#sweetbitter dom

[thepaintedlady00]

Nightshade

Chapter 6: Mouthfeel

Chapter 5 | Chapter 7

TW: awkwardness, some minor nudity, mentions of suicide (not graphic), Simone is a bitch in this chapter, slightly mentions of smoking and drugs, language, mentions of past criminal activity, slight cliffhanger.

Sorry about the late update y'all! I had a rough day yesterday and just didn't have the time to finish editing. Please enjoy! 🥰

Jake’s warm jacket draped over my shoulders as we walked up the beach house steps in silence. Neither of us really knew what to say at this point. What do you say following a near-death experience and a mutual trauma dump? With each step, I left a puddle of water behind me and mentally cursed myself for being stupid enough to jump into the ocean wearing the only pair of jeans I had in that old bag.

I swung the door open and did my best to ignore the fact that Jake was now not only fully aware of my raging mommy issues but was also stepping into the threshold of where those issues were mostly forged. Glass crunched beneath my feet. Right… There’s also that. “Uh, don’t fall. There’s glass everywhere down here.”

“Yeah, looks like you had quite the rager,” Jake mused quietly. “Need help cleaning it up?”

“No,” I replied, laying his jacket over the back of the couch. “I never clean up while I’m here. She can hire someone to do it when she comes back.”

He nodded, slowly moving through the living room and taking in the sight. “Looks like no one has been here for months.”

“Yeah, we moved around a lot for her business stuff. She doesn’t come here much anymore. Guess it wasn’t as fun without a kid to throw in the ocean.”

Jake chuckled at my poor attempt to ease the tension and kicked the empty bottles of booze. “Think you broke my bender record for the most amount of alcohol consumed.”

“Shut up.”

He looked at me, eyeing my still trembling, soaked form. “You should get changed.”

I nodded. “A great idea. Sadly I don’t exactly have a ton of spare clothes on hand.”

He replied with a barely restrained grin, “We’re both adults. A little nudity never hurt anyone.”

“You’re funny,” I responded, grabbing my bag from the kitchen counter to search my options. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. “Fuck.”

Jake clicked his tongue. “Looks like we’re in for an interesting night.”

With a sigh, I turned to face him. “No one’s forcing you to stay.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “But it’s a bit dark out now, and I’d hate to get caught wandering these dangerous streets at night.”

“Well, we both know how easy it’d be for you to get your ass kicked.”

“Absolutely. So, what’s the plan?” His smile grew unbearably wider as he raised a brow, drawing his eyes down the length of my body. “You wanna go first, or should I?”

I scoffed. “Do you really think I’m that easy?”

“If you were easy, I would’ve fucked you months ago, princess.” Jake took a step forward, relying on the play he always seemed to. Close the distance and force them into a corner to let the lack of space do all the work. And just like every time he’d tried it before, Jake was met with my body’s solid, unflinching mass.

“Really?” I asked quietly, deliberately keeping eye contact with him. “How many times have you tried this move?”

“A lot,” he admitted. “Though I’m not exactly complaining about how you respond to it.”

I set a hand on his chest and shoved him back. “Here’s the deal, I don’t have any dry clothes, and you don’t have any dry clothes. There’s a dryer in the upstairs bathroom. So you are going to shower because you smell like an old woman scrubbed you down with shitty ocean febreeze.”

“Not going to join me?” He asked flirtatiously.

“No. I will set up the bedroom for the two of us to sleep in. SLEEP in, no funny business.”

“I’d hardly call it funny-”

“Jake.”

He raised his hands with a smirk. “Alright, alright.”

I shook my head. “When you’re done, wrap a towel around your ass, and you can get in bed while I put our clothes in the dryer and shower. If you so much as try and peek, I’ll toss you in the ocean.”

“I kinda like it when you boss me around,” Jake replied with a wink. “Gonna give me a quick tour, or should I just start opening doors?”

Though his comment made my heart skip a beat, I rolled my eyes at him and led the way up the stairs and into my old room. I kept my head down as I showed him to the bathroom, trying as best I could not to let the belongings that had once been mine drag me back down. “Leave your clothes by the door, and I’ll grab them and put them in the dryer.”

He looked around the small bathroom, carefully snooping through the slightly dusty scene. “Last chance to join me. We could save some water.”

“Leave your shit by the door,” I replied, closing the bathroom door behind me as I set the bed.

The shower turned on after a minute or two of silence, allowing me a few minutes to breathe. I stood in the middle of the room, shivering slightly as I stared at the bare walls and the dusty surfaces that held one or two small trinkets. Nothing here was important… None of it was even real. The picture frames were empty, the ribbons and trophies held no memories of joy or any feelings of accomplishment, and none of the small trinkets I’d collected in my time here meant anything. 

This room was a tomb, a cage, a place haunted by the sons of a child and the endless stream of voices telling her she was not enough. I could practically see her bent over the desk by the window, desperately studying and afraid to look out the window. Afraid to watch the world and everyone in it pass by. You are enough, I wanted to tell her. You were always enough. But I knew she couldn’t hear me. I knew the past was set in stone. All her suffering and all her doubts and fears they’d already happened.

My hand settled against my shoulder, settled against the chilled skin marred by the hideous scar. I smoothed my fingers over it for a moment before snapping myself out of pity and regret of the past. Then, stripping the bed of its dust-covered blankets and sheets, I beat them out as best I could before putting it all back together. It smelt terrible, but it’d have to do. I shoved a few pillows in the middle, dividing the bed in half as the shower stopped.

Jake emerged from the bathroom with a towel hanging lowly on his hips, and his exposed chest glistened with leftover water. His arms were covered with dark tattoos, ones I didn’t get to look at closely before he leaned against the doorframe with a smile. “Left or right?”

“What?” I asked, quickly looking away from his chest to finish the bed.

I could practically feel Jake’s joy as he chuckled. “Do you prefer to sleep on the left or right?”

“I don’t really care either way,” I insisted.

He walked across the room and sat down on the left side, bouncing on the bed slightly before throwing his legs up and lounging back on the pillows. “I’ll take the left then.”

His smirk was unbearable as I turned and headed toward the bathroom. “Don’t fuck up the pillows.”

I tossed his wet clothes in the small dryer before stripping myself and adding my own to the machine. My whole body ached from swimming, and my head pounded. The hot water was a quick blessing, one that ran out quickly. A sharp gasp escaped my lips as the cold water stung my back. “Holy fucking shit!”

There was a soft knock at the door. “You alright in there?”

“You used all the hot water, asshole!” I hollered.

Jake chuckled. “Oops.”

“I swear to god I’m going to kill you.”

“That’d be pretty fucked up, considering I just spent my night saving your ass.” There was a pause before he spoke again, “Want me to join you? I’m sure we can find a way to heat the place up.”

“Open that door, and I’ll shove my foot all the way up your ass!”

His laugh, muffled by the door, still sent a shiver up my spine. No, I insisted. It’s just from the water. “Well, enjoy your cold shower then.”

“Dickhead.”

I was shivering when I’d rinsed the salty stench of the water off myself. I wrapped myself in a towel and turned the light off, quickly moving to my side of the bed and getting beneath the covers while Jake smiled at me over the pillows between us. He held his head up in his hand, resting on his elbow to watch me. “You know you’d be a lot warmer if we were closer. You know, body heat and all.”

I rolled my eyes and glared over at him. “Don’t push your luck.”

“I’m just saying, it’s awfully cold.”

“You’re always welcome to warm yourself up downstairs with all the glass.”

Jake laughed, the movement shaking the bed slightly as he moved to settle down first the night. “Fine, I’ll keep my warm body on my side then.”

“Go to sleep.”

He was quiet for all of twenty seconds before he spoke again, “Can I ask you something?”

I groaned quietly, glaring at him even harder over the pillows barricading between us. “What part about “go to sleep” do you not get?”

“Come on, princess, indulge me a little.”

“I think I’ve indulged you more than enough.”

Jake smiled at me, the moonlight casting across the side of his face and making that dumb grin of his glow. “I’m insatiable, what can I say?”

“What do you want to ask?”

“You told me about your mom. About what happened back then.” Anxiety consumed every inch of me as I kept breathing in and out.

“And?”

“You never told me why you were out there tonight.”

My jaw clenched as I thought about what to say. Why had I gone out there tonight? Why had I chosen to leap off a boat into the fucking ocean? “I…” I sighed. “I was pretty shitfaced.”

Jake saw straight through the deflection. “Were you… Was this some kind of… attempt?”

That fear I’d seen in his eyes as he leaned over the side of the boat and begged me to take his hand was back, shining brighter now as it looked like he held back tears. “No,” I whispered, reaching over the barricade to squeeze his hand. “I wasn’t trying to kill myself.”

His eyes closed tightly as he squeezed my hand back. “Good. That’s good.”

Was that why he was still here? Did he think I’d jump back in the water the second he was gone? Clearing my throat, I pulled my hand back and settled into the covers, trying to regain a sense of separation from him. “No more questions til we’re both back in New York.”

“Oh?” He chuckled. “Will I get more than four next time?”

“Maybe,” I answered. “If you shut up and go to sleep.”

“Keep talkin like that, and I’ll be up all night, princess.”

I rolled my eyes before closing them tightly. “Stop calling me that.”

“Not a chance.”

“God, you’re annoying,” I teased with a smile.

Jake laughed. “It’s all part of my charm.”

*

Jake tossed and turned for a while before settling on his back, blinking the sleep from his eyes to stare at an unfamiliar ceiling. The ceiling of Lena Harrow’s old bedroom. The night’s events returned to him like a freight train as he quickly turned to look over the pillows where Lena had been sleeping. For a moment, he was worried she’d be gone, worried she’d wanted until he was asleep to sneak back out onto the water. That all melted away at the sight of her bare back glowing in the morning light.

Her red hair pooled over the pillow she buried her head into, and the bed shifted ever so slightly with each deep breath she took. Jake sighed before his eyes wandered down the smooth skin exposed to him. Her spine was decorated with a large tattoo, a snake shedding its dark, dull skin to reveal new pearlescent scales. He wanted to reach out and run his fingers along the gorgeous piece of art and trace the lines of her tattoo as well.

The same sensations he felt the day before rose to the surface. God, she’s perfect. Everything about her spoke to him, drawing him in like no one he’d ever known. She shifted slightly, making a soft noise that sent a wave of heat through him like damn lightning. He slid out from beneath the covers, careful to not jostle the bed and wake her up, though it was tempting just to see how she’d react to seeing his bare ass. If last night told him anything, she’d enjoy what she saw, just like she had when he exited the bathroom.

The room was void of the life and attitude that he knew Lena to have. The walls were painted a dull white, probably some pretentious name like eggshell or cream of some bullshit. There were no posters or pictures, no artwork, only photos of generic art that looked like it belonged in a hotel rather than a room. Trophies and ribbons hung from a few shelves, all for competitions he couldn’t imagine Lena enjoying. Mathematics, spelling, science, music… It wasn’t her. That was the point, though, wasn’t it? “I wasn’t like this back then.” He hadn’t known what she meant then, but he sure as hell did now. If this was the mold she’d been forced into as a kid, it was likely a hard thing to break out of. Jake looked back towards her, still sleeping beneath the covers, and felt sad. 

He didn’t get the normal childhood that other kids did. When he was younger, he hated them because of it. Hated everyone he came in contact with that had parents show up at recitals or parent-teacher conferences. Seeing this… Seeing how she had lived, been treated, and been put through for the first time, Jake considered that maybe she’d been right that night in the hall. Maybe he wasn’t the only one that had it bad. A dead mom was better than one that hated who you were so much she threw you in the ocean.

Jake had done his best to help the redhead out after the boat, but this situation was uncomfortable. He didn’t know how to act or what to say… and he really didn’t want to fuck this up. Lena’s trust and faith in him made him feel good. It made him think that maybe, just maybe, he could be the guy she thought he was, the guy Simone always wanted him to be. Dependable, honest, hardworking, selfless… Everything he felt he’d lacked.

Lena shifted again with another soft noise that made his mind go blank. If that’s how she sounds while she’s sleeping, just imagine how- He shut the thought down quickly and slipped into the bathroom to check on his clothes and to get some distance from her beautiful, naked, unholy sounds. His underwear and pants had dried nicely, but the shirt he’d worn along with Lena’s things was still damp. Jake restarted the machine and dressed as much as possible before quietly heading downstairs.

*

Waking up in the stiff musty bed felt like waking up years ago. It was unsettling how I lay there for a moment, waiting for her to come pounding on my door or even just waltz inside, uninvited to scold me for not getting out of bed fast enough. What was more unsettling was the silence. I turned, rolling face first to a wall of pillows that barred me from the other side of the bed. What the fuck? I peeked over at the unmade half of the bed, the used pillow, and the towel on the floor. It was then that I realized I hadn’t been dreaming about the insane events that occurred last night. I’d gotten drunk, drove a boat, and jumped into the ocean. Crazier than that was that Jake had found me… found me and stayed the night.

I couldn’t help but smile a bit as I recalled the way he snored loudly beside me, the way his feet and arms would ignore the pillows between us to seek out the person in bed beside him. Whether it was intentional or not, I didn’t know, but I wagered it’d be amusing as hell to find out. The room was empty. Jake must’ve grabbed his things and left before I woke up. I sighed, stretching the sleep from my limbs before making my way to the dryer to pull on the newly dried, still-warm clothes inside. My eyes were still heavy from sleep, and my head was pounding from the fun hangover I knew would be haunting me today.

I put my shoes back on and went downstairs to find some kind of medication or food before heading back to New York. Glass crunched beneath my feet as I turned toward the kitchen and stopped in my tracks. Jake was there, looking through cabinets and examining the boxes of expired food that no doubt was still inside. Just like last night, my eyes went to his tattoos. I couldn’t make out what most of them were from here, but I admired them nonetheless… them and the lean muscle of his exposed back and chest as he moved.

“Gonna stand there and stare at me all morning?” He asked, blue eyes flashing with that self-assured smug attitude of his.

“I thought you went home,” I deflected, moving to join him in the kitchen. “Why are you shirtless?”

Jake’s eyes shifted to look down at my chest, not unusual for him, though the way his lips curled into even more of a shit-eating grin should’ve been a warning. “Were you wanting me to peel it off your back or what?” I looked down at the t-shirt I’d grabbed from the dryer, his t-shirt. “I’m not opposed, of course, but there are far easier ways to ask me to strip you.”

I ignored how my face heated up at his words and shook my head. “I was still half asleep when I got dressed.” I turned back toward the stairs, pulling the shirt over my head and tossing it behind me. My shirt was stuck in the very back of the machine when I pulled it out and hissed, “Traitor.”

Jake was waiting in the living room, his shirt back on as his eyes scanned over the words of a book he’d found. He glanced up at me. “You could’ve kept mine, you know. We could’ve switched. 

“I think it would’ve been a bit of a tight fit on your end.”

“I could just walk around shirtless more. You seem to enjoy that.”

I scoffed and moved around the room, quickly packing what little I’d brought back into the bag I had brought. The tension in the air seemed to grow as the silence was weighed down by all that had been said between us. I cleared my throat. “Sorry, there’s not anything to eat here. I would’ve offered to make you shitty eggs or something.”

Jake chuckled, closing the book and setting it down where he’d found it. “As great as shitty eggs sound, I was thinking we could stop by a diner. It’s not far, and it’s usually not too busy.”

“Grumpy’s?”

“Yeah,” he smiled a bit, “I keep forgetting you lived here too.”

“It’s easy to forget,” I replied, nodding toward the door. “We can take the bike. I’ve gotta get going in a bit if I want to get back to the city before dark.”

“You’re leaving today?”

“Yeah,” I pulled my phone out of my bag and played the beginning of the thirty messages everyone had left me.

“Lena, you’d better fill that gas tank up before bringing my bike back!” Dom.

“Hey, fucking bitch, call me - us, I said US! Put that shoe down, Prue, I swear to God!” Quinn and Prue.

“Call me darling. You don’t have to talk. I just wanna know you’re safe,” Ozzy said.

“Lee,” Peter’s voice made a new wave of guilt hit me. “Haven’t seen you in a few days. Is everything okay?”

“Hey, shithead! Break another of those racks, and I will break your face! Sorry bout that, Lena,” Patrick said clearer into the speaker. “I know that was a lot… just call someone. Please. We’re starting to get worried.”

Jake looked at his feet as I closed the phone and shoved it back into my pocket. “Sounds like you’ll have a hell of a welcome home party.”

“More like a welcome home mob,” I replied.

“A mob is better than nothing,” he said quietly.

“Yeah.” I held his jacket out to him. “Here.”

He looked at it for a minute before shaking his head. “You wear it. It’s cold out today.”

“If it’s that cold, you’ll freeze without it.”

“I’m not the one that almost got hypothermia last night,” he responded with a winning grin. “Wear it.” 

I rolled my eyes and put it on. “Fine then.”

Locking the door behind me, the chilled gust of wind made me grateful that Jake had insisted I wear his jacket. I’d never openly tell him that; glancing back at the already too-smug look on his face, I shook my head. Nope. Never telling him that. He nodded toward the bike. “So this wasn’t the first time you stole a bike?”

“Nope,” I answered, pulling the keys out. “Dom freak out after I left?”

Jake shrugged. “Eh, he was more frustrated than anything.”

I nodded. “Yeah, well, considering how many times I’ve stolen this bike, I can’t blame him.”

“How many times have you stolen this bike?”

“Fifteen, maybe more.”

He whistled. “Damn, you’re kind of a criminal.”

I laughed and shrugged. “At least I’m a cute criminal, though.”

Jake laughed. “So, how are we doing this?”

“You ever been on a bike before?”

“Once,” he replied. “Wasn’t on it for long before Simone pulled me off, though.”

Swinging my leg over the side, I held the helmet out to him with a smile. “Newbies get the helmet.” He scoffed but put it on anyway. “Now, you just get on and hold on.”

His taller frame settled in behind me, keeping a vast distance between us. I laughed and took hold of them, placing them around my waist. “You’re gonna want to hold onto me.”

“I’ll take your word for it, princess.”

The bike came alive beneath us, and as we started to drive, I could feel a part of Jake come alive too. He laughed behind me, bright and full and childlike. It was a side to him I didn’t even know existed, but I enjoyed it, no matter how short-lived. Grumpy’s wasn’t far from my mom’s house, and Jake seemed to be almost disappointed by that as I found a place to park on the sidewalk, and we got off the bike. He pulled the helmet off and ran his fingers through his messy hair. “Next time I steal the bike, I’ll be sure to invite you.”

“Sounds like fun,” He replied, holding the helmet.

I set it down on the seat and clipped my bag to the front. “You’re buying.”

“Am I?”

“Think of it as payment for all the cigarettes you bummed off me.”

He shrugged. “I guess that’s only fair.”

We sat across from one another in a booth close to the windows so I could keep an eye on my things. Jake ordered waffles while I ordered pancakes, which led us to a quick debate on which was better, but once we’d grown quiet, that same awkwardness and tension settled over the table. Fuck it. “So, last night was kind of crazy.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “It was.”

“I…” I looked up and met his gaze. “I’m sorry for putting that all on you. I wasn’t exactly thinking straight.”

Jake’s brows furrowed slightly. “I don’t mind. I was the one that asked.”

“Would you have asked if you hadn’t had to pull me out of the ocean?”

“Eventually,” he assured me. “Don’t apologize for that. Not to me.”

I smiled, “Thank you. I don’t know what would have happened if you-”

“You would have been okay,” Jake interrupted. “I don’t… Let’s not talk about that.”

Right, his mom… I mentally cursed myself. “Okay, sorry.”

“Stop apologizing.”

I rolled my eyes and smirked. “Sorry.”

Another minute of silence passed between us before Jake spoke again, “I’m not gonna tell anyone if you were worried about that.”

“Not even Simone?”

“No, not even her. Though if you were looking for someone to help with that kind of thing, she’d be willing.”

I shook my head, playing with my fingers beneath the table. “I’m sure she would.”

Jake frowned. “She’s good at helping with stuff like that. I know I’ve said it before, but it’s true. When I moved in with her family, she was all I had. She basically raised me.”

“Alright, let’s make a rule. No more talking about Simone. I understand she’s a big part of your life and that you’re, you know, whatever, but my opinion isn’t going to change, and I have a feeling our friendship isn’t going to last long if we’re constantly fighting over our opinions of Simone.”

