but when I got my hands on her… sorry, Mother, Father, but your littlest would be coming home to you in a friggin’ body bag.

“So Lea,” Ventus elbowed him in the arm abruptly, “I feel like you and I don’t get to talk much, like, ever. Figure now’s a good a time as any to fix that. So tell me, buddy, cuz I really wanna know…” his lips curled wickedly as he leaned in closer to him, eyebrows waggling, “...what’s up?”

Lea shoved him away and into Roxas, who snickered, “Ooo, sore subject, I take it? Don’t worry about it, big guy. Too much booze can do that to man and-”

A second, more forceful shove from Lea, this time knocking the twins’ heads together with a satisfying smack as he snarled, “If you two twerps don’t cram it, I’m gonna-”

“Oopsie, stop sign!” Xion announced brightly, stomping down on the brakes hard.

As the tires squealed to a stop, I flew forward, but was saved by Lea’s arm instinctively latching around my waist. He breathed a sigh of relief, but then his muscles stiffened. “S-sorry,” he hastily removed his hand from my hip… only to rest it on my bare thigh instead. Instantly realizing his mistake, another louder, more panicked, “Sorry!” as he jerked the hand away, electing to jam it under his leg instead.

One had to wonder what the boiling point of human was, because at the rate my head-to-toe blush was going, I had to be fast approaching it.

“Onward!” Xion cheerfully boomed, flooring it once more, flinging me back and starting the whole cycle anew.

The rest of the trip probably lasted only a grand total of five more minutes. However, it felt like five centuries, with a decade tacked on for every sudden acceleration, sharp turn or jerky stop. I swear Xion was purposely seeking out every last dang bump and ditch in the stupid road. I never even realized there were so many! If I hadn’t known any better, I’d have suspected her of doubling back to hit some of them twice.

Finally, after what seemed like an absolute gut-wrenching eternity, she mercifully sang out a chipper, “Here we are!” as we pulled into the parking lot for my apartment complex.

Oh thank goodness!

As we came to what had to be the smoothest stop the whole ride, I was already tugging on the door handle restlessly, impatient for Xion to release the infernal child lock. “Alright, alright, hold your horses,” she snerked, taking her sweet time to tap a button on her armrest. There was a click beside me and with one final pull of the handle, the car door popped open. In the blink of an eye, I was gone.

Road Runner, eat your heart out.

“Elsa, wait!” Lea called out behind me. 

I was feeling so humiliated, so mortified, so wanting to be anywhere but here in that exact second that nothing could have stopped me. Not hell or high water. Not the zombie apocalypse. Not an alien invasion. Not the inevitable heat death of the universe snuffing out all life and existence as we know it everywhere. Nothing.

Well… almost nothing.

Turns out the one thing that could stop me was a clattering sound, followed by a, “Motherfu-” then a heavy tumbling thud accompanied by a pained grunt, all topped off at the end with a tiny, almost inaudible “Ow.”

I froze a mere few inches short of the building entrance, my hand already reaching for the door - aka my ticket out of this nightmare - and haltingly glanced back over my shoulder. There Lea was, halfway out the car, back sprawled flat against the pavement, eyes squeezed shut in a grimace, feet still up inside the vehicle where they’d somehow gotten all tangled in the seatbelt.

...this… dork…

Despite every fiber of my being still telling me to run, something in me found the will to resist. Instead I turned and slowly, reluctantly walked back, coming to a stop beside him and squatting down, knees together and arms folded over them. “...you okay?”

His eyes snapped open and he blinked up at me a couple times, surprised to see me there. Then he scrabbled to get up, failed miserably due to the seatbelt predicament and instead just ended up flopping about like a hooked fish. Finally, feet still up above his head, he just settled for rolling over onto one side, propping himself up on an elbow while the other hand went to his head with a soft hiss. “Yeah, nothing bruised ‘sides my ego.” He paused, peeking at me out of the corner of his eye. “...are we?”