“That’s fair,” he answered as the server placed our plates in front of us. “I’m still gonna argue with you about waffles, though.”

“Fair,” I replied. “But if you’re planning on getting into a debate over breakfast foods with me, prepare to lose.”

He cut into his waffle. “You’re that confident?”

“Absolutely,” I said, stuffing my mouth full of pancakes and making an exaggerated sound.

The longer I spent around Jake, the more I enjoyed his company. He didn’t make any faces or comments about how messily I ate; no matter how curious he was about my past here, he kept it to himself. Though he was undoubtedly an asshole, Jake wasn’t too bad. I finished my pancakes, and he finished his waffles, so the two of us just sat there talking about stupid stuff before the door opened, and Jake’s eyes darted toward it with a sigh. “There you are!”

“Simone,” he replied, shifting in his seat to make room for her. 

She slid in beside him, not even looking over at me while she frowned at him as she set his phone down. “You left this at the house. I’ve been worried!”

“Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked,” he said, glancing over at me. Simone finally turned her head, and her mouth fell open slightly. Then, with wide eyes, she composed herself.

“Lena,” Simone said with a taut smile. Her eyes were wider than usual as they fixated on the black jacket, Jake’s jacket, that hugged my shoulders and encased me in the smokey and woodsy scent. “I didn’t know you were in Cape Cod.”

I smiled, somewhat gladdened that Jake hadn’t told her. “Yeah, it was a last-minute trip.”

She hummed, her eyes shifting to Jake, whose face had drained of his usual charismatic glow and was now replaced with a nervous look that made his whole face seem tight and tense. “So this is what you got up to last night.”

“Simone,” Jake started with a sigh as she sat beside him.

“It’s fine,” she answered with a broader smile that didn’t even try to reach her eyes. “I’m sure it was something significant that kept you from coming home last night.”

Tilting my head to the side, I shrugged. “That’s on me, actually. My bike broke down by the beach, and Jake happened to see me. He offered to help, which took much longer than it should have.”

Her eyes practically drank up the lie as she pursed her lips. “Sounds like you were fortunate Jake was around.”

“I was,” I answered, looking back over at Jake. He knew the truth, and that was what mattered, so I shoved down the part of me that worried that truth would be exposed to Simone’s all too eager ears the second I left them alone.

Jake watched Simone closely as she ordered, his forehead creasing when she’d gotten a beer over coffee or water. He could tell something was off with her, and though it was pretty obvious even to me, Jake seemed to pick up on it more than I could just from the small things she said and did. My stomach churned uncomfortably at the sight of them. Was this what it had looked like to everyone else? I wondered, darker memories simmering just below the surface. Was it this obvious that something was wrong between us? 

“So, what brings you to the Cape?” Simone asked as she settled into her seat beside Jake.

“It’s a personal matter,” I answered without hesitation and without apology. “Not really something I’d feel comfortable burdening a coworker with.” The message was clear. Move on.

She looked far too smug about the response as she nodded. “I understand personal matters can be quite difficult to navigate. But we’re always available should you need someone to help you find your way around. Jake and I grew up here, after all.”

I smiled, trying my best not to laugh at her apparent scramble to find a foothold that would tether me to her and force me to rely on her as Jake and so many others at 22West did. “I’m not staying, but thanks for the offer.”

Jake watched her as she took a long drink of her beer, worry solidifying on his features. “You’re leaving so soon?”

“Oh, I’ve been here for days,” I answered.

“Really? Where have you been staying?” Jake nudged her slightly, an apparent attempt to dissuade her from pressing questions, one that failed as she giggled softly. “Sorry, it’s just I know how difficult finding a decent hotel can be around here. I wouldn’t want you to have trouble sleeping because the bed is too lumpy or the place reeks of dead fish.

“It’s alright. You don’t have to worry, though,” I adjusted the jacket on my shoulders, “I slept just fine.”

How her face dropped for a moment told me everything I needed to know about her and Jake’s relationship. If I wasn’t sure before, I was now. Not only was Simone like my mother, she was like him too. A cold spike of rage coursed through my veins as I looked over at Jake’s timid and almost childlike behavior before meeting her eyes again. This time I let my polite mask drop. This time I let Simone have exactly what she wanted, a look into my thoughts. I know what you are. 

Her smile faltered as we stared one another down for a short moment. Then, she fixed her mask. “That’s good. There’s nothing better than a good night’s sleep.”

“I can think of a few things,” I replied, carefully pulling out my dwindling pack of cigarettes. “Like one last smoke.” I nodded toward the door. “Want to join me?”

He looked uncertain, looking at Simone for that ever-so-subtle nod before joining me. “Sure.”

The fresh air made the heavy weight of Simone’s gaze burning holes into my skull feel somewhat lessened as I leaned against the wall beside Jake and lit the cigarette, taking a quick drag before holding it out to him. “Sorry, you’re in the doghouse because of me.”

Jake shrugged, slowly regaining his usual attitude and demeanor. “Don’t worry about it. I’m used to being on Simone’s nerves.”

“I can imagine.”

“She’s not usually like this,” he assured me quietly. “Ever since her ex came to visit a while back, she’s been… off.”

She’d get no sympathy from me, but for Jake’s sake, I shrugged him off. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve dealt with far worse people.”

Jake handed the cigarette back to me with a sad look. “She reminds you of your mom, doesn’t she?”

“A little,” I replied. “More so someone else that makes my mother look like a saint.”

He tilted his head carefully. “Who?”

I smirked. “You used up your questions last night.”

“Do you always have to make getting to know you so difficult?” He questioned with a smile.

“Of course. If I didn’t, you’d get bored.”

“I don’t think I’d ever get bored of you,” he replied, softer than before, with a gleam of something in his eyes… something nervous and unnamed. 

I could see Simone watching us closely from the corner of my eye like a predator watching over the prey she’d long staked her claim to. Jake wasn’t a game and certainly wasn’t anyone to claim. I pulled the cigarette from between Jake’s lips and took one last drag of it, closing my eyes to savor the smokey taste that filled my mouth as I exhaled. “Well, time for me to head out.” I placed what remained between Jake’s lips and slid past the window, making deliberate eye contact with Simone, waving at her as I walked towards Dom’s bike.

“Try not to wreck it,” Jake said, standing up from his comfortable position against the wall. “It’d suck to get back to the city and hear you’d been beaten to death by angry bikers.”

With a smirk, I swung my leg over and straddled the bike. “Or it’d be super badass coming back and hearing about how I beat the shit out of 20 angry bikers.”

He laughed, and his eyes softened. “See you at work, Lana.”

“See you then, Jerk.” I pulled the helmet over my head and started the bike, revving the engine before flipping Jake off and speeding down the street. He stood on the curb for a minute before turning and walking into the diner to face Simone.

I let the light rush of adrenaline wash over me as I drove. The engine roaring replaced the sound of the ocean. The smell of Jake on his jacket replaced the bitter tang of salt. The wind forced anything left of Cape Cod off me and left it where it belonged. Fuck the cape. I repeated to myself.

*

He sat back down across from Simone with a sigh, folding his hands on the table and watching her quietly eat the simple breakfast platter she’d ordered. Watching Simone drink anything other than wine made him feel weird, but seeing her do so this early in the morning was just concerning. “You hate beer.”

Simone smiled, chuckling as she examined the bottle in her hand. “I do.”

“How was the rest of the night with your mom?”

“You’d know the answer if you’d bothered to come back last night.”

“Simone,” Jake sighed. He felt guilty about not calling to let her know what had happened, but he hadn’t been able to think straight until this morning. It was something he found happened often when Lena was involved. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” She shook her head. “Sorry is something you say when you forget to bring wine or dessert. You just disappeared, Jake. Sorry, it doesn’t cut it this time.”

“It’s personal okay,” Jake replied flippantly.

“Personal?” Simone hissed. “More personal than all I’ve done and sacrificed for you?”

Jake ran a hand through his hair. “It’s not my shit, Simone. It’s not my place to share it with you.”

Her pale eyes stared back at him with a downturned face of disappointment that he was familiar with. “Was she any good?”

“Jesus,” he scoffed. “I didn’t sleep with her.” Of course, technically, he did, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to tell Simone that.

“Let’s not play games, Jake,” she said while taking a drink. “We both know how you are, especially with new coworkers.”

Whether she meant it as a dig towards his short relationship with Tess or not didn’t matter, it hurt all the same. He leaned over the table a bit more. “I didn’t sleep with her.”

She watched him for a minute before she finally sighed. “Good.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t call last night. I didn’t really have time to think about it.”

“What happened?”

This was the moment he’d dreaded. Jake didn’t want to lie to Simone. It was one of their oldest rules, one that Simone mainly took seriously. But if he told her what happened last night, she’d no doubt try to help. It was just who she was, and that’d put a swift and bitter end to the friendship he’d just reestablished with a girl who was more like him than he thought. “It’s just like she said. I helped her out, lost track of time, and ended up crashing on her couch.” Her bed. The bed that made it impossible to smell anything but her.

“And where was she staying?”

“Simone-”

“The least you could do is tell me where you were. I-”

“Simone!” He interrupted. “Lena’s shit isn’t our problem. I helped her out. That’s it. Do you not trust me?”

She reached across the take and took hold of his hand. “Of course I do. You know I do. The one I don’t trust is her.”

Jake’s eyes narrowed. “I mean, I know you two don’t get along, but she hasn’t been anything but nice to everyone.”

“Nice is not a word I’d use to describe that girl.” Simone shook her head. “I read her file. Howard’s old system was actually useful for once.” She leaned in closer. “Lena Harrow is dangerous, Jake. Did you know she had a criminal record? Fighting, drugs, stealing, arson.”

With all he’d learned about her in just one night, Jake felt the list of crimes was relatively small compared to what he’d been picturing. Lena had a dark past; there was no denying that. “I’m not saying I know everything about her, but-”

“No buts. Just… Don’t sleep with her, and don’t get too attached,” Simone’s face softened, and large tears began to well in her eyes as she spoke. “I care about you, Jake. And I don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

He held her hand. “I know. I promise I’ll be careful, Simone.”

*

I pulled up to the warehouse, parked the bike next to all the others, and knocked on the side door. A large man, lovingly known among Dom’s gang as Fluffy, opened the door and smiled down at me. “Dom in?”

“He’s at Nana’s,” Fluffy replied.

“Thanks!”

Weaving through the heavy foot traffic of the city, I squeezed through Nana’s door and offered the elderly woman a smile, one she met with a scowl. She quickly rolled up one of the newspapers and stalked from behind the counter toward me. The swats were too quick to dodge as she cursed in Arabic. “You worried us!” She shouted. “Stealing that bike and riding off, no phone calls, no notes!”

“I’m sorry, Nana!” I shrieked, rubbing my arm where she’d hit me. 

She pulled me into a tight hug and squeezed hard. “You never do that again! You understand me!”

I hugged her back. “I promise, Nana.”

When she finally pulled back, she shooed me toward the corner. “He’s in his seat.”

Dom always commandeered the booth in the very back of the restaurant. Said it was good for business even though everyone knew dealing beneath Nana’s roof was against the rules. He ate the food in front of him, wordlessly offering me the seat across from him. I slid his keys across the table. “It’s got a full tank.”

“Good,” he said, putting them back in his pocket. “Did it give you any problems?”

“No.”

Dom looked at me for a moment before he sighed and asked, “You feel better?”

With a shrug, I answered, “I guess.”

“I’m sorry about the jacket.”

“Dom, that was-” He held up a hand to stop me.

“I know it’s not the only reason you did it, but the last straw to set you off. My guy did it, and I owe you an apology. I’m sorry. I’d offer to replace it, but we both know it was one of a kind.”

I sighed. “I don’t blame you for what happened, but thanks.”

He took a few more bites before asking, “How was Cape Cod?”

“Shit, as always.” I smiled. “But I guess it was better than the last few times.”

“That got anything to do with the tough guy?”

“What?” I looked at him with wide eyes and a, hopefully, slight blush. “How did you-”

“He mentioned having to pack for a trip to The Cape. It wasn’t too hard to put two and two together.” Dom smiled a bit. “I was just glad you’d have a familiar face around.” After a minute, he reached over and held my hand. “I’ve gotta tell you something, but promise you’re not gonna freak out and steal my shit again, okay?”

Dom was rarely this cautious about what he said, and it put me on edge instantly. “Okay.”

He squeezed my hand as he spoke. “One of my guys saw a familiar car driving through.”

“Familiar car?” I asked before the realization hit me, along with the memories of that engine roaring and the tires squealing beneath every movement. “Dom…”

“Relax,” he ordered quickly. “I’m looking into it. You’ll be the first to know if there’s anything to worry about. I promise.”

“Okay,” I breathed.

Dom waited to pull back until my breaths had evened out. “You should head to Ozzy’s. Those two have been worried.”

I nodded. “Yeah. Thanks, Dom.”

“No problem, kid, just don’t steal my bike again.”

“No promises.”

“Get the fuck outta here.”

Nana filled my arms with to-go boxes, and I made my way to the bar. The security team grabbed a box from my arms and greeted me quickly. I set one down and tapped the bar, making sure the two bartenders knew it was for them before heading into Ozzy’s office. He sat with his back turned to me, looking down at a stack of papers. Finally, I knocked on the wall. “Hey.”

He turned and jumped up, pulling me into a big hug. “Thank Jesus! You’re not allowed to do that ever again!”

“I breathed in the comforting smell of Ozzy’s smoke and sighed. “Sorry, Oz.”

“Don’t be,” he insisted. “Just pick up the phone next time.”

My dad’s ruined jacket sat on the desk on top of a pile of things. It made me sad looking down at the remains of such a big part of my life. “I didn’t mean to ignore your calls. I just… It’s been a long week.”

He smiled. “I know, darling. But it’s okay now. You’re home, where we can all take care of each other.”

“Does Pete know?”

“No.” Ozzy shook his head. “I figured it’d be best, all things considered, to not tell him you’d run off.”

“Good. He needs to focus on getting better.”

Ozzy nodded in agreeance. “Patrick and I discussed what we wanted to do next week when he gets out of the hospital. He’s been asking to meet your coworkers for a while now.”

I groaned. “You’re not going to suggest what I think you are, right?”

“Between the three of us, we have enough to take him to 22West. So he’d get to meet your coworkers and have a high-end meal. It’s a win for everyone.”

“Fine,” I huffed. “I guess I owe you two this since I was gone.”

Patrick appeared in the doorway, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. “This mean I need to get a suit?”

“Yes,” I answered. “It’s a pretty high-end place.”

“Say no more, sis. I’m on it.”

Ozzy smiled. “I think I have something that would work.”

“No hats.”

“Damn.”

*

I took the next few days off to readjust to the city and calm my nerves about returning to the restaurant. It was little more than a paranoid feeling that I’d return to Maddie back in the kitchen or, worse, my mother waiting in the front room for me. When I did go back, these feelings were quickly depleted as Scott looked up from prep and scoffed. “Bout fuckin time. Go get something to eat and then get to prepping.”

“Yes, Chef,” I answered, nodding to Isaac. “It’s good to be back.”

“Yeah yeah, hurry it up, Red!”

Changing into my shirt, I stared at my empty locker for a moment, quietly mourning the space dads jacket used to fill up. My fingers ran over the open air as I turned to smack right into someone’s chest. Jake’s familiar laugh made me look up with a smile. “Miss me that much?”

I rolled my eyes and took a step back. “There goes my good day.” He squeezed past me and opened his locker, looking at the leather jacket I’d stuffed inside. “I took the liberty of returning your jacket.”

“How’d you know my combination?”

“Sasha.”

“Right,” Jake chuckled, holding the jacket in his hands for a second before holding it out to me. “Why don’t you keep it for a while?”

“What?”

He shrugged. “I’ve got another one.”

I smiled, turning toward the door. “So do I. Keep your jacket, Jake.”

The second I walked into the front room and toward the long table filled with people eating the family dinner, Sasha jumped up and wrapped me up in a big hug. He demanded to hear about my criminal history as Will set a plate in front of me. From across the table, Simone smiled as Jake slid into the seat next to her. The two of us held one another’s gaze for a moment before Howard broke the stiff silence. “Lena, welcome back. How was your vacation?”

“Oh, it was a hoot,” I answered.

He hummed, “So you found a place with the worst bed and drank all week?”

I laughed and nodded. “You know me, Howard, always the party animal.”

Howard nodded, sliding a small piece of paper across the table to me with a more careful smile. “Today, we’ve been gifted with a spectacular vintage.”

The paper unfolded, and a cold wave washed over me as I traced my mother’s handwriting. Leave a tip for the cleaners next time. I practically scoffed at the simple message before I tore the paper up and stuffed it into my pocket. Jake looked at me from across the table but said nothing as we ate the family dinner and drank the fancy wine.

Being tossed into the throws of a busy night of service felt exhilarating after the long break I’d taken. The kitchen was finally back to its normal flow as all traces of Maddie’s visit were washed away by Scott’s powerful voice and creative mind. As soon as things slowed down, I nodded at Santos. “Need some help with those dishes?”

He laughed. “Does it matter what I say?”

“Nope!” I smiled back. “Give me one second, and I’ll hop in and help.”

I wiped my hands down and shrugged my cook’s coat off, hanging it off the railing as I slid out the kitchen door and behind the bar. Nicky smirked at me as he cleaned some glasses. The restaurant was basically empty. Servers stood by the bar waiting for the last few tables to begin vacating, and Jake made one last drink for the only person sitting at the bar. I stepped behind him and smiled, gently tapping his shoulder. “You’re it.”

He looked at me with a scoff. “Pretty sure that’s cheating.”

“Pretty sure I don’t care,” I replied. 

“You know I’m just going to tag you once I’m finished with this drink, right?”

“You can try,” I egged on, sneaking back into the kitchen and sliding beside Santos to help wash the last dishes. 

Isaac was back to telling the whole kitchen his crazy stories bringing the entire kitchen to a loud clamor of laughter and comments. Because of the noise, I didn’t hear the steps as they settled in behind me until it was too late. Jake leaned over my shoulder and smirked, tapping my nose with his finger. “You’re it.”

He ducked away before I could splash him with dishwater. “I’m gonna tag you with this nasty wet hand!”

“Lookin forward to it, princess!” He yelled as he climbed the stairs toward the locker room.

Isaac leaned on the counter beside me, wiggling his eyebrows. “Princess?”

I splashed him. “Fuck off!”

Once the dishes had been put on the rack, the kitchen grew empty, and Santos and I walked upstairs to change. I smiled when I opened my locker and saw Jake’s jacket stuffed inside. Sneaky asshole. I shrugged it on, having forgotten to grab my own before returning his. One more night of wearing it wouldn’t kill me, and I’d gotten rather fond of how it smelled and felt around my shoulders.

Everyone was crowding around the bar when I got downstairs, everyone but Simone and Howard, of course. Howard smiled at me while Simone took one look at me, the jacket, and turned her face away. Jealousy didn’t look good on her. From behind the bar, Jake’s eyes ran down my outfit, and he smiled. I ignored how it made my stomach flip and how I wanted to make him smile again. 

“What are we talking about?” I asked, sliding into the seat beside Ari.

She smiled. “Tattoos. “

Sasha pointed at Jake’s arm. “We were just mocking Jakey’s shitty mermaid.”

I looked at the bartender’s modest mermaid tattoo on his inner arm. “Hey, that looks kind of like mine.”

“You’ve got a mermaid tattoo?” Jake asked with a smirk. “Show it to me.”

“No!”

Heather leaned in closer. “Ooohhh, I know what that means!”

Sasha and Ari cooed in my ears. “Where’s it at?”

“I bet it’s right over her pu-”

“I’m not telling any of you vultures!”

“Well, I know it’s not on your back,” Jake said smoothly, his smile never faltering.

I scoffed. “What happened to no peeking?”

He rolled his eyes. “I was always gonna peek, princess.”

Sasha nearly spat his drink out, wide eyes moving back and forth between the two of us. “Did Jakey finally take your flower, lovely Tiger Bitch?”

“No,” I replied, shoving him.

“Did get a pretty sweet view of you naked, though.”