I stared blankly at him, slightly tipping my head to one side.

“Okay, that is,” he elaborated. “Please believe me, I had nothing to do with this, had zero clue what the, erm… seating arrangements were gonna be.” I looked away, feeling a now all too familiar warmth creeping back into my face as the corner of my lips pulled down. He was quick to add, “And make no mistake, the culprit will not go unpunished. Heads will roll. There will be repercussions, young lady!” he directed the last threat in a yell back towards the car.

“You’re not my real dad!” Xion shouted back and it was followed by a chorus of giggles from the rest of Prius’s occupants.

Lea hung his head and heaved a sigh. “I swear, I get no respect.”

I shifted one arm to prop my chin in my palm, fingers hiding a growing grin despite myself. I nodded, “...yeah. You and I... we’re okay.” I then turned my head to shoot a small glare back towards my apartment building, “I can’t say the same though for my own little troublemaker. Yours didn’t act alone and had an accomplice, one who’ll soon be reaping the excruciating consequences of her actions.”

“I pity anyone fool enough to provoke your wrath,” he chuckled.

“Trust me, I know how to bring the pain. She will rue the day.”

“Oh, I have no doubt about that.” There was a thunk as one of Lea’s feet suddenly fell free. It seemed Naminé, feeling sorry for the big lug, had sat up on her knees and flipped around, leaning over the back of her seat so she could disentwine his ankles from the impromptu snare. With one down, her fingers set to work on unwinding the other one. “Thanks Nams! Looks like I have a new bestie, cuz my current ones suck and/or are not long for this world.”

The car’s engine revved and abruptly rolled forward a few feet, dragging Lea with it. “Xion!” he snapped and the wheels screeched to a stop.

“Ven did it!” Xion blurted out, voice bubbling with laughter.

“Wha- Did not!”

“Don’t lie, I saw you,” an identical voice could be heard, tone colored by a smirk.

“You’re the liar, Rox!”

Again, the Prius started to inch forward. Reacting on impulse, my hands darted out and latched onto Lea’s wrists. That combined with a now distraught Naminé working feverishly to finish untangling the seatbelt finally had his other leg pulling loose. He was fast to hop up to his feet and as I straightened up to join him, he scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. “Heh, thanks! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a couple of ex-friends to brutally slaughter.”

And with that, he charged off in a blur after the car. Cackles and jeers from within echoed out into the night, mingled with the tires shrieking as Xion burned rubber to stay ahead of him. I shook my head, deciding to leave them to it as I turned my back on the scene and made my way inside.

I was still a little rattled from that whole… ahem, experience. My cheeks had yet to make a full recovery, still redder than molten magma and three times as hot. But hey, that was an improvement over the ten times as hot they’d been during the entire car ride, so… progress! Awesome. Not to mention I felt physically and emotionally exhausted and was pretty sure at least five years had been taken off my life. I was just about ready to curl up in bed and hibernate until next Spring.

But first I had a certain sister to march to the gallows.

After climbing several flights of stairs to reach the door to my apartment, I unlocked it and stepped inside to find the room dark. My hand groped about the wall for a second before locating and flicking the switch, light flooding the space.

“Do you have any idea what time it is you’re coming home, missy?”

Startled, I spun around to find Rayne seated at the dining table, arms crossed, eyes stern, and steaming mug resting atop a coaster in front of her. Yeesh, at this rate, my heart wasn’t going to hold out much longer. Hadn’t the poor, defenseless organ suffered enough scares for one evening? Eyelids drooping, I said, “I don’t know… maybe ten minutes after you got home?”

Her lips pursed to one side. “...touché.”

“So how long have you just been sitting here in the dark like a weirdo?” I asked as I dropped my keys onto the table and moved to the fridge, opening it up.

She shrugged and grinned, “Not long. Maybe a minute or two. Thought it really sold the whole vibe I was going for.”

“Oh, it did,” I pulled out a water bottle, nudging the door shut behind me as I unscrewed the cap. “Nice mother voice, by the way. That I’m-not-mad-just-disappointed tone of yours is really coming along quite beautifully.”

“Aw, thanks!”

This whole being her parenting test dummy thing was starting to get a bit out of hand. But eh, it sort of grows on you after a while.

“So where’s Riku? Surprised he’s not out here too, enabling your neurosis,” I quirked an eyebrow as I brought the water to my lips.

Rayne waved a dismissive hand, “Brushing his teeth and getting ready for bed.”

“And Anna?” Was kind of shocked the flat was as quiet as it was right now, given that the crimson tornado that was my sister was supposedly lurking about somewhere.

As if on cue, there was a rumbling, disembodied snuffle, followed by a mumbled, “...pink yetis… fluffy unicycles…”

She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “Passed out stone cold on the couch like the absolute lush she is.”

Setting the plastic bottle down on the table, I went over to the sofa to discover Anna flopped there in an undignified heap, hair already knotted into a bedheaded rat’s nest, arms snuggling a pillow close as she snored and murmured more incoherent gibberish.

So even evil criminal masterminds looked all sweet and innocent while sleeping. Go figure.

“So you gonna fill me in?” Rayne asked, drawing my attention back to her.

My brow furrowed. “On what?”

She blew on her beverage before taking a careful sip, shooting me a deadpan look. “On whatever happened that has your cheeks lit up like a pair of stoplights and has you looking ready to strangle your lil sis.”

“Stopl-?!” I scoffed, turning my head to one side. Come on, face, you’re weak! Get your act together already. “My cheeks are fine and I most certainly do not want to strangle her.”

“Tell that to your hands.”

I looked down and said hands were clawed and halfway to Anna’s throat.

Hehe… how did those get there?

Hastily snatching them back to hide behind me, I just gave Rayne a feeble chuckle by way of answer. She patted the chair beside her, “Sit.”

I hesitated before doing as I was told. As I lowered myself into the seat, I pulled my hair free of its ponytail, my anxious fingers combing through the soft, platinum strands. My little talk with Lea after the whole ordeal had actually been rather comforting and an odd calm had managed to settle over me in the minutes since. I say ‘odd’ because it was me after all, the PanicBot 3000. However, now that I was running over the events again in my head and trying to figure out how to best put them into words, I could feel that calm fraying at the edges and beginning to unravel. 

Gnawing on my lower lip, I began, “So, you know... cars… right?”

Oh excellent. Off to a superb start here. Simply smashing.

She gave me a dull stare. “...I’m aware of the concept, yes.”

My hands, unable to keep still, moved to haphazardly weave my hair into a loose braid. “And you know how they have, uh… limited seating?” She merely gave a patient nod and here I struggled, feeling my cheeks crank up the heat again.

Damn it, face, what did we just talk about?! 

What little poise I had left suddenly ripped to tatters like tissue paper and I snapped, “Well I had to get home somehow, didn’t I? And you’d left and Anna’d left and, and the keys had left! I tried to get them to come back but Anna was too busy talking about glue and making static noises and- ugh, she can be such a- anyway, I considered hotwiring her car, obviously, but had to toss out that idea due to lack of tools or experience or, you know, actually knowing how to hotwire, so when Xion offered, I… well, there really was no other choice, was there? But there were no more- I shouldn’t have been surprised, really, I just knew something was up and oh-ho, you can bet she and Anna planned it all, but still, that doesn’t change the fact that I had to sit somewhere and there was really no other alternatives, I mean… okay, Xion? Driving. The twins? Twigs. Uncomfortable. And Naminé? So small, I would have crushed her. So, I guess, by process of elimination, when… when you really think about it, Lea was just the just most logical choice! I mean, I didn’t want to, I didn’t even know what was- not until it had already- and then once I was… ya know, there, Xion, she… she just kept stopping and starting and stopping and, and hitting every- it was like a damn bouncy castle in there! I wanted to leave, oh dear god, you have no idea how much I just wanted to leave, but I couldn’t because apparently Roxas likes to pull a friggin’ Superman or whatever on the highway whenever he’s-”

Rayne clamped a hand over my mouth, silencing me except for the loud, rapid breaths through my nose. Her eyes squinted at me. “So… cliff notes version? Xion gave you a ride home.”