“Bullshit!” I shoved a finger in his face. “If you’d have seen me naked, then you’d know exactly where the mermaid is.”

He lifted his chin up, smug and eating up all the attention. “Maybe I do.”

“If you did, you wouldn’t waste time demanding to see it.” I leaned back in my seat and smiled. “Shame, it’s in a good spot too.”

The cogs in his brain were practically visible as he thought about every possible location before leaning on the bar. “Ass?”

“Nope.”

“One of your boobs, then?”

“No,” I laughed. “And even if it was, you’d never get to see it.”

“Never say never.”

Sasha gagged. “If the two of you could just do the nasty already and quit the dirty talk, we would all appreciate it!”

Scott shook his head as he downed the last of his drink and stood. “Dinner, whose in?”

“I’m picking tonight!” Ari cheered over his shoulder, making the man wince.

“Great, everyone, prep your stomachs for some shitty Italian or something.” Ari punched him in the shoulder, and everyone laughed as we headed out the door.

*

As he walked beside Lena, Jake couldn’t shake the warning Simone had given him a few days ago in the diner or the looks she gave him each time he interacted with Lena. The redhead wearing his jacket laughed beside him at something Sasha had said from the front of the group. “Hey,” Jake said, pulling her lively green eyes to his. “Can I ask you something?”

“Ready for our question game already?” She teased with a smirk.

He couldn’t help but smile as well. “I was actually wondering something a bit more serious.”

“Oh?” She asked, tilting her head. “Well, I guess I could give you a freebie just this once.”

“How generous.”

She nudged him. “What’s on your mind?”

How was he supposed to start this? “I… I may have heard a few things about you that I wanted to ask about.”

“Well, there’s a good chance I’ll have answers. What did you hear?” She asked. 

“I heard you have a pretty extensive criminal record.”

Lena didn’t even bat an eye as she nodded. “Yeah, I do. Was there a particular crime you were curious about?”

Jake shrugged. “I guess I was just wondering how much of it was true.”

“Oh,” she said with a laugh. “Well, that’s easy then! I’ve got a lot of charges under my belt for fighting. It was all illegal rings, though, so no assault or anything crazy. Stealing was another big one. I don’t even know how many times I got busted for that.” She shook her head. “I was kind of shit at it.” She hummed quietly, trying to remember. “Oh, there’s drugs, obviously. Just buying, no distribution or smuggling or anything.”

“Any arson?” He asked.

She scoffed. “Okay, that one wasn’t on me! Some assholes were harassing Quinn at the club she works at, so she called me and Prue and Patrick to help walk her home. She didn’t tell us she’d dumped gasoline all over the sidewalk until after she lit the damn thing on fire to try and scare them. Bitch almost took off my eyebrows. Anyway, the cops showed up and arrested all of us. My dad and Ozzy were fucking pissed.”

Jake looked at her with furrowed brows. How the hell did she do this? Lena looked up at him and poked his forehead. “You do that more, and you’ll hurt yourself. What’s up?”

“Why are you so honest?” He asked.

“You asked,” she answered. “Did you want me to lie?”

“No,” Jake shook his head and chuckled. “I just… You’re just something else.”

She leaned closer to him and smiled. “Something good, I hope.”

Jake looked down at her and quietly agreed. She was something good. That night he watched her closely, trying to see what Simone did. Trying to figure out why she was so against him getting closer to the redhead, but the more he looked, the more he liked what he saw. As she tapped his shoulder and whispered another playful, “You’re it.” Jake threw all his notions of not knowing who Lena was out the window. He knew exactly who she was, and he trusted her.

*

I walked in the front door, quickly readjusting the straps of my dress before giving the hostess my name and telling her I was waiting for the rest of my party. Nicky spotted me from the bar and smiled. “Hey, Red, I thought today was your day off.”

“It is,” I answered, taking a seat at the bar. “I’m here as a guest tonight.”

“A guest,” he swooned. “Moving up in the world, are we?”

Jake returned from the back, pausing when he saw me. “The hell are you doin’ here?”

“Our little Red is a guest tonight,” Nicky said with a smile.

“A guest?” Jake pressed as he refilled the ice.

I scoffed. “I could be a guest.”

“So, who’s the lucky guy?” Nicky asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

“No one,” I answered. “I’m here for a family dinner.”

Jake laughed at that. “Family dinner? I’m dyin’ to see what your family comes in lookin like.”

I nodded. “Me too. I told them it was upscale, but Ozzy’s version of that makes him look like an old victorian count and Patrick.” I winced. “Patrick is going to show up in something fucking hideous. So, I guess I should apologize in advance for you guys having to look at them all night.”

“Well, I don’t know about Nicky, but their outfits won’t bother me.”

“Oh?”

“I’ll be too busy looking at yours.” He winked.

I turned my head away from Jake’s smile, an attempt to hide the blush that no doubt dusted my face with red. However, the sight waiting for me at the front was one that made me do a double take. “What the fuck are you wearing?”

[devilsbrokerank]

Caitlin Fitzgerald as Simone in Sweetbitter (2018—)

1x02 “Now Your Tongue is Coded”

[rosedtae]

ꜱᴡᴇᴇᴛʙɪᴛᴛᴇʀ | ᴋᴛʜ (м)

“Love is a smoke and is made with the fume of sighs”

⇥ pairing: ceo!taehyung ✗ author!reader (female)

⇥ genre: frenemies to lovers, smut, angst (a tiny bit), fluff, a bit of fake dating

⇥ summary: You always hated him, his cockiness and his teasing. But after five years when circumstances lead you to spend more time with him, you start to question your true feelings. You still can’t stand him but this time, you don’t know if it’s because of your hate or your knees.

⇥ rating: 18+

⇥ wordcount: 16.9k (idk what happened)

⇥ warnings: slight cursing, loads and loads of sexual tension, teasinggg (Tae is a menace), body shot, grinding? thumb sucking, spit kink, daddy kink, sloppy kissing, nipple sucking, kinda exhibitionism, fingering, making out,, pussy slapping, hickies, unprotected sex (cuz it’s a fic y’all), dirty talking, oral f.(receiving), slight choking, dom! tae, sub! reader, slight degrading, creampie, overstimulation, lip biting, jealous tae fucking, begging, multiple orgasms, panic attack, mental breakdown (I think that’s it)

⇥ a/n: ok, here goes my first fic! I apologise in advance for my bad storytelling but I’m learning ^-^ after months it’s finally here. I hope it’s a fun read for y’all. happy reading!

⇥ song: Sweetbitter by RIO

Micheal.

No Mike. 

Mark! Yes, you are pretty sure it's Mark. Well you at least hope so, you don't want to look as uninterested as you are right now but you can't help it. Mark looks decent, you know Hobi would never set you up on a blind date with an ‘unattractive dude’, his words not yours.

 It has been forty minutes since you arrived, it was going pretty okay but then he started talking. He's not even asking anything about you anymore, he's just blabbering things about himself. You stopped listening twenty minutes ago. You are just smiling and nodding at this point. 

He's just so…..boring. 

You don't really know what makes a conversation interesting, but after listening to him you surely know what doesn't. You don't think you are compatible to even be friends with each other. What in the world was Hobi thinking. 

You take a sip from your second glass of red wine, lavishing the taste before gulping. You are a light head and two glasses of wine are enough to make you tipsy. The sound of a phone ringing reverberates, god who is not picking up their phone while sitting in this fancy restaurant, how embarrassing. 

“Umm I think it's your phone ringing,” your date informs you.

“Oh uhmm right,” you take your phone out of your clutch to see the caller. God bless Park Jimin for calling you just at the right time. “I'm sorry but I think I should take this,” you squint your eyes at Mark. “Sure, go ahead,” he nods.

“Hello” 

“Hey, I heard from Hobi you agreed to go on another blind date. How's it going?”

“Is it that bad? Do I need to come home now?” You put on your best worried expression.

“Ok so it's a disaster,” Jimin concludes, chuckling through the phone at your poor acting skill.

“Fine, I'll be there,” you end the call.

 “I'm so sorry Mark but I’ve got an emergency at home and so I'll have to cut it short” you call the waiter for the bill. You are not the type who strictly thinks that the bill on dates should always be split. But you really just want to get the hell out of here and it'd be rude to leave early and let him pay all the bill. 

“Oh I hope everything’s alright.” 

“Yeah don’t worry too much about it, I just have to be there asap,” you inform as you pay the bill to be nice. “It was lovely meeting you.” not really.

You stand up from your chair about to walk away. “It's William by the way.”

Oh

“Ooh right, you do look like a William”, you accidentally think out loud. Realising your mistake, you rush out before you say something else you are not supposed to say.

You take out your phone to dial Jimin's number as you step inside the elevator. “Are you still at your office?” you ask as soon as he picks up the call.

“On my way home.”

“Can you please pick me up? I'm a bit tipsy and the date went horrible.” 

He chuckles through the phone hearing you whine, “okay, just send me your location.”

“Will do '' you say, before ending the call.

Luckily he was only ten minutes away from the fancy hotel where you had your blind date. Spotting his car, you wave at him. He stops the car in front of you so could climb up the passenger's seat,“Oh so you are driving today,” you ask, buckling your seatbelt. Usually it’s his driver driving him around. “Yeah, I just felt like driving today,” he shrugs, “How did your date go?” 

“It was a complete disaster, I only got excited once that too at the idea of leaving,” you rant, running your hand through your hair.

“Oof, that bad huh?” he asks, taking the turn to your house. “The worst, he only kept talking about himself. I felt like I was listening to him give a speech,” you huff.

“You should've known better though. I mean you wouldn’t magically get a perfect date just a month before that event.” 

 He's right. You know he's right and you hate it so much that he's right. The real reason why you are looking so desperately for a date is because of the event that is going to happen next month. It's more like a formal party between writers and publishers, and people in that area. You have been going there alone for the last two years but this year your manager stressed you out, demanding you take a plus one with you. That's the reason why you have been on five blind dates and each of them turns out to be worse than the previous one.

“Hobi’s blind dates are clearly not working,” you sigh,“I don’t have the energy to go on another one.”

“Clearly,” he eyes your slumped position. You roll your eyes in return. “I'm just saying at such a short notice, you don't have much luck.”

“I know, I'm just gonna cry myself to sleep,” you rest your head on the window.

“Unless you consider my option and take Taehyung as your date.”

“Over my fucking dead body,” you scoff. Taehyung came back to Korea a few days ago and since then Jimin has been babbling about how he’s a nice option for you.

“Jimin you know how much I fucking hate him. There are two things I can't stand,” you narrow your eyes towards Jimin. “Kim Taehyung and being near Kim Taehyung.”

“You are exaggerating, you were able to stand him for all these years,”he rolls his eyes,“and you last saw him years ago, just leave this high school enemy bullshit behind.”

Maybe Jimin is right, you last saw him during your first year of university before he got transferred to his university in London. You hate to admit it but he was quite intelligent so you weren't surprised when he received the letter from the best university after they saw his plan ideas on the portal. You were able to somehow tolerate him for four years and, maybe it’ll be different now, after five years. You hope he’s a bit mature now. 

“But why will he agree to this,” you ask, considering his idea for a moment before dismissing it.

“Oh he’ll never miss a chance to tease-,” he coughs, “to spend time with you, you guys were friends after all.”

“We weren’t friends, we just used to hang out all the time because of you,” you point your finger his way.

 The car comes to a halt in front of your apartment building. “Thanks for the ride,” you say getting out of the car. “You are a good man” you furrow your brows and nod, alcohol clearly taking over your system. Jimin swats his hand in the air at your dramatic praise. He knows alcohol makes you an overly grateful person. You step away from the car waving as you watch him leave.

You wake up feeling horny. Maybe getting a date won't be so bad after all, that is if you are able to find one. Hobi’s blind dates were your only hope. Unless god just magically sends the perfect date for you. You would have just brought anyone as your plus one if it was a regular event; but it isn't. It's the annual writer’s event. A Lot of media is present there so, your image is also judged and from your past experiences you know that couples get a lot of positive feedback and singles are always targeted to the worst type of rumours. 

“No Hobi, I don't think I'll go on any more blind dates.” you hold your phone between your ear and shoulder as you spread peanut butter on the bread slice. “Last night was a nightmare and I'm not even exaggerating. That guy kept talking about his company and I’m pretty sure he was also quoting Sheldon Cooper.” 

“Sheldon Cooper, really?” he scoffs. “But I thought you liked smart guys who were zealous and stuff.”

“I do, but I want a date to feel like a date, not a business meeting,” you roll your eyes, taking a bite of your bread.

“It can't be as bad as your last boyfriend.”

“Ok, FYI we only dated for like a week and he wasn’t that bad, we just weren’t compatible,” you rub the back of your neck, “we are better off as friends.”

“Yeah, friends who don’t talk to each other,” he mocks.

“Ok, I'll talk to you later, gotta go. I’ve a meeting with the board today.”

“Oh all the best,” he cheers through the phone, making you smile. “Thank you, ba-bye,” you end the call hurrying up to reach the office on time. You have to tell them about your new book that you are planning to work on next, hopefully, they’ll like your idea. You’ve already sent them an email about it.

You drive the way to your office, entering the conference room just on time. The meeting starts briefly after you arrive.

“Miss Y/L/N we liked your idea of portraying the protagonist’s story in a way as described by the elder people of the village, we think it’s a very fresh approach,” Mrs Chu approves. “We’ll set up a team of critics to look over the layout of your ideas.”

“Perfect,” you nod, discussing the process.

The meeting ends earlier than you expected. Since the success of your last book, the company has started to put more faith in your ideas.

You are greeted by the smiling face of your manager as soon as you open the door of your office. Yes, you do have an office, for when you are there to look over the editing process. Sometimes you even come here to write when you have a lack of motivation.

“Gosh Ryujin, you startled me,”you put your hand over your chest. “You are looking really creepy right now,” you say, taking your seat across the desk.

“So,” she takes a long pause before continuing. “How’s your date hunting going?” She puts her elbows on the desk, leaning closer curiously.

Ryujin is your manager as well as your friend. She's the one who got you to sign the contract with a big publishing company for five years, courtesy of her hard work, you are sitting in the building of the world's biggest publishers. She manages all your promotions, your public image and does all the necessary work. You are really grateful for her. 

“A bummer like always,” you reply monotonously. “I think I'll just have to go to the event alone.”

“Na huh,” she slams her hands on the desk and pushes her chair back a bit. “Babes, there's no way I'm letting you go there all alone this year.” Before you can frown she continues, “look, it's very important for your image as an author.”

“Why would people care about me going there alone or with someone.”

“It's more about what kind of impression you'll give,” she says calmly. “I'm not asking you to date anyone. You just have to bring a plus one with you.” 

Yeah well I can't find one.

She continues as if on cue, “Andd if you aren't able to find one, which I'm sure is the reason, I'll set you up with a reputable date.”

‘Reputable date’ makes you cringe but you know you should just do as she says, she does know a lot about these things, she is your manager for a reason after all. You give her a simple nod of agreement.

“Fine, set me up with a reputable date,” you huff. You wish you could just go alone, fuck public image. Honestly you would have asked either Jimin or Hobi to be your plus one but both of them have girlfriends and you don’t want to make it awkward. 

“So, I was talking to Jimin the other day,” she says. Ryujin and Jimin were friends way before you met her, you actually met her through Jimin, they used to go to business school together. “And I think Kim Taehyung is the perfe- no he's more than perfect, having him as your plus one is so good for your image. You have to go with him,” she shakes her head, her businesswoman coming into play.

“But-”

“No buts Y/N,” she cuts you off before you could complain. “We can't miss this opportunity; he's rich, even a fucking CEO now and he’s smart,”she smiles satisfied. “And as I told you before, I’m not asking you to date him.”

Maybe you are making a lot of fuss about it when it's not even that big of a deal. You were both immature teens, it was just childish bickering. 

It can’t possibly be that bad.

Right

Right?

Maybe not.

Jimin’s bright face greets you as he opens the door. 

“Is Mina ready yet?” you ask, entering his house. She asked you to go shopping with her for Valentine’s because she is too indecisive to choose a gift herself. 

“umm she should be ready, wait I'll see,” he says before going to check on her. You enter the living room to make yourself comfortable on the couch.

Your mind goes completely blank as you see Taehyung sitting on the couch. Holy shit, no wonder he has been named the most handsome man in the world, a piece of information you got to know from Ryujin. His dark brown hair falls on his head lazily, covering bits of his gorgeous eyes. He has changed. He was always charming but oh boy, the man in front of you right now. You suck a breath to regulate your breathing. He has gotten so much bigger. He's wearing a loose black sweater and black pajamas but he somehow manages to look very classy in it.

You are literally staring at him at this point, admiring his ethereal beauty. “Like something you see, kitten?” 

You snap back from your little bubble only to find him grinning at you. Of Course, he's still a tease. “What are you doing here?” you ask, a bit surprised.

“We meet after years and that’s the first thing you ask?” He raises one eyebrow. God, he looks extremely handsome right now.

“I can say the same thing to you,” you reply in reference to his earlier remark.

“Touché,” he licks his lips, an old habit of his that right now is turning you on more than you’d like to admit. “Jimin called me over since Mina made plans with you.” 

You nod, finally taking a seat next to him. “Heard you were looking for a date,” he asks, playfulness evident in his tone. “It’s just for a formal event, you don’t have to agree to this,” you say, suddenly feeling a bit shy.

“Oh so you were thinking of me as your date?” he prods cheekily, leaning back on the couch to see your face better. You know Jimin has already talked to him about it.

“I'll go,” he answers before you could say anything. “only because I know you always had a thing for me,” he adds with a grin.

You huff at his cockiness, rolling your eyes, “don't flatter yourself Kim.” 

“Better admit it sooner than later kitten,” he coos. The nickname sends shivers to your whole body, you feel your pussy flutter as it starts to get wet down there.

“Kitten?” Mina asks in surprise as she enters the room with Jimin.

“That's just what Tae calls Y/N,” Jimin explains.

“Ready to go?” you ask standing up from the couch trying to avoid the topic. 

“Yes,” she grabs her bag before waving at Jimin, “see you late babe.”

“Have fun,” he replies as you both leave.

“Ok, so spill the tea,” Mina asks as soon as you enter the car.

“There is no tea,” you put your seatbelt on, starting the car.

“With you and Taehyung, there’s definitely chemistry between you two.”

“He used to tease me a lot in high school and I had to put up with him for Jimin’s sake. That's pretty much it,” you shrug.

“Hmm, so you guys do have a history.”

“No, we don't have any history, or chemistry or maths,” you say, annoyed. “Did you decide on what gift you want to give him?”

“I’ve a few things in mind,” she nods, “I was thinking about giving him either a perfume or.. a watch. He has been working so hard lately, I wanna shower him with love, he always buys gifts for me, I wanna do something nice for him too.” 

“Aww, that's cute,” you scrunch your nose. Sometimes you envy couples, they have their person to spend valentines with. Whereas you just sit on your couch and read smut all day, that is a day well spent in your opinion.

You spend the rest of the ride distracting her from asking about Taehyung. You are pretty close with Mina now that you have known her for two years, but you really just don’t want to talk about Taehyung. You are happy that Jimin finally found someone like her who truly loves him for who he is and not his status, unlike his previous exes. 

The rest of your drive passes quickly. “Let’s see the perfume first,” Mina says, making her way to the showroom. 

You stand near the first aisle while Mina smells different samples to choose from. You love perfumes, but you always have a hard time picking out the right scent. You love how each fragrance builds its own memory, how some are so familiar and how some can leave a strong impact. You can't help but think about the first time you met him.

………

You lightly tapped the tips of your fingers against the desk, waiting for the teacher to come. Closing your eyes, you stretched your back as you heard someone take a seat behind yours. Normally you would ignore it but it smelled really nice. You leaned back taking a deep breath.

 Damn, that smells really nice.  

Curiosity got the best of you and you turned over to see who the fuck was smelling this good. The boy sitting behind you was writing something down in his notebook. He looked…. charming. Brown bangs fall on his eyes. He shifted his gaze to find you staring at him. You felt your heartbeat drop. Oh fuck, you quickly turned your back towards him, accidentally knocking some of his stuff in the process. You wanted to drown from the embarrassment. You were about to apologise and help him pick up his stuff, just then the teacher entered the class. 