Her palm still effectively muzzling me, I simply nodded.

“...but she already had a full car and there were no seats left?”

I nodded again, hands twisting and tugging on my now complete, if somewhat sloppy braid.

“So you had to sit,” here a slow smirk curled her lips, “on Lea.”

My head bobbed frantically now and I was jerking on the braid so hard, I was afraid I‘d rip it clean out of my scalp. 

She snerked. Then spluttered. Then busted up laughing, nearly falling out of her chair.

...so not cool.

I kicked her in the shin, shutting her up just as Anna shot up on the couch, disturbed from her slumber by all the noise. My sister looked around, all bleary-eyed and slack-jawed, doing her best zombie impersonation. Don’t think she’d quite made a full exit out of dreamland. She groggily turned her head towards us, smacked her lips and mumbled, “What’s the sum of pizza divided by the square root of sandwiches?”

We both blinked at her before I shrugged and Rayne shook her head.

“Chartreuse,” she enunciated slowly and with an air of authority. Then she flumped back down, snoring thunderously once more.

Rayne began to snicker again, more softly this time and I shoved away the hand that was still acting as a jury-rigged gag, huffing, “I fail to see what’s so funny about all this.”

Wiping the corners of her eyes, she tried to sober her expression but only ended up cracking up again, saying, “You gave Lea a lap dance!”

Just about every last ounce of blood in my body flooded up into my face. “Wha- I- He- I most certainly did not!”

Her hand now went to pat my shoulder, “Okay, okay, sweetie, just answer a few quick and simple questions for me. Were you or were you not in his lap?”

“Well, yes, technically, but-”

“And did you not dance in said lap?”

“No, I did no such-”

“Fine,” her hands came up in a placating gesture, “allow me to retract and rephrase the question. Was there not the shifting and moving of your body in his lap? Answer truthfully now,” she tacked on quickly as I opened my mouth, “for I do believe the term ‘bouncy castle’ was used earlier.”

My teeth clicked shut as I glowered at her. “...well, yes, I suppose there may have been some… inadvertent shifting, but-”

“And,” she pressed on gleefully, “is not ‘the moving and shifting of one’s body’ an acceptable, working definition of the word… dancing?”

I narrowed my eyes at her and said nothing.

She smugly relaxed back in her seat. “Let the record show the defendant is speechless. I rest my case.”

“...I really hate you right now,” I grumbled, snatching up my water bottle again and unscrewing the lid.

“Love ya too, sweetpea,” Rayne winked and blew me a kiss. She then fell silent for a second, eyeing me thoughtfully as I took a sip. Then, “You know Lea used to be a big ol’ man-slut?”

I choked.

Nope, still can’t breathe water yet.

Coughing and wheezing as I put my drink back down, I struggled to get out, “Excuse me?”

“Oh yeah,” she plonked her elbows on the table, chin nestled in her palms as she smiled big at me. “You know the type. Smooth talker, real charmer, taking a different girl back to his place every night. It was almost kind of amazing watching him work. He had it down to an art form, but not like in a sleazy douchebag way… he just loved the ladies and the ladies loved him, I suppose.”

“...okay?” Wasn’t quite sure why she was telling me this.

“And when you and him got left alone in the booth earlier tonight? Well there was a time not too long ago that the, ah… discourse between you two? Would have ended up a lot less vertical and a little more horizontal, if ya know what I’m saying,” she waggled her eyebrows at me.

I scoffed, “Please. I don’t care how much of a ladykiller he was, this is still me we’re talking about here.”