What a great timing! You spent the rest of your class feeling embarrassed and taking deep breaths to smell his perfume. Not even exaggerating, he smelled that good.    

  You spent the rest of the week trying to avoid meeting him. That was until one day Jimin finally introduced you to him. You were sitting in the school canteen during lunch break when Jimin approached you.

“Hey Y/N, I wanted to introduce you to my friend.” you saw taehyung standing beside him. “Meet Taehyung, remember I told you about my friend who was planning to change high school. It’s him.”

Ah oh

“Hey, nice to meet you,” you said, holding your hand out.

“Likewise,” he replied, ignoring your hand.

The audacity! You tried to ignore his rude behaviour.“You guys talk, I'm gonna grab something to eat,” Jimin said before disappearing to get his food.

“We are in the same maths class,” you tried to start a conversation, planning to even apologise for that day.

“Oh we are?” he asked, tilting his head. 

Ok, there's no way he didn't notice, he literally sits behind you most of the time. Is he doing this on purpose? 

“Umm, yes first period,” you tried your best to not get irritated. He nodded at you in acknowledgment.

That was your first time officially meeting him. You thought maybe he just had a bad day that's why he acted like that but soon you realised that he just wouldn’t stop teasing you. You tried your best to make peace with him but he was just a weirdo.

You were hanging out at Jimin’s place one day after school, talking to Jimin about the new song of your favourite artist. “ Agh, I just love that song,” you gushed. “alternative/indie is literally the best genre.”

“Pftt,” you heard Taehyung scoff. “Excuse me?” you said turning around to face him, “do you have something to say?”

“Just that, nothing can ever beat the power of Jazz.”

“Well it's my opinion so you can suck it up,” you huffed.

“It's a moo point,” he said unbothered. “You are so annoying,” you snapped, earning a  soft chuckle from him.

 “You look like an angry cat when you are annoyed.”

“No one asked you,” you folded your arms. 

Taehyung grinned at you, finding this way too amusing, “Alright kitten, no need to get so worked up.” All you wanted to do now, was slap that shit eating grin off of his face. 

“Ew, don't call me that,” you squirmed in your seat. “Whatever you say kitten,” he replied.

“Can’t you stop this bullshit and be nice to me for once,” you raised an eyebrow pouting.

“Now what’s the fun in that,” he licked his lips, dangerously eyeing you.

He just found new ways to annoy you daily, why are you thinking about him right now. You divert your attention back to Mina who looks satisfied with the smell of the sample she's holding.

The sun settles down by the time you are done shopping. Mina ended up buying both the watch and the perfume. Something you did expect from her.

You take a quick shower before going to bed. Sighing deeply, finally feeling the softness of your mattress press against your back. You check your phone to see any important messages.

[New message from Ryujin]

Ryujin: i know how i basically coerced you to take Taehyung as your date but you don’t have to  if you feel uncomfortable with him. I was only thinking about building your public image. :((

Ryujin is pretty understanding and you are so grateful for that. You contemplate before typing your answer.

You: no its fine ill take him as my date, don't worry babe ;)

Maybe this time you can tease him a bit.

You spray mist on your wrist, rubbing some on your neck as you stand in front of the mirror to take a final look. It’s finally the weekend and you are going clubbing with your friends to one of those south-end clubs. It was Jin’s idea, he was really excited to party with Taehyung again.

Hobi: im here 

You: comingg

Hobi is your ride for tonight because you can’t drive after getting drunk and he’s going to leave early because he has a meeting which can’t be cancelled at the last minute.

“Helloeee,” you greet him entering the car.

“Glad to see you already in full spirit,” he passes a smile your way.

“Totally.. it's a shame you won’t be there to get drunk with us,” you pout.

“Agh, I would’ve postponed this meeting if i could,” his voice drops a bit, “but it’s a really important deal for our magazine and the editor has to handle it,” he points at himself. You nod at him.

 “I’m just going there to meet Tae honestly,” he continues, “I can’t believe he's back, it has been so long.”

“Yeah, I’m taking him as my date for the event,” you tell him.

“Yah, aren’t you excited,” he looks at you briefly before turning his gaze back at the road. “You two had so much sexual tension, everyone thought you needed to release it, or you guys already did and we don’t know about it,” he raises an eyebrow in question.

“Omg, nothing happened between us,” you feel heat erupt in your cheeks at his statement. Maybe there were some- many incidents when your bickering sessions got too heated but nothing actually happened between you two. He was a natural flirt and you didn’t want to be seduced by his charm so you suppressed your urges. 

Hobi chuckles at your shy reaction as he continues teasing you for the rest of your drive. 

You are immediately welcomed by the neon lights coming from the huge chandeliers as you enter the club. You make your way through the dancing crowd, going to the lounge area.

You spot Taehyung, Jihun, and Jin sitting on the sofa. Jimin and Mina had their little date planned out so they couldn’t come.

The lighting in the lounge area is different from the dancing one. It’s surrounded by light blue lights, giving it a cooler look as compared to the former's red one. Two shots in and you know you are going to be on the dance floor. 

You sit beside Jihun, opposite Taehyung. You can’t help but notice how good he looks as he stands up to give Hobi a hug. His clavicles peeked through his black shirt. All you want to do is trace them with your tongue. It’s a shame you can’t. Or can you? You bite your lip thinking about it.

“You know I'm only here to meet you,” he says, taking a seat. “I'm gonna leave early, so we’ll have to make a plan to go out for drinks soon.”

 “Oh yes, for sure,” Taehyung replies, taking a sip of his whiskey. The veins in his hands become prominent as he brings the glass to his lips and takes a sip, licking his lips.

You always had a thing for his hands and seeing them now, they're even bigger now, makes you feel very very hot. 

You spend the next thirty minutes catching up. Taehyung passing quirky comments to tease you when you order pineapple mimosa.

“Yeah well, it’s better than your whiskey.” Not the smartest comeback but it’ll do.

“I think it’s very classy of him,” Jihun speaks in a rather slutry tone. 

“Okay kids,” Seokjin says, standing up, “I’m going to the bar to seduce someone with this handsome face of mine.”

Of course he is, Seokjin is the nicest playboy you ever met. It’s all thanks to his face that he’s able to get the girls, otherwise his dad jokes are enough to keep him away from getting laid.

You are left with Taehyung and Jihun, Hobi left 10 mins ago, so now it’s just you guys. You can clearly see Jihun flirting with Taehyung. It kind of irks you watching her playfully hit Taehyung’s shoulder whenever he says something funny.

You stand up going to the bar, “I’m going to get some shots.”

You go to the bar, taking a seat near the counter. You are not jealous. You don’t even like him, you remind yourself. 

“One shot of vodka please,” you order. It’s time to get properly drunk. 

You feel your throat burn as you gulp down the vodka. Scrunching your eyes shut for a second, you take the lemon and suck it. You spot Jin’s head as your eyes shut open. 

“Jin! Jin!” You shout, making him turn around to see you. He walks up to you and takes a seat. “Yah! What are you doing here?”

“You left me with fucking Taehyung and Jihun,” you shout over the music, “why did you even invite her?” 

Jihun works with Jin at his office, you’ve only met her a few times but something about her always felt odd, so you and Mina never got close to her.

“She wanted to meet Taehyung.”

“Yeah well she’s flirting with him right now,” you take another shot, irritated.

“Oh I’m sorry, I didn’t know you still liked him,” he pouts.

“No wtf I-”  your sentence is cut off by the arrival of Taehyung and Jihun.

“Taehyung wanted to take shots,” Jihun announces, clapping her hands as she leans closer to Taehyung.

You control the urge to roll your eyes, why is she acting so weird?

“Let’s do body shots,” she jumps, squealing like a ten-year-old.

You don’t know what comes over you, you get off your stool moving closer to Taehyung, “yeah, let’s do it Tae.”

Taehyung smirks at you, quickly noticing the shift in your demeanour.

“Actually-” 

“Okay kitten,” Taehyung cuts Jihun off.

You feel butterflies in your whole damn body. 

“Keep the shots coming,” Jin tells the bartender. 

Taehyung takes a seat on the stool, pulling your body closer to make you stand between his legs. His hands rest on your waist making you squirm at the closeness, which doesn’t go unnoticed by Taehyung. 

“Squirming already kitten,” he whispers in your ear, sending shivers down your whole body. 

“Uh-I,” you try to not get affected, but your body is clearly betraying you.

There's no way you would let him take control just like that. You move your arm to grab the salt bottle and sprinkle some salt on the nape of your neck. Putting the small shot glass between your accentuated cleavage thanks to the push-up bra you are wearing; you pull your hair to the one side giving Taehyung full access to the salt sprinkled side of your neck.

Taehyung can't stop staring at your breasts as they hold the small glass between them. He dips his head down trying his best to not just pull the front of your dress down and take a tit in his mouth. You feel his breath hit your clavicle and goosebumps break out immediately. He takes a long lick starting from your collarbone all the way up to the base of your ear. You dig your fingernails in your palm as you try to bite back a moan, recalling you are in front of your friends. His tongue feels electric against your neck. You think about other not so appropriate places where it'd fit all too well. 

Taehyung watches your breast rise up and down as your breath gets deeper. He finally moves down to take the shot. Eyes fixed onto yours as he takes the glass between his lips, lower lip lightly brushes against the curve of your breast. God, what he'd do to pour that drink on your tits and lick it off from there instead. 

Hands behind his back, Taehyung tilts his head back, your eyes set on his Adam's apple watching it bob up and down as he gulps the drink. You control the urge to trace that prominent bulge in his neck with your lips and colour it with purple hickies.

Jihun fake coughs to bring your attention to her. From the look on her face it’s clear that she got the message. 

“I’m going to the dance floor,” you announce, “anyone who wants to join me is welcomed.”

You make your way to the dance floor swaying your hips to the music. You wink at Taehyung planning to take revenge for his earlier teasing. 

You flip your hair with the beat, you touch your neck delicately trying your best to beckon Taehyung. His gaze travels down your whole body. You feel a couple of eyes on you, checking you out. Your moves slow down because you don’t want anyone to approach you tonight. You feel a pair of warm hands on your waist making you yelp in surprise before hearing the familiar baritone voice.

“Enjoying yourself kitten,” his hands travel to the side of your hips, controlling their movement.

“Mhmm,” you press your ass against his crotch, slowly moving in circles with the music. You feel his hot breath on your neck, loving the way you are affecting him right now but the way the outline of his dick nestles between your ass seems to affect you too. Your plan of teasing him backfires.             

You turn around to face him. Looking into his eyes through your lashes, you can’t help but bite your lip when you feel his breath hitting your lip. He pulls your body closer to his leaving no space between you two. You feel his semi-hard length bulging as he presses it against your crotch. Your gaze shifts from his lips to his eyes, you bite your lip before looking back to his bewitching lips.

“Sorry to interrupt, but I just had to let you know that I’m going to leave with someone so don’t wait for me, consider this my goodbye,” Seokjin informs you before disappearing into the crowd once again.

You untangle from Taehyung, feeling lightheaded from the shots of vodka you had. “I think I'm gonna go home too,” you say, trying your best to maintain your balance. You are quite drunk now. You open your phone to book an Uber. 

“Are you going back by Uber?” He asks.

“Umm yeah?”

“Let me drop you off my driver’s almost here,” he says, pulling his phone from his pocket to check.

You would’ve said no but you are too tired to not agree. “Okaii,” you are pretty sure Jihun left with some guy and Jin is on his way to get some girl in his bed, so Taehyung is the only option.

“Let’s go it’s here,” he holds your hand to guide you out to his car. You stare at your intertwined fingers, his hands look huge compared to yours. It makes you blush thinking about all the places his long fingers could reach, where your dainty ones could never. Wait why are you thinking about him like that, your own thoughts confuse you.

You doze off during your ride before telling him the address. “Hey, we are here,” Taehyung’s soft voice wakes you up from your dazed state. 

You feel yourself sober up as you enter your apartment building. Taehyung insists on dropping you off at your door. 

Ping!

The Elevator door to your floor opens. You feel Taehyung’s gaze as you walk up to your door. 

“Umm, it was really fun tonight,” you turn back to look at him.

“So you had fun teasing me like that?” He takes a step forward closing the gap between your bodies, making you step back until your back is pressed against the door.

“No, I-” you try to make a comprehensive sentence.

“Kitten likes to tease but acts all innocent about it,” he drops his voice a pitch lower.

You feel instant arousal gushing out. He grinds his crotch against yours. “Aahh,” you moan softly at the contact. Taehyung cups your face, tracing your bottom lip with the tip of his thumb. You take the opportunity and bite his thumb. He snickers at your reaction, raising one eyebrow challengingly. 

“Suck,” he orders, a dominant aura reflecting in his eyes. It takes you a minute to realise that you are already licking the pad of his thumb. You start with kitten licks to tease him before taking his whole thumb in your mouth. You suck the whole length before taking it out of your mouth with a pop. 

Taehyung traces the sweetheart neckline of your dress with his thumb. The smallest of his touch shoots pleasure in your body. 

You guide his hand to your breast making him cup it. “Needy, aren’t we?” He chuckles. 

“More,” you reply in a breathless moan. He brings his face close to yours, you close your eyes anticipating a kiss, your lips burn from the wait. Instead, you feel his lips brush against your ear as he whispers,” go get some rest kitten.” 

And just like that, he retracts, leaving you breathless. He winks at you before turning his back and walking away. You whine loudly, earning a chuckle from him.

That prick! Now you are horny and tired and frustrated. Exactly how he wanted you to be.

The next few days pass by in a blur. You are working on your new book, which takes up most of your time. 

You wake up at noon because you were determined to complete the chapter last night and now you look sleep-deprived. 

Rubbing your eyes you take out some cereal and place the bowl on the kitchen island. You take a seat scrolling through your instagram while eating your food. You come across a reel of a super hot couple making out, why is this on your explore page? You are lowkey jealous. It’s been a good minute since you got laid and your sexual frustration is building up day by day. On top of that, you are annoyed because Taehyung is acting like the club night never happened. He hasn't brought up that topic ever since. You don't really care but your pussy says otherwise. 

Kim Taehyung, what kind of game are you playing?

ting!

You pick up your phone to check the text.

Tae: Can you meet me today, it's important.

You: no.

 Tae: ok, i’ll pick you up at 2

You: can’t you read?

Tae: get ready or I’ll come up there to get your ass down in my car.

You: Is that a threat Kim?

Tae: only if you want it to be. Or you can just nicely accept my request.

If that’s his request, you wonder what his order would be like. Fuck now you are horny.

You: fine, I’ll be ready🙄

You end the conversation not trusting your horny ass to continue it.

To shake the laziness off you decide to take a shower before getting ready. 

Hot showers are the best. You close your eyes as you let the hot water drizzle down your skin. You rub the rose-scented suds of your body wash onto your body. You wanted to take a long bath but you don’t have enough time for it, so a shower will have to do for now. 

You hop out of the shower, ready to get dressed. You were planning to sleep the whole day, but now you have to go out with that ignorant jerk. Where are you even going? Wait, you didn’t even ask him. Agh that’s why you should get a proper sleep.

It’s already one forty by the time you finish getting ready. You get a text from Taehyung informing you about his arrival. You take a final look in the mirror before leaving.

You spot Taehyung sitting on the driver’s seat of his car. You open the door and make yourself comfortable on the passenger’s seat. He’s driving today? It’s a bit strange to see him without his driver. But you know both Taehyung and Jimin used to obsess over cars so it’s understandable.

“Where are we going?” you straight up shoot him with the question. 

“To the mall.”

“Umm, why?”

“I'll tell you when we reach there,” he rubs the back of his neck with one hand while the other controls the steering wheel.

Ok, that's hot. You take a minute to take in his appearance. He’s in his formals, grey waistcoat over a plain white shirt. His coat is sitting on the backseat. He looks really good in a waistcoat, you try not to drool.

“In case no one taught you, it’s considered rude to stare at people and drool,” he teases.

“I-I wasn’t..” you protest, mentally scolding yourself for making it that obvious. “I was just looking outside the window,” you make a shitty excuse.

“Oh really?” he hums.

“Shut up before I jump out of this car.”

“That'd be a sight,” he chuckles.

You roll your eyes before turning up the volume level of the music playing in the background. A familiar sweet melody blesses your ears. “I thought you didn't like alternative/indie music,” you ask, a bit surprised.

“Never said I don't like it.”

“Unbelievable,” you mutter under your breath.

“What was that?” he asks.

“I said I can’t stand you,” you give him a fake smile.

“Too early to be getting on your knees don’t you think,” he smirks.

“Omg Tae!” You feel blood rushing to your cheeks are god lewd statement.

The ride doesn't take long. You are confused when he takes you to a cafe in the mall. “Why are we here, you don't even drink coffee,” you question taking a seat.

“Oh don’t worry about me, I'll order hot chocolate or something.”

“I wasn’t,” you mumble.

“One hot chocolate for me, what will you have?”

“I'll have the same,” you tell the waiter.

You put your elbow on the table, resting your face on your palm as you wait for him to speak.

“Soo.,” you ask, getting impatient when he doesn’t say anything.

“So?”

“Kim Taehyung, why am I here?” you huff.

“Oh about that,” he pauses. “Umm, I told my parents that we are dating,” he says with a poker face.

You let out a laugh, thinking that it must be a joke but when you see no change in his expression, you realise that he's being serious.

“Why would you say that?” you ask, raising your eyebrows in disbelief. 

“Because they kept pestering me, trying to set me up on blind dates so I had no choice.” 

The waiter arrives bringing your drinks. You wait for him to leave before continuing,“ so you thought why not give Y/N’s name,” you fold your arms.

“Because they already know about you, they wouldn't have believed if I just gave them a random name,” he explains.

That is true, you were paired together for a project in school. You used to go to each other’s house to work on that and that is when you met his parents. They were super nice to you and you were surprised how such lovely people can have this jerk as their child, you questioned science that day.

“Don't tell me I’ve to meet them for dinner or something,” you sulk back in your seat.

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that,” he takes a long pause, “you just have to come with me to my cousin’s wedding,” he mutters.

You wouldn't have heard him mutter, had you not been paying your full attention to him, “So I've to meet your whole family?” you laugh in disbelief, “great, fucking great.”

“Should I consider that you are coming to the wedding?” he takes a sip from his mug.

You sigh, shaking your head, “when’s the wedding?’

“Next week.”

“What made you think that I’ll agree to this?” you prod.

He shrugs, “I don’t know, I mean I’m helping you too.”

“That’s totally different, I asked you,” you clarify, “you didn’t give me much choice here,”

“No, it’s up to you,” he runs his fingers through his hair. “I’ll never force you to do anything you don’t want to,” he replies sincerely.

Of Course, you are not going to meet his family! It’s a big deal and you are not even dating. You hate him. You hate him?

You are not going.

No way.

“I’ll go,” you blurt.

He’s also helping you, it won’t be fair if you don’t help him. That’s the only reason you said yes. You hate him but you owe him so you have to.

Your mind runs all over the place as you take a warm sip of your hot chocolate. There’s no way you are going to let him off the hook so easily. He’s acting like nothing happened that night. By the small grin forming on his lips you can tell that he knows it’s bothering you. He’s teasing you on purpose. If he’s thinking you won’t do anything about it, then he’s so wrong.

“Now that we are at the mall, I remember there’s something I need to buy,” you place the empty mug on the table.

“Sure, let’s go,” he nods, standing up.

Oh, this is going to be fun. The glint of surprise in his eyes tells you that he wasn’t expecting you to go to a lingerie shop when you said you needed to buy something. 

Taehyung’s gaze follows your finger as you trace the bra to feel the material.

“Hmm, maybe something a bit softer,” you tell the shop assistant.

Taehyung clears his throat, clearly affected by your instigation. He moves to the other corner where garters were placed on display. 

He’s no longer paying attention to you. You grow a bit annoyed because you don’t actually have to buy anything from here. You shift your attention to the shop assistant who is now showing you a pair of silk lingerie. Should you buy it, it looks nice? 

“I’m waiting outside, come when you are done,” Taehyung informs you.

Should you buy anything, you think and look around after Taehyung leaves. After looking at a couple of lingerie sets, you decide to leave because your plan failed anyway.

“Ma’am your bag,” the girl on the counter gestures toward the shopping bag.

You raise your eyebrows in confusion. “Your boyfriend paid for this while you were looking at lingerie in the other section,” she explains.

He did not. You grow flustered, how is he always able to turn the table? You take the bag, thanking her before stepping outside. 

He’s on a call. His voice sounds serious as he speaks something about getting the papers done by the evening. The authoritative tone makes you bite your lip. At this point, you accept that anything he does seems to turn you on. 

He turns around and finds you standing in front of him. “Yeah, get it done,” he speaks before ending the call. 

“Everything alright?” 

“Yeah, just have to attend a meeting soon,” he looks at his watch.

“Oh then you should get going, I’ll take an Uber or something,” you suggest.

“No, get in the car I’ll drop you,” he dismisses your suggestion.

A comfortable silence falls in the car, you look outside the window relishing the tranquillity. “Why did you take me to the mall, you could’ve just called me,” you ask curiously.

“Because the chances of you yelling at me in public were comparatively low.”

“Yelling?” you scoff. “I'm not aggressive Tae,” you giggle at his reason.

“Yeah but you are feisty,” he licks his bottom lip.

You turn your head back towards the window hiding the smile creeping up your lips. 

The rest of the drive passes by quickly. Before you know it, the car comes to halt outside your apartment building. “Thanks for agreeing to fake date me,” Taehyung says as you unbuckle your seatbelt. 

“Anything for my fake boyfriend,” you mock.

“And I hope you’ll like your gift, hopefully, I got the right size,” he says casually, making you blush.

“I’ll let you know,” your honey dipped voice replies. You hear him exhale deeply as you make your way inside the building.

You kick off your shoes as you enter your apartment. You take off your bra and throw on an oversized t-shirt. Your eyes land on the shopping bag laying in front of you. You curiously check the items in the bag. It's a white silk lingerie with a headband. The headband has white cat ears made of mesh attached to it. The size surprisingly is the size you usually wear. 

Great, now you are horny again. Maybe you should buy a fucking dildo, but you’d rather have his fingers- you dismiss the thought as you fan your face with your hand. Too many dirty thoughts for today.

The week passed very quickly, and it’s now Taehyung's cousin’s wedding. He sent reminders throughout the week which ended up in little teasing and flirting sessions. 

Taehyung eyes your whole body in your light blue satin maxi dress which makes your curves prominent. His eyes travel down the dip of your cowl neckline, displaying a tad of your cleavage.  

“You look gorgeous.”

“You don't look too bad yourself,” you reply. He looks delicious in his slate grey suit with white button-up. 

“Thank you,” he replies with a smirk before turning his attention back on his iPad. 

You are on your way to the wedding. Taehyung is busy working so you try to distract yourself by looking out of the window. It’s really boring when he’s not paying attention to you or teasing you. “How long will it take,” you ask pouting.

“We’ll be there in fifteen minutes or so,” he replies, eyes glued on his iPad.

“I'm a bit nervous about meeting your family,” you confess.

He places his hand on your thigh caressing it, “don’t worry you will be fine.”

You let out a little whine at his lack of attention.

“Just be a good girl,” he whispers, hand sliding up through your thigh high slit. “Take a deep breath,” his fingers trace the lining of your underwear. You gush at the proximity of his finger to your clit. “Stay calm,” his hand continues travelling up, fingertips lightly making contact with your clothed clit. One hand still holding the device casually as if the other hand is not making you worked up. You gasp at the lightest contact, squirming in your seat as you try to press your legs. His fingertips don't apply any pressure as they travel south to trace your hole. 

“And you’ll be fine,” he retracts his hand patting your thigh before smoothing over your dress. The car stops indicating the arrival of your destination. “Asshole,” you mutter, making him grin.

Taehyung places his hand on the small of your back as you make your way through the entrance. “Even if it’s fake, I’m still very nervous to meet your family,” you whisper.

“It’s a private wedding, there aren’t many people, just family and close friends. And you’ve already met my parents,” he tries to make you less nervous.

“Yeah, like ten years ago,” you reply dramatically. 

“I’ll be there by your side, it’s gonna be alright, try to enjoy the wedding, yeah?” he coos.

Taking his advice, you look around the place and it looks truly mesmerising. The floor to ceiling window , with huge mesh curtains folded on both sides, allows light to pass through the hall. Vine of white wisteria dangles down the ceiling.

Taehyung’s mom spots you and waves enthusiastically before coming over. “Oh darling, it’s so good to see you,” she hugs, greeting you.

“It’s lovely to meet you both,” you reply.

“Good to see you after so many years Y/N, we were quite surprised when he told us that he was dating you,” Taehyung’s dad looks at his wife before continuing. “We remember how you used to bicker all the time,” he recalls.

“Time really flies, look at you all grown up into a wonderful woman now,” Mrs Kim says with awe.

“You flatter me, Mrs Kim.”

“Oh no need to be so formal dear, call me mom.” Taehyung coughs uncomfortably at her statement, “mom, isn’t it too soon for the-”

“You hush, it’s the first time you’ve introduced us to a girl, you better be serious about her Kim Taehyung,” she jokes.

Taehyung turns his face to meet your gaze, he looks at your lips before returning his gaze to your eyes, “that I am,” he smiles.

“Oh thank god, we used to think he’s in love with him but then Jimin got a girlfriend and we got worried,” his dad says in a playful tone, making you laugh.

“Where’s Nari?” Taehyung asks his mom, “she was very excited to meet Y/N.”

“Me?” you question looking at him. You have never actually met his sister, maybe encountered her once or twice briefly, she was a sweet girl from what you remember.

“Yes darling,” he replies softly.

You know it’s for show but the use of the pet name makes you feel giddy.

“She was here just now,” Mrs Kim scans the hall. “We’ll tell her to meet you if we see her,” she smiles before moving to greet the other guests.

“Why is she excited to meet me?” you ask once his parents are out of view.

“You’ll know once you meet her, jagi,” he whispers the last word.

“You don’t have to use the pet name now,” you pause, “nobody is near us to listen.”

“Mhmm but I think you like it,” his baritone voice replies.

Fuck yes, you do. It’s so sweet it turns you on. It’s so sweet it turns you on? When have you ever been this needy? You don’t want him to tease you again so you try hard not to squirm.

You gulp down hard, making Taehyung notice. His signature cocky smirk makes an appearance on his lips. “Now don’t start squirming here kitten,” he orders.

“I’m not squirming you ass,” you scoff.

“Ah, there she is,” Taehyung points in the direction of his sister. 

She’s all grown up now, must be in college, you do the math in your head. 

Her eyes have the same twinkle in them as Tae’s, you notice as both of you make your way towards her.

“Omg Y/N,” she squeaks as she sees you. 

“Hey, how are you,” you greet her giving her a hug.

“I’m good, you know I wanted to meet you for the longest time,” she tells you excitedly. “I love your work, I’m literally always reading your work,” she gushes.

“Omg you are so cute,” you say in awe, “and thank you for appreciating my work.”

“I was so surprised when he told us that he’s dating someone, and even more surprised when he told us it was you,” she looks at her brother. “I thought you guys didn’t like each other, in high school when you used to come over, I could hear the bickering from my room,” she laughs.

“Your brother always had a little crush on me, and he finally grew the balls to ask me out,” you turn your gaze towards Taehyung. “Even after all these years, right honey baby boo,” you let your hand rest on his chest.

“Right,” he gives you a knowing look. 

“Low-key always knew he was a simp for you,” Nari shrugs. 

Seeing her brother raise his eyebrows at her she excuses, “I think someone just called my name.” 

“I don’t think so, I didn’t hear anything,” he catches her lie.

“Oh, I surely did,” she leaves before he could say anything.

You turn to Taehyung after Nari leaves, “a simp for me, that’s new,” you tease him.

“You are enjoying this way too much, aren’t you?” His tongue pokes his inner cheek.

“Mhmm,” you nod, smiling.

“Didn’t know you were that type of girlfriend, honey baby boo? Seriously?” 

“Well,” your index finger traces the length of his face. “It’s not real so I can be whoever I want to be,” you tap the mole on his nose. 

“You didn’t tell me if it fits. Did I get the right size?” he asks, referring to the little gift that he gave you a few weeks ago.

“You did, one keen observer aren’t you?” 

“For selected subjects,” he smirks.

Your attention is stolen by the arrival of the bride indicating the start of the ceremony. The lights dim down creating a soft atmosphere. 

You watch the couple in awe as they read their vows and the marriage officiant pronounces them husband and wife.

Taehyung’s arm still wrapped around your waist provides a weird sense of comfort to your heart which your mind is unable to decipher.

You move to the reception space for the wedding dinner. You take a seat next to Taehyung’s on the dining table where the rest of his family is sitting. 

“Uncle!” a little boy approximately four years old comes running towards Taehyung. Taehyung picks him up before placing him on his lap.

“Hello baby,” he attacks the kid’s face with kisses. 

Watching him converse with the baby makes your heart flutter, filling it with warmth. 

“Whoze that?” He points at you with his baby fingers. 

“Hello, I’m Y/N, what’s your name?” You ask sweetly. 

“I’m Jae,” he says shyly before nuzzling his face in the crook of Taehyung’s neck. He whispers something in Taehyung’s ear.

“She is,” he nods in agreement, looking at you. “Why don’t you tell her that?”

“You look weally pwetty,” he says before running off to where his mom was sitting across the table.

“I can’t wait till you both finally have your own kids,” Taehyung's mom says, watching the whole scene.

Suddenly everyone is interested in the topic as their eyes settle on you and Taehyung. 

“Oh, they’ll make beautiful kids,” Taehyung’s aunt, who you met earlier, gushes.

Blood rushes to your cheeks at the mention of having kids with him. It’s rather awkward to be discussing your unborn children at a wedding dinner. You are saved by the mention of the first dance.

You watch the newlywed couple dance, they truly do look in love. It warms your heart as more couples start to join the dance floor. 

“Oh dear, why are you two not dancing?” Taehyung’s aunt asks, pouting as she points toward the other couples dancing. She’s one nosy lady. 

“We were about to go,” he answers with a soft smile. She looks content with his answer as she smiles back and moves towards the other table.

He looks so gentle. “Uhm, do you want to dance?” he rubs the back of his neck. Your eyes meet for a split second, you don’t know if it's because of the atmosphere but the warmth and softness in his eyes is almost irresistible. 

You nod, turning away your eyes to avoid his strong gaze. He stands up as he offers his hand. You look up at him through your lashes before placing your hand in his. It feels warm. You find yourself craving the warmth. He leads you to the dance floor.

You expected it to feel awkward but it, for some reason, it doesn't. It feels scary, scary because you like it. Like the way he puts his hand on your waist, softly pulling you closer to him. The way your hand automatically finds a place on his firm shoulder. 

“I’m sorry for the awkward situation there,” he drawls, “they can get a little too excited sometimes.”

“It’s fine,” you let out a small giggle. The two of you fall silent as the sound of music fills in the silence.

Bodies in sync as you move slowly with the music, it feels so foreign yet so familiar. You feel yourself melting in his arms like butter. Breathing slowly as you let the soft music flow through your ears. 

You raise your head to look at him and find his eyes already on you. He moves closer and rests his forehead against yours. You can feel his breath hit your lips. 

You rest your face on his shoulder, hands travelling north before you interlock them behind his neck, caging him between your arms. The soft music playing in the background makes you nuzzle into his neck. The smell of his cologne hits your nostrils making you gush. In retaliation, you softly scratch the hair at the nape of his neck making him humm. 

This feels too good. You want him to wholly consume you. You want to be consumed by him. Him. Just one touch of his is enough to start an inferno in your heart, just one touch is enough to placate it. 

You can't deny your true feelings anymore. It's funny how you didn’t even realise when the thin line between love and hate disappeared. It's him who has been on your mind ever since he returned. The feelings that you suppressed all these years are now making you yearn for him so bad. You can’t help but lean closer to him as you feel his warm hands slowly caress your waist. 

He has always been gentle. You remember during the first year of your college, things were going pretty rough for you and your mental health wasn’t in the best condition. Moving to college was a big transition and you weren't even sure if literature was what you wanted to pursue further. 

That day especially was pretty rough, your professor highly criticised your essay that you spent weeks working on. You were pretty happy about how it turned out. You stared at the crumbled essay laying on the floor in front of you. You took deep breaths as it became hard to breathe. 

“Hello, Y/N,” Taehyung's voice echoed in your dorm room. “The door was open so I came in, I’ll leave soon. I've to meet up with someone, I’m just here to grab the-” he stopped when he saw your gasping figure. You were having a panic attack.

“Hey, shhh, it's okay,” he sat down on the floor next to you, hesitantly wrapping his arms around you. When you didn’t flinch, he moved closer to hug you properly. He slowly stroked your head to help you calm down. It actually did help. You felt the pain in your chest slowly alleviating. Your hands gripped the fabric of his shirt tightly. And he held you just like that. You remember falling asleep on his chest, when you woke up from your slumber you were tucked in your bed. 

You expected him to tease you for stressing over such a trivial incident, but he didn’t. He just listened. He listened to your cries, your panting, your complaints while stroking your hair to help you calm down. You really needed that, needed to let go of all the troubling thoughts that you were holding. 

All these memories rush in your mind as you feel the same warmth you did years ago. You don’t want to let it go. The song ends and you have to, much to your dismay, untangle your body from his.

The realisation hits you hard. You don’t even know how he feels about you. 

“That was so cute, I can't wait for your wedding now,” Jiho’s statement distracts you from thinking further. “You should become a wedding planner if you are so obsessed with weddings missy,” Taehyung folds his arms. 

Your earlier thought bugs you for the rest of the evening. Sensing your discomfort Taehyung insists on leaving early even after you assured him that you were fine.

“What’s wrong, kitten?” He asks, genuinely.

You turn your head to look at him. He looks so warm, you want to sit on his lap and cuddle him but you can’t and that’s what’s wrong. “Nothing, just a bit tired,” you try your best to not sound gloomy but the heaviness in your tone betrays you.

Taehyung sighs before cupping your cheek, as you feel his thumb stroking your cheek lightly. You lean into his touch instinctively. Your gaze travels down to his lips, you spot a small mole on his bottom lip and all you want to do is close your lips around it. 

His soft side, which he showed you today, left a deep impact and you feel your heart being captivated by it. Your bodies attract each other like the opposite sides of a magnet. His lips are so close yet so far from yours. The anticipation of feeling his lips on yours is killing you.

You can't take it anymore, you lean forward closing the distance between your lips. His pillowy lips feel soft against yours. You give him a soft deep peck. The flesh of your lips sticks lightly with his as you pull away to see him. His gaze travels from your eyes to your lips. Within a second he pulls you in by the grip he has on your cheek. 

Capturing your lips in his, he traps your bottom lip and sucks it lightly. You let out a huffed moan at the softness of his ministrations. You feel his tongue swirl around your lips asking for entrance which you grant him gladly. His tongue makes an entrance giving you the taste of him. He tastes like the sweet champagne he drank earlier. 

Your tongue tangles with his, setting a sync. He tastes so good, you can’t help but want more. Your hands land on his chest, tugging the material of his shirt as you lean closer to deepen the kiss. He sets a deep and gentle pace, kissing you softly. 

The lewd sound of your tongues fill the car, you are grateful for the car partition which blocks the view of the scene that is taking place in the backseat of the car. 

The car stops as you pull away to take a breath, your apartment building coming into view. 

You just kissed him. How’ll he react if you tell him that you like him? Is he just playing with you?

Anxious thoughts fill your mind reminding you of your current dynamic with him. Damn, you just want to kiss him without worrying about the consequences, you just want to kiss him like he's yours.

“Goodnight Taehyung,” you say before exiting the car.

Did you expect him to come with you? You are not drunk this time why would he come. You feel a dull ache radiating from your heart.

You spend the next few days trying to ignore Taehyung, but the joke was on you because he didn't really contact you after that night. You wanted him to.

You hate how you overthink every single thing. A thousand possibilities run through your mind. This can only mean one thing- he’s just playing with you. Do people just casually kiss oh so softly like this? Maybe they do if they are Kim Taehyung.

You don’t want to face him but your event is tonight and you have no other choice. You sent Taehyung a dry text as a reminder of tonight’s event.

You are kind of nervous to see him. You take a deep breath before exiting your apartment building. The cold air hits your body as soon as you step outside, your strapless maroon dress exposing you to the coldness. You tug your satin shawl closer for some warmth. 

You see Taehyung standing outside his car wearing his dark grey Louis Vuitton suit. You try not to drool over how perfectly the suit fits his physique. It looks like you are not the only one who’s having a hard time. You feel Taehyung’s eyes scan your whole body before settling down on your breasts. By the look on his face you can tell that he's enjoying the view. 

“Let's get this over with,” you walk past him, making your way into his car. You are still pissed at him, he can’t just kiss you and act like nothing happened. If he thinks you are going to be nice to him then oh boy is he wrong. 

You: yes, the media got plenty of our pics 

Ryujin: good job :’)

You: can I leave now… I’m bored

Ryujin: stay a bit more.

oh and talk to the publishers.

“Bored already kitten?” Taehyung asks, his arm wrapped around your waist giving him a clear view of your screen. 

“Yeah well my date is too boring,” you sigh looking at him. 

“Ouch, that was rough,” he says dramatically.

“Oh was that too rough for Kim Taehyung?”

“You really wanna find out what’s rough according to me?” He asks, giving you devilish eyes.

“In your dreams,” you bite back.

“Are you sure they are mine and not yours?”

You narrow your eyes at his cockiness, “I can’t stand you,” you mutter.

“Miss Y/N, it’s so good to see you here.” The old man steals your attention from his greeting.

“Mr Lee! How are you?” you smile seeing the editor. You know him from your internship years, he was always very kind, the wise man helped you a lot.

“I’m good,” his eyes travel to Taehyung. “And who might this young man be?”

“Kim Taehyung, Nice to meet you,” Taehyung shakes his hand.

“So you are her-”

“Friend, he’s my friend.”

“You two look lovely together anyway,” he smiles.

“How’s your granddaughter?” you change the topic, feeling shy because of his compliment.

    “She’s good, she loved her birthday present, thank you for signing that book for her,” he replies merrily.

“I’m glad she liked it.”

The best part about being an author for you is when people are able to relate to your characters, when they feel the impact of your writing. The words that you still help someone collect themself.

“Take care dear.”

“You to Mr Lee,” you bid the editor goodbye.

From the corner of your eyes you see the girl, who has been eye fucking Taehyung ever since you stepped in, approaching you.

“Are you Kim Taehyung by any chance?” She asks in a slutry voice. 

“Yes,” he replies firmly.

“Ahh yes, I knew you looked familiar,” she touches Taehyung’s arm playfully.

You knew this would happen, Taehyung's a handsome man so it’s not surprising to see someone approaching him, but god can she not see his arm around your waist, he’s here with a date. You cough lightly to make your presence known but she ignores you flirting shamelessly. 

You are about to put her off but then you remember he’s not your boyfriend. He’s single, he can flirt with anyone he wants to. The thought frustrates you. “I’m gonna go to the bar,” you whisper in his ear before leaving.

You stand near the counter contemplating on whether you should get drunk or not.

“Hey, gorgeous.”

A familiar angelic voice catches your attention. You turn your head ninety degrees to find Jeon Jungkook standing beside you.

“Jungkook,” you reply exuberantly as you hug him.

Jungkook is the owner of Jeon publishers, you have seen him often in settings like these. His company is huge and he is very influential in the publishing sector. Your conversations with Jungkook have always been light and flirty. It actually feels good to see him.

“You look beautiful as always,” he smiles.

“Thank you, and you look handsome as always,” you reply. 

“So, how have you been, it's been so long since I last saw you.”

“Yeah, just working on a new book, you know how it gets,” you take a sip of your champagne. 

He nods, “well, I'm sure it's gonna be good if it’s written by you.”

“You are just too sweet,” you put your hand on his arm lightly, surprised by the taut muscle.

“I speak nothing but the truth,” he leans closer, taking your hand in his, before placing a soft kiss on the back.

Normally you would’ve flirted back but right now all you can think about is him. The way his jaw is clenching right now. The way his gaze is putting daggers on Jungkook's back. The way he’s looking at you with possessiveness. Suddenly it feels too hot inside. 

“I’m going to get some fresh air,” you whisper, making your way to the balcony to let your body cool off. 

You sigh in relief as the cold air hits your hot skin. The balcony is located on the backside, away from public eyes. You feel a warm pair of hands on your waist. You hate how quickly you can recognise his touch. You also hate how your body is leaning into his touch.

“Who was that?” he asks, placing small kisses on your neck.

“None of your business,” you huff.

“I'm your date it is my business,” his hands roam around your body.

You turn around to face him, folding your arms. The action causes your cleavage to look even more prominent, stealing taehyung’s attention. 

“Doesn't mean you-”  Taehyung leans closer, brushing his nose to yours as he peers down at your lips.

“Doesn’t mean I?” He asks, raising one eyebrow as the corners of his mouth twitch upwards.

You forget whatever you were going to say. Totally under his spell, you gulp down hard. He pulls your body closer with the grip he has on your waist.

“Gotta show everyone you are my date,” he growls, pushing his lips to yours for an open-mouthed kiss.

You don’t know what he meant by that but you can’t think much when his tongue is swirling around yours so passionately. He sets a sensual pace, still soft but more passionate than last time. 

Your hands easily slide up, around his neck as you kiss him back like your life depended on it. Both of you make out shamelessly on the open balcony.

He pushes you against the nearest wall breaking the kiss. You whine at the loss but your whines turn into moans when you feel him press soft kisses on your jaw. Kissing your neck all the way to your clavicles. He sucks hard before swirling his tongue on your skin. Is he marking you? Fuck, you bite back a moan.

You close your eyes, letting pleasure overtake your senses. “Ahh,” you wince when you feel him nip your breast sharply.

“Eyes on me,” he orders looking up at you, lips brushing against the lobes of your breast. The view shoots arousal straight down your nether region.

“Haven’t been able to take my eyes off of them since I saw you in Jimin’s house,” he massages your breast with his huge hand. You try not to throw your head back but the amount of pleasure he’s providing you makes it hard. Your gaze travels up and you see Jungkook watching you through the door. 

How long has he been standing there? Has he been watching you? His presence justifies Taehyung’s actions. His possessiveness irks you and turns you on at the same time. You should stop him, he has no right to act possessive, but your horniness betrays you.

He hooks his finger on the seam of your neckline, gently pulling it down to free your breast. Your right breast pops out gaining the attention of Taehyung’s predatory eyes. You chew on your bottom lip but a huffed moan still escapes. 

“Don’t bite back your moan,” he blows on your nipple making it hard instantly. “Let him know how good I make you feel.”

Taehyung latches his lips onto your nipple, sucking it harshly. He flicks his tongue around your hardened peak, while the other hand massages your neglected breast. You feel like you’d cum just from him sucking your breast, you never knew your nipples were so sensitive. 

Watching Taehyung being possessive under Jungkook’s gaze makes your pussy clench around nothing.

He shifts his attention to the other breast, freeing it from the dress before sucking it hungrily. You run your fingers through his hair, pulling him closer to your breast. He chuckles at your neediness, sending sensations to your already sensitive nipple.

From your peripheral view, you see Jungkook curse under his breath as he palms his crotch, before leaving. 

Taehyung releases your breast with a pop before licking it. A string of saliva connects your nipple with his lips. Your chest heaving from the lewd act. He pulls your dress back to cover your exposed breast. 

“Let’s go, I’m not sure you can handle it,” he smirks, placing his hand on the small of your back as he leads you back inside. You take a few deep breaths to normalise your breathing, mentally cursing that asshole for leaving you like this. Again.

The huge mirror wall on one side of the hall gives you the view of a crimson red hickey blossoming on your neck, making you blush. This is not how it was supposed to be, you were supposed to be angry, not needy. You want to push his button and the only way to do so is by being a brat. 

“You okay?” he asks smugly. 

“Not really, I wonder where Jungkook is,” your eyes scan the hall. “You always leave me hanging with your big talks, I'm sure he’ll take good care of me. He’s a man of his words, unlike some people,” you huff in the brattiest tone. 

“Behave kitten,” he warns.

“Make me…, ah but I’m not sure if you can,” you pout.

He raises his brows in disbelief, rolling his tongue against his bottom lip. Your plan is working, he looks pissed. “We are leaving,” he growls. His words ignite your whole body. 

“My house,” he orders his driver as soon as you enter the car. 

“Your house?”

“Yes, we need to talk,” his jaw flexes as he grinds his teeth.

“About what,” you mumble.

“About you being a brat,” he spits.

You turn your head to face the window as you try to keep a straight face. The anticipation fills your stomach with butterflies. It takes forever to reach his place, maybe not,  you are just exaggerating because of your horniness. You realise it’s your first time seeing his house. It’s huge, what does he do there all alone? 

He holds the door for you to step out, raising his eyebrows in question when you don't budge. “I don’t want to talk,” you protest just to get a reaction.

“This is not gonna work,” he bends down to pick you up. He throws you over his shoulder like you weigh nothing, the display of his strength makes you wetter.

“Taehyung, what are you doing? Put me down,” you squeak.

“Quiet now you brat,” he spanks your ass, making you yelp.

Taehyung puts you down once you are inside his house. “Now, what’s your issue?” He asks in his deep voice.

“My issue? You are the one who kissed me,” you cross your arms.

“Are you saying you didn’t want it? Because your lips said otherwise by the way you opened your mouth for my tongue to slide in.”

“I-I,” you try to come up with a sensible excuse but fail. The way he’s gawking at you causes the ache between your legs to grow, you press your legs together to get some relief. 

“Look at you being a needy slut,” his eyes scan your squirming body.

“Quite certain you can’t be of any help,” you test the waters.

“I can make you beg for it darling,” he snarls, the look in his eyes changes to a darker one.

“I’d love to see you try, I’m sure Jungkook-” 

All the patience leaves Taehyung's body as soon as Jungkook's name escapes from your lips. He captures your lips for an open-mouthed kiss, not allowing you to complete the sentence.

Taehyung’s hand grabs the back of your neck roughly to pull you closer. His tongue swirls around your palette turning it into a sloppy kiss. You try to kiss him back with the same need but his tongue dominates yours.

He kisses you roughly, in contrast with his earlier kisses which were very soft and gentle. Your tongue entangles with his, exchanging your salivas. You feel lightheaded due to lack of air but you don’t want to stop kissing him.

He traps your bottom lip between his teeth, making you whimper. He pulls back letting your bottom lip slide through his teeth before releasing it.

“Let’s teach you some manners,” he whispers in your ear. Taehyung presses his thigh between your legs providing your cunt with some friction.

“Ngh..” you let out a breathy moan. Heat rushes to your cheeks when you realise that you are grinding your cunt against his thick thigh. You quicken your movement to provide your clit with the much needed friction as you feel a bubble of pleasure starting to build up. 

Taehyung’s hands grip your waist, stopping your movement abruptly. “Did you really think I was gonna let you off that easily?” He turns you around pressing your front against the wall near his floor to ceiling window.

Taehyung pins your wrists above your head, holding them with one hand. “Let’s see how needy you can be,” he traces the contour of your ear with his tongue making you squirm uncontrollably. He kisses and licks your ear before tugging on the earlobe. You never knew your ear was capable of experiencing this much pleasure.

He tugs the zip of your dress, sliding it down slowly. You take your arms out of the off shoulder sleeves, shrugging off the dress to expose your naked body to Taehyung's hungry eyes. He puts your hair on one side before pressing kisses on the back of your neck. He kisses your back, nipping the skin as he makes his way down to your ass.

The thought of having him on his knees for you causes slickness to pool between your legs. He hooks a finger on your panties, tugging it to the side. “Is this for me?” his finger collects your arousal spreading it all over your pussy lips. 

The lightest touch of his finger against your pussy makes you clench your walls. “I don’t like repeating myself, kitten,” he says firmly. “Who are you so wet for?,” his lips brush against your nether ones. 

“Taeh-”

“Uh uh,” he risks, “that’s not how you are gonna address me.”

You scoff at his statement, “you don’t expect me to call you dadd- aghh.” Taehyung lands a rough spank on your ass. “Taeh-” he lands another hard spank, not letting you say his name.

You hiss at the pleasurable sting provided by his spanks. Taehyung pulls your legs apart to get better access to your cunt. Your swollen lips are now glistening from arousal. He kisses your inner thigh before sucking and licking it, to leave his marks. 

He gropes your asscheeks and pulls them apart, making your tightest hole visible. He takes a lick before shifting his attention to your desperate pussy. He rubs your pussy lips between the V created by his index and middle finger. “Agghhh,” you moan loudly at the stimulation. 

Taehyung takes one lip in his mouth, sucking it hungrily. He flicks it with his tongue in between the sucking, making you clench frantically. You need his tongue somewhere else. You push your hips against his face in hope of getting some stimulation where you really need it, but the iron grip he has on your hips doesn’t allow any movement.

“Pleasee..” you whine loudly. 

“Please what?” He bites your ass. You know exactly what he wants to hear, but you are not gonna— you feel swipe his finger across your entrance and you give up.

“Please daddy, please stop teasing me!” You cry out. 

“Good girl,” he presses small kisses all over your ass. You arch your back at the praises, suddenly wanting to hear more of them. Taehyung closes his lips around your entrance, licking your labia rapidly with his flat tongue. 

He hasn’t even touched your clit but you feel the bubble of pleasure building up quickly. His tongue runs in circles against your inner labia making you roll your hips. Your walls start to clench as you feel your climax approach. 

Taehyung senses your clenching and stops abruptly. “Were you just gonna cum?” He asks amusingly. “Yes you assh-” you yelp when his hand lands on your pussy, smacking it. The pain sends pleasure all over your nether region making you shudder.

“Yes daddy, I was,” your breathless voice replies. 

“Such a slutty kitten, was gonna cum just from me licking her folds,” he stands back on his feet. He turns you around and pushes you against the wall, manhandling you.

Taehyung runs his fingers through your hair, pulling it to make you look into his eyes. “Where’s the big talk now, kitten? All it took was one spank to put you back in your place,” he taunts.

His dominating aura only allows whimpers to leave your lips. Your gaze travels to his lips, fuck you want to feel his lips on yours again. “I want to taste daddy,” you lean for a kiss but he pulls away making your lips chase his.

“You wanna taste daddy?” His grip on your hair tightens a bit. You nod eagerly, biting your lip. 

“Open your mouth.”

You open your mouth wide, sticking your tongue out. His jaw moves, as he gathers his spit. You close your eyes with anticipation, eagerly waiting for his spit to land on your tongue.

The sound of his chuckle makes you open your eyes. You whine when he does nothing further. “What?” He says laughing, “what were you expecting kitten?” 

“Y-Your spit,” you mumble, feeling slightly embarrassed to say it out loud. 

“Say it loud and clear, just like your moans,” he prods.

“Your spit daddy!” You reply in a high pitched moan. 

“Is that what you want?” He raises an eyebrow smugly. You stick your tongue out again, nodding. He tugs your hair lightly making you crane your neck. A globe of spit finally lands on your tongue making you hum with satisfaction. 

“Swallow,” he orders, wrapping his hand around your throat, choking you lightly. He feels the movement of your throat as you swallow his spit.

Taehyung kisses your mouth sliding his tongue in. He places his hands under your thighs lifting you up as he carries you upstairs to his room, lips never breaking contact. 

Your tits bounce when he throws you on the Mattress of his bed. He takes his suit jacket off, before folding the sleeves of his shirt. He hooks his arms under your legs as he pushes you closer, towards the edge of his bed. 

He places small kisses on your stomach making his way down to your still clothed cunt. He pulls your panties between teeth slowly tugging them off. You lift your hips to help him slide it off completely. He spits your panties out of his mouth, glaring at your now completely naked body laying in front of him. 

“Spread your legs for daddy,” he orders. You comply eagerly, spreading your legs wide open exposing your most intimate area to his greedy eyes. You notice the now huge bulge in his pants, as you lift up your hand in an attempt to stroke his clothed cock. He slaps your hand away, “did I say you can touch me?” he asks rhetorically. 

Taehyung lifts up your leg, placing it on his shoulder as he bites the pad of your toe. The small nip causes tingles of pleasure to run throughout your lower body. He sucks on your ankle lightly, maintaining eye contact to observe each reaction of yours. He presses a trail of kisses from your ankle, to your shin till he finally reaches your thigh. He bites the soft flesh of your inner thigh not so softly, making you cry. He runs his tongue over the bitten area to soothe the sting. 

He dips his head between your legs, as he swipes his nose between your folds inhaling deeply. His nose bumps your clit making you cross your legs around his head, on reflex. “Stay still or I’m not doing anything,” he warns, pushing your legs apart. He latches your left lip in his mouth, sucking it roughly. He releases it and gives the other lip the same treatment. 

You gush out because of his teasing, wanting nothing more than his lips on your poor neglected clit. “Taehyung, pleasee,” you whine loudly. “Please what?” he asks in a husky voice. “Do something, I want more,” your voice sounds so desperate it even surprises you. “Hmm, like what? Gotta be more explicit with your words kitten.”

“Touch me,” you let out a breathy moan making Taehyung scoff. “Beg for it,” his voice drops an octave, sounding almost dangerous as he looks at your needy figure with lust lidded eyes. He’s keen on making you beg for it, taking your challenge seriously. “Please please daddy, make me cum. Please, I'm so desperate for your touch.”

He hums in satisfaction at your neediness, “so needy for daddy aren’t you?” You nod eagerly at his question. “Fuck look at you dripping on the sheet,” he swipes his finger across your entrance collecting your arousal. He finally blesses you by wrapping his lips around your clit, sucking it hungrily. 

Taehyung’s fingers open your folds as he licks your entrance groaning at the taste of your arousal. “Such a sweet fucking pussy,” he slowly pushes his tongue inside your hole massaging your walls with his tongue. He starts tongue fucking your hole, drinking up your juices simultaneously. He shifts his attention back on your clit, flicking it teasingly. He slides two fingers inside your puffed cunt. “Aghh, s-so good nghh,” you moan when his fingers start stretching you out by their scissoring movement.  

His fingers feel so big, you wonder what his cock would feel like. You look down at him making out with your clit as his fingers disappear inside you. You let out a cry when he enters the third finger inside your hole, “gotta stretch you real good for daddy’s huge cock,” he grunts moving his fingers in and out of your pussy. His grunts send vibrations to your clit throwing you on the brink of your orgasm. “Aghh, yes! I-I’m gonna cum,” you say when his fingers start moving at a rapid speed.

He pulls out his fingers and replaces them with his tongue. He lays his tongue flat against your pussy, fingers taking over your clit. The texture of his tongue against your pussy feels different. “Cum on my tongue,” he growls, rubbing your clit tightly. “Cum,” he pauses, “now,” his deep grunt sends waves after waves of pleasure throughout your entire body as you cum, hard. Taehyung licks your folds clean from your arousal. He keeps licking your pussy as you come down from the waves of pleasure. 

Taehyung detaches his mouth from your entrance as he stands up, to take off his clothes. His taut muscles come into view making you gawk while his hands work on undoing his belt. You gasp when he frees his dick from the confines of his underwear. He’s massive, you knit your eyebrows biting your lip as you admire his swollen pink tip. “Please let me suck you off daddy,” your sweet honey dipped voice requests.

“You want daddy to shove his dick down your throat?” 

“Mhmm yes,” you whimper. “Ahnn,” he licks his lips, “how bad?”

“So so bad, want it in my mouth wrapped around my lips, wanna taste your cock,”you breathe heavily. “Well, too bad you are not gonna get it,” he grunts, “don’t forget what a brat you have been.”

Suddenly the ache between your legs starts building again, you are not satiated, you want his dick inside you. He spits down on your pussy letting his spit dribble down on your already leaking hole. Your cheeks heat up at his lewd act, as you roll your hips to get your hole closer to the tip. He lands a spank on your clit making you shudder from the pain before it slowly fades into pleasure, “be a good girl if you want my cock,” his tip teases your folds.

“Sorry daddy, I promise I’ll be a good girl.”

“You’ll be respectful to daddy and not a brat?” he asks, enjoying your submissive state. “Yes! Yes daddy I’ll do anything you want, please put your dick in and fuck the brat out of me,” you whine.

Taehyung flips you on your front, pulling your hips up. You arch your back, raising your ass higher in the air. He licks your clit all the way up from your asshole. You turn your head to look at him. 

Taehyung gives his cock a few strokes before lining it with your entrance. “Yes yes please daddy,” you mewl desperately.

“Fuck, such a tight little pussy, even after I relaxed you on my tongue” he growls, as his bulbous tip enters your pussy, stretching you out deliciously. “S-So big,” your breathy voice replies when he slowly invades your narrow walls. 

“But you can take it, can’t you? Show daddy what a good little slut you can be,” he coos, moving slowly to push his cock deeper, giving you time to adjust. 

You moan loudly when he’s finally balls deep inside you, making your walls clench around him tightly. Taehyung lets out a deep breathy moan when your velvety walls hug his length, you feel so warm and wet around him. You clench deliberately this time, just to hear his beautiful moan again.

“Ngh.. are you okay?” He asks in a low voice.

“Yes, you are just so big fuck,” you whimper.

He pulls out his cock before slamming it inside your pussy. The deep thrust pushes your hips forward, if it weren’t for his grip on your hips you would’ve fallen on the mattress from the force. 

His thrusts produce lewd clapping noises in the otherwise silent room. A blush creeps on your cheeks from the pornographic sounds. He rubs your clit in circles as his thrusts start to gain momentum.  

He pulls your hips closer just before thrusting his cock in, setting a rhythm. You feel your orgasm bubbling up again, “I’m gonna.. aghh,” you cry out loud. He rubs your clit like a madman, while his cock stretches your walls even further. 

“Such a slut for my cock, look at you sucking me in so desperately.”

“Yes yes, don’t stop daddy!” 

Taehyung feels your orgasm approaching by the way your walls flutter erratically. He gives you a deep power thrust and your orgasm takes over. The climax hits you like a truck as you cum, hard. You close your eyes as your orgasm washes over you, your limbs feel too weak to support your body. Taehyung holds you through your high, pressing gentle kisses on your back as you come down from your high.

He lays you down on your back once your breathing is somewhat normal. He hovers over your body, sucking the skin of your neck. He places small pecks on the valley of your breast. “Such nice tits,” he slaps both your tits lightly, making them jiggle, before taking one in his mouth. 

He bites on your nipple, making you shudder. He sticks out his tongue to circle your areola, making you wet like you didn’t just cum. Taehyung rolls your left nipple between his fingers, pinching it lightly, while his mouth works on sucking the right tit. 

He releases your tit from his mouth with a ‘pop’. Moving to the neglected nipple, sucking and biting it till his heart's content. Your nipples look red and swollen, covered in his spit.

“Put it in Tae,” You demand.

“Are you sure you can take it?” He looks at your fucked upstate. 

“Yes, wanna make daddy cum,” you pout.

Taehyung smirks at your reply, taking his cock in his hand before spanking your clit with it. A series of mewls and whimpers escape your lips when he rubs his cock against your folds, spreading your wetness all over his cock.

Your wetness slips his cocks inside your entrance.  Despite getting stretched twice, he still feels big. “MMhmm” you let out a huffed moan as he slips his clock in and out of you slowly. You can see him holding back, so as not to hurt you. 

“Faster, god you stretch me out so good,” you beckon him to move faster.

 “Yeah, you want it fast, want me to wreck this little pussy,” he grunts, “that Jungkook isn’t balls deep inside your pussy now huh, who’s making you feel good now? Whose dick are you squeezing now?”

“Agh, y-yours nghhh yours daddy!” You manage to reply. 

“Whose dick are you gonna cum on? Who does this pussy belong to?” He growls anomalistically

“Yours Tae, only yours!” Your scream, feeding onto his possessiveness.

“That’s right, now milk my cock like a good little slut.”

You feel the similar knot in your abdomen, you know your orgasm is approaching but you want to cum with him. You run your hand through his hair pulling him closer to give him a sloppy kiss. 

You tug his hair making him slam harder, his thrusts are enough to make you cum without even touching your clit. You clench your walls harder as your orgasm starts overtaking your body. Your eyes roll into your head, furrowing your brows as shocks of pleasure travel to your whole body. 

“So beautiful,” Taehyung whisper fucking you through your orgasm. 

“Fill me up daddy, wanna feel your cum inside my pussy,” you whimper as your climax slowly starts to fade away. You lift your neck to press small kisses on his Adam’s apple.

“Fuck, take it,” he thrusts even faster as white ropes of cum enters your pussy filling you up. You clench your walls milking every last drop of his cum. His body drops on yours as you scratch his back comfortingly. 

He lifts up his body, putting the weight on his arms, still hovering over you. “You look so beautiful when you cum, I wanna see it again,” his hand travels down to your clit making you whimper with overstimulation. 

“I-I can’t Tae,” you whine. 

“You will,” he growls, “Just give me one more, wanna see that pretty look on your face.”

His thumb rubs your swollen bead making you squirm. The pain from your sensitivity soon turns pleasurable. You bite your lip hard when you feel your pussy tighten. “That’s it you are almost there,” he increases the speed of his thumb.

His cock still inside you makes you feel so full. “Let go,” he applies a bit more pressure on your clit. 

That is all it takes and you feel your knot building up before you let go. “Such a good girl,” he coos, pressing light kisses on your forehead as he draws an exhausting orgasm out of you. 

He slowly pulls out of you when you come down from your climax. Your eyes feel too heavy due to exhaustion. You feel Taehyung cleaning your folds with a wet towel, before drifting off to sleep. You feel a strong pair of arms pulling you closer before nuzzling his head in the crook of your neck.

Your eyes flutter open as the rays of the sun enter the room from the space between the curtains. You stretch your arms above your head, yawning as you try to wake up from your slumber. 

You shift around to find the bed empty next to you. Where is he? You sit on the bed clutching the cover to your chest, trying to look for some clothes. Oh, your dress is downstairs, you blush remembering last night's endeavours. But why’s he not here? What if he regrets it, or worse, what if it was just fun for him, you feel your chest get heavy from your bleak thoughts.

Your knees feel weak as you try to get up from the bed. You find Taehyung's shirt laying on the floor, you put it on to cover your naked body. You step out of the room to look for Taehyung only to find him half naked talking on the phone. He’s shirtless from the top while a pair of Grey sweatpants hang loosely around his waist, you bite your lip at the view.

“I need the report of net revenues too,” he ends the call, turning around to see you standing before him. “I’m sorry did I wake you up from the call?”

“No, I was already awake,” your fingers play with the sleeves of his shirt.

“I was going to make you some ramen, that’s all I have,” he replies in his raspy morning. “I’m still in the process of moving in.”

“No need, I’m just going to change and leave,” you turn around to leave but his voice stops you.

 “Are you gonna do this again?”

“Do what?” You look at him, brows furrowed in confusion.

“Can’t you see that I’ve feelings for you,” he huffs. 

“What?” You raise your eyebrows. He likes you? You don’t know what to say, you never imagined your feelings being reciprocated.

“Yeah, I think I made that pretty obvious,” he mutters, looking at your reaction.

“Let’s see,” You point out your fingers, “we weren’t able to stand each other in high school, you teased me all the time even now aaand you kissed me and didn’t even contact me after that, I guess why I didn’t get a clue.”

“Ok maybe not that obvious,” he rubs the back of his neck.  

“I thought-,” You look down avoiding eye contact, “you were just playing with me.”

“Aww kitten,” coos as he steps closer cupping your face in his palms. “I didn’t know you were having these thoughts, I’m sorry I should’ve said something, I just got busy with taking over the new CEO role,” he sighs.

Ohh, that’s why he didn’t text you, “so you really like me?” You look at him with doe eyes.

“Why else do you think I agreed to be your date?”

“I don’t know,” you shrug, “to tease me?”

“Well that too,” he jokes, earning a playful smack from you. “But I’m gonna make it up to you.”

“Mhmm, and how are you planning to do that?” You bite your lip.

“Hmm Maybe a warm bath and I’d like to take you out on a real date as my girl,” he mutters the last words nervously. 

“I’d love that,” you smile widely as Taehyung leans forward to kiss you. His cushiony lips kiss you softly, gently sliding his tongue inside to feel yours.

You end the kiss abruptly, pulling away as a question strikes you, “why were you such an ass to me in school.”

“I liked it, your conversations always got heated and I liked how you treated me,” he admits. “It was different than how you treated others, made me feel special like it was our thing.”

You shake your head in disbelief, unable to control the smile that twitches the corner of your lips upward. You reply by capturing his lips in yours to continue your kiss.

You still can’t stand him, but this time you know it’s because you are falling for him.

･ﾟ: *･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ*:･ﾟ･ﾟ: *･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ*:･ﾟ･ﾟ: ･ﾟ: *･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ* ﾟ* ･ﾟ: *･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ*:･ﾟ･ﾟ: *･ﾟ:* 

I hope you enjoyed reading it, do let me know how you like it by sending me an ask. Your feedback would mean a lot.🥺

-Rose 🤎

@lavientae​ @xoneaboveallx​ @moon1045​ @deliciousdetectivestranger​ @roguesthetic​ @someinsanefangirl​ @jeontier​ @soeur-de-ame​  @raman2703

[purple-spring]

Hi!! I just wanted to see if you have any received for some of your favorite books? You have such a wonderful writing style and I assume it must come in some small part from the influence of great works. 😊 (doing this publicly so more can benefit from your awesomeness)

*cracks knuckles* Okay, girl. You know this was a big-ass deal for me. So time to throw some books at you. I kind of categorised them into how (I think) they’ve influenced my writing style. I hope that helps!

Heavy-handed prose, time-fractured narratives:

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy. The first book that I read that made me think, geez, how long did she take to write this? Every freaking sentence is PACKED.WITH.MEANING.

Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel. Sequel to Wolf Hall, both are about Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s Master Secretary. It is muscular, evocative, spare prose. Just blindingly brilliant. (Avoid if you don’t care much about the Tudors.)

World-building, setting and aesthetic:

American Gods by Neil Gaiman. Actually just anything by Neil Gaiman. But this particular book is any mythology-obsessed kid’s DREAM, as well as a powerful reflection on America.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt. Listen. Nothing rivals the incredible world of Classics and college created by Tartt here. One of the reasons why it remains one of the most moodboarded novels here on Tumblr.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Did the story live up to the promise of the incredible world of Cirque des Reves? I don’t think so. But the universe that’s been crafted here is pure opulence.

Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler. Anyone who writes a New York restaurant AU ought to read this. It’s a dark, sexy mess but also just so insightful and cutting and immersive.

On love and relationships:

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby. You wanna know what a relationship looks like from a guy’s perspective? Read this. It’s been described as the guy version of Bridget Jones’ Diary.

The Lovers’ Dictionary by David Levithan. Such a clever idea - a love story organised into dictionary entries (which inspired “the vocabulary of us”!). Also a brilliant Twitter account!

Essays on Love/The Course of Love by Alain de Botton. A philosopher reflects on love. Heavy, a little full-on, but worth it for the insight.

Summer Skin by Kristy Eagar. A brilliant Australian novel. Do you want the sexiest, ballsiest feminist romance you’ve ever read in your life? Pick this up. 

Real stories:

Mo’ Meta Blues by ?uestlove. One for the music nerds. Do you want random Prince stories peppered with a thorough history of hip-hop? This is for you.

Listen to the Squawking Chicken by Elaine Lui. A loving, tender but also hilarious memoir about the author’s mother. I’m constantly yelling at people to read more Lainey Gossip - this is her! And she’s brilliant!

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. So much more painful now that he’s gone, but still so brilliant and so fresh. The passion leaps off the page.

Just, really good:

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. A complicated coming-to-America story, from the perspective of a Nigerian woman.

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I know. I know. There’s so many WW2 novels in this world. But this one is specifically heartbreaking.

The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden. HOW MUCH DO I NEED TO YELL AT EVERYONE TO READ THIS. PLEASE.

Uprooted by Naomi Novik. Oh, my god. This. This is the Enemies-To-Lovers trope perfected, except it also has a strong feminist undercurrent and a kickass friendship and a bumbling but brilliant heroine. 

And just in case you’d like to learn how to write smut well:

The Boss by Abigail Barnette. Are you reading Fifty Shades to try and gain an insight into the Dom/Sub dynamic? Put that shit down and read this instead. Ho.Lee.Crap. 

[thepaintedlady00]

Nightshade

Chapter 5: Fuck The Cape

Chapter 4 | Chapter 6

TW: depictions of near drowning, memories of parental abuse & neglect, smoking, drinking, fights (not graphic), unhealthy coping mechanisms, panic attacks, general stress, I know nothing about cameras or photography, emotional vulnerability.

“I can’t do it!" I cried out as the waves tossed against me. The sun was still high in the sky, blinding slivers of light reflecting off of the moving water and shining into my eyes as I desperately tried to stay above water.

The boat only a few movements away bobbed on the surface, groaning with each shift of the waves. "You either sink or swim, Lena." The voice was soft and nurturing, but the words were anything but. "And Glovers don't sink."

Water crashed over my head, forcing me beneath the surface for a moment before I managed to push myself back to the top. I freedom sucked in as much air as I could, wide eyes looking at the half-shaded figure lounging on the boat. "Mom please!"

With a sigh, she shook her head as she stood. "Sink or swim."

The roar of the engine ripped along the surface of the water as the boat eased further and further away from me, back toward the shore. My heavy breaths did little the warm the cold that settled in my limbs as they moved, struggling to keep me afloat. With hot tears blurring my vision I forced myself to swim forward.

Salty. Sweet. Bitter. The water hit my tongue each time my heavy limbs splashed above the water. Each time it was a different taste, a different sensation that filled my brain with a moment of distraction. The taste, however potent, did little to help keep me from sinking as the fatigue finally set in. My eyes burned each time I forced my head to breach the surface, taking in as many sharp breaths of the frozen air as I could before sinking deeper and deeper into the ever-darkening water.

Sink or swim.

With one last push of my arms, I forced myself above the water and fumbled for the ledge of the buoy. My frozen fingers curled around the even colder surface as I tugged myself closer to the bright red material. It swayed with the waves, chaotic and violent but I held on. The sun began to set over the sparkling horizon and as night fell I could only wait and pray she would come back for me soon.

Sink or swim.

"Lena?" Howard called on the other end of the phone. "Are you still there?" The red buoy caught the light as I stared across the shimmering water, stuck in echoes of the waves and the cries of the birds, everything that held the bitter memories of a girl lost to this sea.

"Yeah… Yeah, I'm still here." I sighed, tearing my eyes away from the ocean and forcing my breaths in and out. Just breathe. "Sorry, I… got distracted."

Howard made a noise of acknowledgment. "Perfectly understandable. I take it you found somewhere nice and secluded to rest and maybe have some fun?"

My eyes shifted once again to that damn red buoy. "Secluded is definitely a fitting word. Sorry, again, for giving you such short notice."

"Don't worry about it," he insisted. "I'm well versed in keeping the restaurant afloat through sudden changes."

A sharp tingle ran through my limbs, forcing them to recall the numb heaviness of fatigue that had stemmed from keeping me afloat on those damn waves. "Still, I'm sure Scott won't be too happy about it."

"Scott will understand. Enjoy your vacation, Lena, you've earned it."

"Yeah... I will," I lied. "Thanks again, Howard."

"See you in a few days."

I squeezed the closed phone in my hands trying to stave off the numbness before it spread to my legs. God, I was so stupid. I knew what Cape fucking Cod held… I knew what would happen when I got here and yet I came anyway. I always did. At this point, it was some sick and twisted ritual that forced me to face the past and move on. Except the last part never happened. Instead of sorting my shit out and moving on, I spent my time either avoiding it all with booze and drugs and fights or by stupidly diving headfirst into the worst of it all and reopening every damn wound I worked so hard to mend. I'm so fucking stupid, I told myself again as I walked back towards the house. This is fucking stupid! 

The beach house was exactly how I left it, covered in broken glass and empty bottles of whatever booze she left lying around before she left. I walked over the glass, intentionally stepping down harder to ensure it’d shatter into even smaller more difficult pieces to clean up, and made my way to the kitchen. There was nothing to eat, never was, but there was always plenty of wine and whisky and right now that was all I needed. Pulling a bottle off the counter I sat down on the floor, looking out across the floor of glittering glass and dust, I flipped my phone open and dialed the number without sparing a second glance.

Ring. Ring. Ring. “Hello?” My breath caught in my throat as tears began to fill my eyes. “Just kiddin, you’ve reached Jack Harrow leave a message after the beep or whatever.” Beep.

“Hey pops,” I whispered, closing my eyes. “It’s Lena… I… I just wanted to hear your voice, you know that sentimental shit or whatever. Pete’s coming home next week. He’s not out of the woods yet, but he’s looking better than he has in years and I hope this is the thing that actually works for him, ya know? He deserves to get better and to live the rest of his life. Oz has the bar pretty much under control, though I think he misses having you around to mess with. Patrick’s doing right by the place, hasn’t changed a thing. I… I started working at 22West.” I laughed, imagining the slew of phrases he’d say to lovingly mock me. “I know, I know… I missed it. Well, the cooking part at least. Feeling like I was part of some top-notch kitchen and getting to watching rich people blow thousands of dollars on a chicken thigh or some wine. Everyone’s been nice, you’d like them.” After a minute of silence, I couldn’t help the soft sobs that worked their way out of my throat. “Daddy I… I… your jacket got ripped up. It was all my fault and I’m sorry. I’m so sorry Dad.”

The machine beeped again, cutting off the rest of my sobs and pleas for forgiveness. I curled up on the floor and pressed the phone harder to my ear, listening to the ringing again and to his deep voice and quiet chuckle. “Hello? Just kiddin, you’ve reached Jack Harrow leave a message after the beep or whatever.”

Beep.

*

Cape fucking Cod. Jake hated the cape more than he hated anything, even Howard or Etienne. He hated the little shops and the ugly blue-chipping color that almost every building seemed to be painted. He hated how everyone would smile and wave as they recognized him and Simone making their way toward her mom's house. Why did I even fucking come back here? He asked himself scowling at everyone they passed by. Simone laughed ahead of him, catching up with someone she knew or something. 

Jake watched her for a second and sighed. Simone asked him. That’s why he came. She told him she needed him around to support her while she dealt with her mom being her mom. It wasn’t that big of a deal… and he owed her that much at least after everything she did for him back then and still did for him now. If Simone needed him Jake would be there, no matter what.

“Moms pulling out all the stops,” Simone said falling into step beside him. “Cooking our favorite meal and all that good stuff.”

“Yippie,” Jake mumbled, pulling out the last of his cigarettes from the pack and getting ready to light it before Simone ripped it from between his lips with a sigh.

“Can you go just one day without smoking like a damn chimney?”

Jake clenched his jaw and tensely smiled at her. “Sure.”

She stopped walking and dug a small piece of paper out of her bag, holding it out to him. “I’m going to go get things settled at the house. You head to the store and pick up the wine and dessert for tonight?”

“I’m on it,” he assured her, separating from her to head off toward the small store he knew was just around the corner.

“And Jake!” She called after him, causing him to turn and look at her. “Thank you… for coming with me.”

Jake smiled, “No problem.”

The second Simone was out of sight Jake returned to his displeased scowling. Everything in this town reminded him of the childhood he couldn’t wait to get away from. Every street and person that walked along it contributed to the heavyweight that settled in his chest, growing tighter and tighter the longer he stayed here and breathed the thick salty air. As he turned the corner the weight on his chest lifted for a minute at the sight of that familiar red hair. No fucking way.

Lena walked down the sidewalk toward the small store with her head down and dark sunglasses covering her eyes. She looked like shit. Tired and dressed in clothes that looked old and tattered compared to what she normally wore. What made him narrow his eyes were the bruises that she hadn’t even bothered trying to conceal on her jaw and hands. When she walked into the store Jake smirked and made his way across the street. Maybe this trip would be good for something after all.

*

I said thank you to the young clerk and walked out of the store, holding my new pack of cigarettes in one hand and my lighter in the other. "Hey, can I bum one of those?" 

"Damn it!" I hissed startled, turning to find Jake standing next to me, smirking like he’d just won the damn lottery. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

He reached over and grabbed a cigarette out of my pack and scoffed. "It's a small town, princess. You want anonymity, you're gonna have to find it somewhere else."

I chose to ignore the new nickname as my head throbbed and I growled out, "Did you follow me?"

"Don't flatter yourself, " he replied, holding his hand out to me waiting for my lighter. "Simone has family here, our trip has been planned for weeks."

"So it's a coincidence then?"

"Yep." He nodded to my lighter. “Gonna help me out or?”

I handed it to him and turned to keep walking. Jake followed, of course, happily puffing smoke along the way. “Stop following me.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “But I’ve got so many questions!”

“I’m not answering questions today Jake. So, just I don’t know go do whatever the fuck you’re here to do.”

“Just one question, since I’m such a good friend,” he offered.

“Will it get you to leave me the fuck alone?”

He laughed. “Maybe.”

“Fine.”

“What are you doing in Cape Cod?” As we walked side by side I could see his eyes looking me up and down, likely focusing on how shitty I looked.

Fuck it. “I used to live around here during the summers with my mom.”

Jake stopped, pulling me with him. “No shit, really? Simone and I lived here. Just up the hill over there.”

“Great for you,” I replied pulling my arm free of his grasp. “Now, excuse me I have things to do.”

“If you lived here how come we never ran into each other?” Jake continued to follow me with his pestering questions.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. “You got your question, Jake, now fuck off.”

He didn’t listen, of course, he didn’t. “Think I woulda remembered a girl like you around here.”

A girl like me… he wouldn’t have recognized the little girl I was back then. I hardly did. “I wasn’t like this back then.”

“No?” He hummed. “Were you fat or something?”

“No.” Fucking asshole.

“What then?”

"You really don't want to come with me," I warned him, choosing to stray as far from the topic as I could. "It's not your scene."

He wiggled his eyebrows and smirked. "I'm up to try anything once."

With a poorly concealed smirk, I nodded. “Alright then, come on tough guy.”

The old gym made Jake’s eyes narrow, but he didn’t stop following behind me until we reached the basement door and the burly man that stood in front of it. He nodded to Jake. “He with you?”

“Yup,” I replied looking back at him over my shoulder. “Unless he wants to leave?”

“And miss out on all this fun mystery shit, nah,” he replied with a quirked brow. A challenge.

The big man gave us both some garbled warning before moving to the side and letting us descend the dark stairs into the brightly lit basement filled with a crowd of people cheering and shouting at the two fighters in the middle of the room. It was hardly professional, but I didn’t need it to be.

Jake looked around curiously, though I could see a shred of doubt in the way his eyebrows creased. “You don’t have to stay.”

He looked down at me with narrow eyes. “You fight people in your free time?”

“Not always,” I answered. “Just when there’s a lot of shit I need to work through. Having something to punch usually helps. It’s an old habit of mine, not exactly healthy but it works.” I set my bag down on one of the shitty tables they set up off to the side of all the action. “Like I said, you don’t have to stay.”

I was expecting him to make some excuse to save face and hurry out of there while he still could, but Jake surprised me again, sitting down next to my things. “You think I’m just gonna leave you here to get the shit beat out of you?”

“I’m not gonna get the shit beat out of me,” I assured him with a smile. “I am rather good at this.”

“Yeah, those bruises you’re sporting sure instill a lot of confidence.”

“I gotta give them a few hits or no one will fight me.”

Jake chuckled, settling further into the seat. “Well, when you need help limping home I’ll be here.”

Wrapping my hands I rolled my eyes. “I should just take my frustration out on you instead.”

He opened his arms, making room in his lap. “I’m definitely down for that.”

“You’re unbelievable.”

“Suit yourself,” he replied. “At least my offer won’t give you any new bruises.” He paused. “Scratch that, at least my offer won’t give you any bruises you won’t enjoy getting.”

Once my hands were properly wrapped I turned. “Try not to get your ass kicked while we’re here? I know it’ll be a real challenge for you.”

*

Jake hadn’t expected, well, this. Most girls he knew would spend bad days drinking wine and watching some shitty movie or shopping to take the edge off. Lena Harrow was not like most people, he’d quickly discovered. Watching her move in the shitty ring, dodging hits and landing even more was a surreal experience. Sweat glistened on her body, making her face practically glow in this brutal way that made him question a few things about himself. The satisfaction and pride that swelled in his gut at the sight of her taking down opponent after opponent was something he wasn’t expecting either.

Lena wasn’t much to him, a friend maybe but that was still a relatively new thing, and even that was forged in his underlying desire to get her to accept the mutual attraction and act on it. Jake tried to remind himself in the moments when Lena treated him like a friend that it wasn’t real, that she was just another back waiter, cook, or whatever, that he wanted to fuck. She wasn’t Simone. She didn't know him and he didn't know her. Lena was something else, though, something that Jake was more afraid of than he’d ever let on.

As her third opponent hit the floor she turned, her tired eyes gleaming and a bright smile on her face. She was beautiful, even covered in sweat and blood and lit up by the shitty basement lights. She was beautiful and Jake fucking hated it.

*

I sucked in a sharp breath, wincing at the sting of the alcohol-soaked rag that Jake lightly pressed to my scratched-up knuckles.

"So, Hurricane Harrow? That another one of your boxing names?"

I shook my head, carefully undoing the rest of the wrap with my free hand. "It's more of a term… My dad's family comes from a long line of boxers. People would chant Hurricane Harrow when one of them got so mad in the ring that they stopped caring about rules and just went for blood." Jake was quiet, his blue eyes watching me with shockingly clear concern. "When my dad started teaching me how to fight he told me I had demons in me. He said the fire and rage they gave me was useful in a fight, but I needed to control it or it'd consume me."

"Harrows seek out fights like damn bloodhounds," my dad said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "I know you're gonna keep this goin til you can't move, so the least I can do is show ya how to be good at it."

I looked at him through my one good eye. "You're serious? You're gonna let me fight?"

Dad smiled. "I'm gonna teach ya, never said I'd encourage your little alleyway brawls. There's a catch though."

"Course there is."

"You keep those demons in check for me, yeah?" He grinned, ruffling my hair. "Last thing I want is to end up lookin like you."

"You're such an asshole!" I shrieked with a laugh, shoving his hand away and sorely standing up. "You're on pops."

Jake pressed the cloth down a little harder, but even then he was being so gentle I’d almost forgotten it was him here and not someone else, like Peter or Patrick. “Everyones got demons Lena, not just you.”

"My brother doesn’t… not like me at least." I smiled a little, the bitter feeling making my chest tighten. "Peter has always been kind and good… Everything I'm not. He never fought out of anger, but out of passion. He loved the sport… And he was just so fucking nice about it. Why? Why did I have to be the one with all the anger?" It was a question I’d asked a lot, one that I already knew the answer to, but Jake answered it anyway.

“I don’t know,” he said softly. “But if it’s any consolation I kinda liked seeing that side of you.”

I looked up at him and laughed nervously. “Oh?”

Jake nodded, continuing his careful cleaning of my hands. “It was badass.”

“Thanks,” I grumbled, wincing when he rubbed a particularly sore spot.

"And hot."

"Shut up."

After a beat or two Jake said, “Your dad would be proud of you, Lena."

Clenching my jaw to keep the ugly noises trapped in my throat I nodded and wipe a tear from my eye before it could fall. “Thanks, Jake. I’m… oddly glad you decided to follow me.”

He smiled. “I’m great company, I know.”

“Your confidence is truly an inspiration,” I said, kicking his shin lightly. “Come on, I’ll buy you dinner as a thank you.”

He helped me up and fell into step beside me as we made our way out of the locker room and down the street, leaving the coppery tang of blood and the grunts of blows landing far behind us. This was something new, having someone around me while I was living it up at rock bottom. It felt both nice and unsettling. What was even worse was the fact that Jake didn’t judge me. He didn’t say anything or give me a judgmental look no matter how many cigarettes I smoked or glasses of whisky I ordered. Jake just stayed. He talked about his childhood here, or lack thereof, and spoke about how much he hated the stupid town. Jake hated Cape Cod almost as much as I did and I liked it.

We sat down outside, ordering a simple plate of cheeseburgers and french fries both of us insisting that fish was fucking disgusting. While we waited for our food Jake took another cigarette out of my bag and stole my lighter. “Are you planning on reimbursing me for my cigarettes?”

“Fuck no,” he replied inhaling the smoke.

“Oh, so you’re stealing from me then?”

Those blue eyes sparkled. “Says the girl that stole a drug dealer's motorcycle.”

“Touche.”

The food got brought out to our table and I instantly took hold of the large burger before looking up at Jake, who looked at me curiously. "I'm not gonna eat this all dainty like," I warned.

Jake shrugged with a roguish smile. "By all means, chow down, princess."

"Stop calling me that,” I grumbled.

"Nah," he said, blowing smoke across the table before dropping the rest of his cigarette to the ground and snuffing it out with his boot. "I like the way it sounds. And you clearly enjoy it."

"Ass."

I took a big bite of my burger, maintaining eye contact with the smirking Jake as he did the same. The two of us tried hard not to laugh and spit our food out. Jake managed to chew his faster, wiping the condiments from the corner of his mouth as he chuckled. “That was impressive.”

With a little bow, I swallowed my food and laughed. “Never seen a girl almost choke on a cheeseburger before?”

“No, that was definitely a first.”

“I aim to please,” I replied digging back into my food.

Jake finished his food first and had quietly taken up smoking as the wind began to grow colder the more the sun started to set. “So, seriously, how come I never saw you around here when we were younger?”

Part of me didn’t want to answer, but the other part looked at his totally idiotically handsome face and the sincerity that had taken to his features. I shrugged. “I don’t know. My mom and I never really stayed long and we mostly kept to ourselves. I wasn’t exactly the same as I am now.”

“I mean I figured the boobs and ass weren’t as noticeable then,” he teased with a smirk. “But that hair is hard to miss.”

“Believe it or not I used to hate my hair. I’d always wear a hood or a hat just to try and blend in a bit.” I sighed. “Even dyed it one year. It was horrible and I regretted it instantly! I was a lot less cool than I am now.”

“I don’t believe that for a second,” Jake insisted.

“It’s true!” I laughed. “I was a geek that spent all day inside practicing the piano or cello or ballet. I didn’t really do much during the summers with my mom.”

He nodded, an odd look shining in his eyes. “Think we woulda been friends back then?”

“Depends, were you nearly as annoying then as you are now?”

Jake laughed, loud and full, and the sound made me feel something deep in my chest, something I never felt out here. “Oh, I was just as annoying.”

“Then I think we would’ve been quite the pair.”

“Yeah, me too.” Jake leaned forward a bit, resting his elbows on the table. “Can I get one last question?”

I sighed, exaggerating with a smile. “I guess.”

“Why’d you run?”

The image of my dad's jacket torn apart and hanging in my hands was seared into my memory as I bit my lip and looked anywhere but Jake’s face. “That fucking leather jacket. It was my dad's. Was… the last thing he gave me. I’d been sitting with him in that fucking hospital for days when he just held it out to me and told me to look after it for him for a minute.” I chuckled a bit. “He was convinced one of the nurses was going to try and steal it. I… I put it on when I went down to the cafeteria to get us some food and when I got back…” Blinking the tears from my eyes I shook my head. “He was gone.”

“I’m sorry,” Jake said. “I figured it meant something to you, but I didn’t know it was like that.”

“It’s not your fault,” I said. “I was the one that was supposed to look after it and I didn’t.”

He shook his head and reached across the table to take hold of one of my hands. “It wasn’t your fault either. If anything let's blame the idiot that tore it up.”

Jake’s phone ringing broke the quiet moment between us as we both pulled away from each other and he reached into his pocket to answer. “Hey… No, I know… Alright chill out, I’m on my way… I said I’m on my way Simone, Jesus.”

I stood up and placed the tip on the table. “Duty calls.”

“Yeah,” he sighed following my lead. “You gonna be okay?”

“I’m a big girl Jake,” I replied with a tense smile. “I’ll be fine.”

He nodded, but I could see in his eyes that he didn’t believe me. “Well, if you end up needing anything call me.”

“I don’t have your number.”

“Yeah, you do,” he replied with a grin. “I put it in your phone back at the gym.”

Scoffing I started walking. “What an invasion of my privacy.”

He laughed and shrugged. “Try not to get too fucked up out there.”

“You too, tough guy.”

The quietness of the house usually never bothered me, but as I downed my fourth shot of tequila it suddenly grew almost unbearable. I was used to being alone… at least I had been, but now. I wanted to go home. I wanted to sleep in my own bed or even in the uncomfortable cot next to Peter. But I couldn’t go home, not when the only thing keeping me from falling apart was booze and cigarettes. I couldn’t. If I did I’d go straight to Dom and I’d fuck all my progress up. I’d fuck everything up.

Out the window, the red buoy seemed to glow in the orange light. The numbness in my hands slowly started to return as I twirled my phone in my hand and considered calling Jake. He was busy no doubt, with Simone and whatever it was they came here for. He’s busy, I told myself setting the phone down on the counter and committing to the idiotic idea that had settled into my head after the second shot. I almost slipped on the shards of glass as I made my way out the front door, and just started walking. I forced myself to breathe deeply, even though the air smelt rancid the closer I got to the ocean.

Driving a boat drunk is not something I’d recommend, but somehow I made it past the red buoy and managed to stop the damn thing in the perfect spot. Staring out across the shimmering water I could feel the panic rising in my chest, could feel it but idiotically didn’t even try to stop and think. No more thinking. I stepped off the edge and plunged into the cold water. No more thinking.

*

Jake couldn’t get out of that house fast enough. He’d forgotten to get the wine and dessert, which made Simone almost unbearable through dinner. Her mom was sweet like she always was, but it made Jake feel uncomfortable, reminding him too much of what little he remembered of his mom. He excused himself, holding his camera up and telling them he was going to get some shots of the beach before the sunset.

So there he was, walking along the beach next to the docks, taking pictures of the ocean and the sand. He aimed the lens out onto the water, focusing on an empty boat and snapping the picture before his brain registered the name neatly painted on the side. Harrow. A pit settled in his stomach as he pulled his camera away from his eyes for a moment before looking again.

He looked around the boat for a moment before he zoomed out a way. The camera lens focused on the floating red buoy and Jake felt his chest tighten at the sight of Lena, swimming sluggishly behind it. “Lena?”

She disappeared under the water for a minute too long and Jake could hardly breathe as his feet moved quickly toward the boat at the dock, the one he’d used to dare kids to take for joyrides because the idiot owners always left the keys in it. He hopped in and looked back out at the water as Lena’s red hair resurfaced and her pale hands gripped onto the buoy for dear life as the waves crashed over her. “LENA!”

God fucking damn it! He cursed, turning the engine on and hauling ass out onto the water toward her. The boat cutting through the water echoed distantly in his ears as that hideous fucking fear consumed him just like it did when he was a kid. He could hear the police quietly whispering about his mom as he sat on the stairs of his old home and waited. He could recall the sad smile on Simone’s face as she tucked him into his new bed for the first time and curled up beside him stroking his hair while he cried. At that moment he remembered what it felt like when he’d first tried to drown himself. The breathlessness. The pressure.

His mom walked into the ocean and didn’t come back. He’d be fucking damned if Lena was going to do the same.

*

Every inch of my body shook as I clung to that damn buoy. What the fuck was I thinking? Who the hell just jumps into the fucking ocean to try and prove some stupid point to a mother that’s not even here?! I could hear the water around me, the engine of some boat or another driving past, but everything was muffled as the panic began to overtake everything else. “Sink or swim.” I’d sunk. Sunk and fully settled into everything she said I would be. “You’re going to regret this, little one. Not now, maybe not even in a few years, but one day, when you’ve accomplished nothing in your life you’ll regret this moment.”

“LENA!” Jake’s muffled voice echoed in my ears as my head was pushed below the water again. “Lena give me your fucking hand!”

Jake? I turned my head the second I came back up to find him leaning over the edge of some boat, reaching out for me. His blue eyes were wide and full of fear. “J-J-Ja-ake?”

“If you don’t give me your hand right now I swear to fucking god I’m going to drag you by the hair into this boat Lena!” He reached out to me more as his voice turned desperate, pleading, “Just give me your hand.”

Shaking I reached out to him and numbly latched onto his arm as he pulled me up into the boat. Jake shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around my front before pulling me into his arms and rubbing my cold skin. As my breaths quickened and the memories of all the other times I’d failed replayed over and over again in my head as I mumbled.

He didn’t know what I was talking about and honestly, he probably didn’t care. Jake just held onto me tight, whispering to me, “I’ve got you. It’s okay, I’ve got you. Just breathe. Please just breathe.”

By the time my panic attack had settled the sun was gone and the stars filled the sky. Jake and I sat in the boat, looking up at the sky, neither of us sure where to start. “My mom died out here. In this water.”

I turned my head and looked at him. Though his face remained stoic I could see the pain in his eyes as he looked up at the sky. “I’m… I’m sorry… I didn’t know that.”

He shrugged. “It’s fine, most people don’t.”

His mom died… drown and yet he’d come to get me. He must’ve been so angry, so scared… I shook my head. “It’s not fine. You had to come out here and drag me out of the water your mom died in. I can’t even imagine how terrifying that must have been.” Jake’s face only twitched into a moment of fearful sorrow. I leaned further into him. “I’m sorry, Jake.”

“Why were you out here?” He asked, voice cracking slightly. “Why the fuck were you out in the middle of the fucking ocean?”

I could have given him whatever answer I wanted. Jake didn’t know the truth and he didn’t have to. No one did. The longer I sat there, covered in his leather jacket and being warmed by his body heat the more difficult it was to keep the truth inside. Eventually, I sighed and the words began to slip out, “I was never good at the piano or the cello or ballet. No matter how many hours I spent practicing… no matter how badly my fingers bled or my feet ached from the effort I put into the stupid things it was never enough.” I tapped on my leg for a minute, working up the courage to continue through the lump in my throat. “My mom insisted I wasn’t trying hard enough. Glovers are hard workers with talent and determination and in her head, I lacked both. To her, I was just lazy. So… when I’d keep getting the notes wrong or messing up the routine she’d plop me in a boat, drive out past the buoy and tell me to get in the water.” Jake was watching me closely now, I could feel the heat of his eyes, but I didn’t have the heart to look at him. “I’d swim for hours before she’d start the boat and tell me to sink or swim. She’d leave me there to swim back to shore myself. I never could… I’d always end up hanging off that stupid buoy until one of the neighbors came and got me. She wouldn’t even let me back in the house when I got back so I’d have to stay with the old couple across the street for the night.”

“That's… That’s fucked up.” He mumbled.

“Yeah,” I wiped the tears from my eyes and glanced back at him. “After a while, I went to live with my dad and brother. She signed over custody without a fight and told him good luck.”

“I’m sorry,” Jake said, his tone low and unsure. He clearly wasn’t expecting all this and sure as hell didn’t know how to respond to any of it. “What is it about this fucking place that makes everything just shit?”

I laughed softly and shook my head. “I don’t know. But, hey, at least we turned out only marginally fucked up.”

Jake laughed at that. “I fucking hate it here.”

“Me too,” I replied. “It’s probably the worst place in the world.”

“And yet neither of us seems to be able to stay away.” He sighed. “Maybe we’re more fucked up than we think.”

"Let's make each other a promise then," I said, holding my pinky out to him. He visibly bit back a snarky remark about the "childish" action. "To never come back here again."

The blue of his eyes sparkled as he thought about the offer for a minute before he nodded, reaching out to link his pinky with mine. "Yeah, okay."

"Fuck the cape," I said, my pinky squeezing his.

Jake smiled. "Fuck the cape."

*

I stood in the aisle of the store, looking at the condiments blankly while I tried to kill time. Mom was in another meeting, like always, and I'd been practicing for hours before I decided it was time for a break. So there I was, standing in the shitty store staring at condiments.

"Hey, pass me a thing of mustard?" A voice asked from beside me.

"Sure," I replied, bored.

The boy smiled crookedly as I handed the mustard to him. His ocean-blue eyes sparkled in the fluorescent lights and his dark hair was sticking up in several places. "Thanks."

"No problem."

He tilted his head. "You new around here? I don't think I've seen you before."

"Not new," I said. "But no, you probably haven't seen me."

He was about to ask another question when a blonde girl rounded the corner and gave him a scolding face. "There you are! You can't just wander off!"

"I didn't wander off." He rolled his eyes. "I was getting the mustard."

I silently excused myself from their argument, tucking my red hair deeper under my hood and making my way past them toward the front door. I needed to practice some more anyway, not stand around some store with arguing strangers.

[thepaintedlady00]

Nightshade Original Characters Spotlight!

I found the inspiration pics that helped me create these fun original characters that we're getting to know in the series and I thought it'd be fun to share with y'all. Enjoy! 😊

Peter:

Obviously this is his before hair loss vibe, but still. Peter is bright and full of life even while bed ridden. He's funny and sweet and protective of those he loves, as Ozzy puts it "you've got your pops in you, no doubt about that." Before being diagnosed with leukemia Peter was an active boxer that took business classes so he could one day take over his fathers business (The Ring and Jack's portion of the bar). When his health became to decline he put Patrick in charge of The Ring, hoping if the worst happened the place would stay in the "family". Sexuality: gay. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the actor I believe is named Tanner Buchanan

Isaac:

Our sassy Isaac is the definition of golden retriever energy! He's a big sweetheart, a total goofball and an all around great friend. Isaac doesn't like confrontation much, but he'll do anything to defend his friends. Though he joined the friend group as a one night stand of Peters, everyone quickly began dragging him to every function and making him feel like they'd all known each other for ages. He worked at 22West first almost two years before Lena and he made certain to keep her in the loop on her estranged family in an attempt to protect her should they come into town. Sexuality: gay. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the actor is Logan Lerman.

Ozzy:

Oswald was born in the UK, but his family moved to New York when he was young. He still has a slight British accent, but is a New Yorker through and through. After opening his bar and getting acquainted with the neighborhood he met Jack Harrow, a boxer and the owner of the business next door. The two were fast friends who grew to become brothers. They went into business together and Ozzy took Jack's kids in as his own. When Jack passed it was Ozzy that helped keep Peter and Lena from spiraling into depression and manic episodes. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the actors name is Timothy Omundson.

Quinn:

Quinn is hardworking, gorgeous and absolutely not one you want to mess with. She's worked everyday of her life to keep herself and those she considers family taken care of. Her career as a stripper is one that's made many individuals judge her and even try to manipulate her, but she's proud of who she is and what she does. Quinn is blunt and will never sugarcoat what needs to be said, she also enjoys poking fun at her friends and being kind if a diva. Sexuality: bisexual. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the actresses name is Katherine Mcnamara.

Prue:

Prue is a fun, deaf goddess that brings light and laughter to everyone she meets. Growing up was difficult for her, given her disability and the restrictions everyone else tried to put on her, but Prue is strong and determined. She worked hard and studied her craft until she became one of the best. Being a deaf tattoo artist is challenging, but our girl loves a good challenge! She's the one that designed each of Lena's tattoos and was the one behind the needle as well. Prue was the first friend Lena made when she came to live in New York with her father and brother permanently. Sexuality: straight. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the model is a beautiful woman named Dina Denoire

Dom:

Dom is your average friendly neighborhood drug dealer. He runs the local biker gang and deals out the back alley of Jack and Ozzy's. Though his profession is a bit questionable he's a decent man that uses the money and reputation he's earned over the years to keep some relative peace around the old neighborhood. Obviously peace isn't always an option, in which case you do not want to be on the bad side of Dom and his bikers. Pictures found on Pinterest, the model is a man named Freddie Dobbs.

Patrick:

Our Irish gym boy is one of the first people the Harrows take under their wing. An orphan living on the streets with nothing but a few scraps to his name, Patrick used The Ring to stay warm on harsh winter nights. Jack and his big heart offered him a job and a bed under his roof. Patrick became another sibling to Peter and another big brother to Lena during her visits. He's hardworking and humble with a great sense of humor and obviously the muscle to back up his hot headed little sister. After Jack's death and Peters decline in health he took over running The Ring and keeps an even closer eye on Lena, as the years have been nothing but chaos for the both of them. Sexuality: bisexual. Pictures were found on Pinterest, the actors name is Domhnall Gleeson.