She gave a low hum at that. “True. Talk about unstoppable force meets immovable object. Now I’m actually pretty curious about how that all would’ve really played out.” Her shoulders shrugged, “Anyway, when he went back to college again, he decided to hang up his casanova hat. He really wanted to give his education a fair shake this time around, which to him meant cutting out all his vices and distractions, including women. None of us took him seriously at first, but he’s surprised us all by sticking to it. For over a year now, he’s been on his best behavior. A total priest.”

Huh. I do remember when he was telling me about going back to school, he did say something about dropping old habits… I guess maybe dating had been one of them?

Rayne gave an abrupt, tiny snerk, muffling it behind her knuckles. A crease formed between my eyebrows, “What?”

She shook her head, “Sorry, sweetheart, I didn’t mean to laugh. You just, heh… looked a smidge disappointed there for a second.”

Annnnd there my cheeks went again. I swear, like a couple of furnaces, they were. Averting my gaze with a scowl, I said, “I’m not- ugh! I... was just trying to figure out where all this was coming from, why you felt the need to share.”

“Ah.” Her eyes crinkled and I got the feeling she didn’t quite fully believe me. Whatever, if seeing things that weren’t there made her happy, then more power to her. Let the crazy woman have her delusions. “I just wanted to give you some context. Knowing all that about Lea now, does it come as any real surprise then that Xion decided to have some fun at his expense tonight by testing his resolve and literally dropping a cute girl in his lap that he obviously has a little crush on?”

Those furnaces exploded into a fiery wreckage. “He- he absolutely does not!” I take it back. The crazy woman needs to have her delusions confiscated, no good can come from them in her demented hands! “This isn’t kindergarten, please! He hardly even knows me.”

“That’s the thing about crushes, boo. You don’t have to really know the person,” she flashed a cheshire grin and poked me in the nose, “just think they’re a total cutie-patootie! And trust me, the minute those sweet, candy lips of yours found their way to his on that fateful day, that poor boy was a goner.”

I rolled my eyes, “Oh shush, you’re just being silly now.”

“Am not. In fact, betcha that’s why Anna was Xion’s cohort in all of this. She wanted to play cupid.”

“No, Anna was just sowing chaos and mayhem like the demon imp she is because that’s what Anna does best,” I shot my sister an accusatory glance. In response, she defended herself most eloquently by snoring louder. Returning my attention to Rayne, I sighed, “Seriously, Lea doesn’t see me that way. We’re just friends.”

“You’d be singing a different tune if you saw the way he was looking at you during karaoke,” she lilted playfully.

Voice flat, I said, “What, like I was some kind of tone-deaf walrus?”

She gave a soft tch, “Girl, don’t even. Self-deprecating isn’t a good color on you. You crushed it, and I mean crushed it. And you know I never sugarcoat things, so you know I’m telling the truth! But no, I was talking specifically about during the second verse of the song.”

“The second…?” I frowned, thinking back. “...you mean the part where I got embarrassed by the lyrics and closed my eyes?”

Rayne nodded, “Mm-hm. And do you know what else you were doing?”

“Um…” Was this a trick question? “...singing?”

“And?” she prompted. I just stared at her blankly. Both eyebrows shot up her forehead and she smirked. “Oh pumpkin, you really have no idea, do you? Well, allow me to enlighten you. You had yourself a cute lil shimmy going, complete with swaying hips, a seductive crook of your finger, and a hand gliding up and down your thigh as you sang,” her voice got theatrically husky, “feel your way.”

I grew paler and my eyes more round with every word. “I- I did not! I w-would have known if- I wouldn’t j-just…” The words died on my tongue as she just simply nodded slyly at me. My mouth went dry as my face scrunched up in disbelief, my hands wrenching at my braid once more. “...did I? I mean, I… I was picturing the scene from the movie in my head, pretending I was there instead of making a fool of myself in front of a room full of people. I guess maybe I was just, I don’t know... getting into character?”

She shrugged, “Whatever you were doing, it certainly caused Lea to experience some, uh, heh… minor technical difficulties.”

Oh gosh, and here I’d thought the car ride was bad enough, but this? This was just the cherry on top. Not to mention the Kissident or... fudge, I just couldn't stop humiliating myself in front of this guy, could I? “I was… probably just making him awkward and uncomfortable, that’s all. But he really is always so nice about everything.” I stared down at my fingers, fidgeting with them now. “Do you know what he actually said after karaoke? He said I should try looking into singing professionally… which is absolutely ridiculous, of course, but still, it was sweet of him to say.”

“Don’t think I didn’t notice the oh so subtle attempt to change the subject there, sugarcube,” she gave a wry harrumph into her mug. I just avoided her gaze. Can you blame me? I just wanted to put this ludicrous and baseless topic behind us already. “But I’ll let it slide. And that’s actually not a bad idea.”

My eyes blinked at her. “You’re joking. Become a successful singer? Please, one has better odds of winning the lottery while being struck by lightning and hit by a rogue meteor at the same time!”

“And who said anything about becoming a career singer? There are other ways of putting that silver voice of yours to work. Like, for example... musicals. You know, as in play acting. Now don’t give me that look, it’s not like I’m not talking Broadway or nothing… not yet anyway. But there’s plenty of small theaters out there that would kill to have a nightingale like you on retainer.”

I huffed out a tiny snort through my nose. “Aren’t you forgetting something? Like, oh say, I don’t know… my crippling anxiety, crushing stage fright, and, ya know… absolutely zero acting experience?”

She folded her arms under her chest, “And aren’t you forgetting something? Like, oh say, I don’t know… summer camp musicals? And how you always just freaking slayed at all the lead parts?”

...oh wow, I actually had forgotten all about those. Camp felt like ages ago by now. Almost nothing more than a distant, fading dream. Frowning up at the ceiling, I murmured, “The musicals… were one of my favorite things about camp. They were the one place where I didn’t have to be my awkward, scared, pathetic self, that I could pretend to be someone else completely. It was an escape, it… helped.” Then I slowly shook my head, “But that’s different. It was a long time ago, I was a kid, I… I couldn’t be like that today.”

“Couldn’t you?” her head tilted slightly. “You really seemed to get into it with the karaoke. You said it yourself, you got into character without even realizing it. It was like the very spirit of Sandra D had possessed you.” She smiled, closing her eyes, “I think you might be a natural, cupcake.”

...me? A natural? Yeah right! There was no way, not in a million years! …I mean, unless… maybe… maybe if-

I shook my head again, more rapidly this time, banishing any such preposterous notions from my mind before scooting my chair out and rising to my feet. “Clearly you’re still fake drunk. You should really get to work sleeping it off.  I’ll be heading to bed now myself. Good night,” I said firmly. End of discussion. Topic closed. I grabbed my water bottle and marched off towards the door to my room.

Of all the silly, crazy, absurd-

“You know I’m right,” she called out brightly after me. “And hey… any verdict on Anna yet?”

I paused long enough to shoot the girl in question a sour look over my shoulder. She mumbled something in her sleep, rolled over and brazenly flung one leg up over the back of the couch. My lips pressed together into a thin line.

“...let her sleep. I’ll murder her in the morning.”

Author’s Note: The takeaway this chapter? Xion and Anna are evil xP Despite their questionable methods however, they DO mean well... I think xD But oh gosh, I do so love to torture Elsa! And by extension, Lea too, tho it’s a very different kind of torture xD But I think I managed to wrap up that lil car misadventure sweetly enough by the end of it! And hmmmmm, those were some interesting things Ray was saying... very, veeeeeeeery interesting...

Next chapter, what will Elsa do with these new thoughts buzzing around her head? Does our dear fire boi actually have a crush on her? Or is Ray just talking crazy from all them baby hormones making her loopy? And will Anna live to see the blessed light of day ever again? How DOES glue not stick to the inside of its own bottle? Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to those of you who’ve liked, reblogged, and followed so far, seeing those lil notifications always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER